About Plato's ideas regarding political organisation

About Plato's ideas regarding political organisation PDF

Author: Linda Vuskane

Publisher: GRIN Verlag

Published: 2010-11-26

Total Pages: 10

ISBN-13: 3640762037

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Essay from the year 2009 in the subject Politics - Political Theory and the History of Ideas Journal, grade: 72%, Liverpool John Moores University, language: English, abstract: Following a short overview of Plato’s life and the political situation of his time, this paper describes and analyses Plato’s ideas regarding political organisation, including aristocracy, timocracy, oligarchy, democracy and tyranny and further examines whether these ideas have any relevance nowadays. In addition, the paper touches on Plato’s ideas about the ideal state and his famous allegory of the cave. The paper concludes that, even if many Plato’s ideas seem very alien to us, some ideas, particularly the moral and spiritual dimension of political life, are still very relevant today.

Plato's Political Philosophy

Plato's Political Philosophy PDF

Author: Mark Blitz

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 2010-11-01

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 0801899184

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This comprehensive, yet compact, introduction examines Plato's understanding of law, justice, virtue, and the connection between politics and philosophy. Focusing on three of Plato's dialogues—The Laws, The Republic, and The Statesman—Mark Blitz lays out the philosopher's principal interests in government and the strength and limit of the law, the connection between law and piety, the importance of founding, and the status and limits of political knowledge. He examines all of Plato's discussions of politics and virtues, comments on specific dialogues, and discusses the philosopher's explorations of beauty, pleasure, good, and the relations between politics and reason. Throughout, Blitz reinforces Plato's emphasis on clear and rigorous reasoning in ethics and political life and explains in straightforward language the valuable lessons one can draw from examining Plato's writings. The only introduction to Plato that both gathers his separate discussions of politically relevant topics and pays close attention to the context and structure of his dialogues, this volume directly contrasts the modern view of politics with that of the ancient master. It is an excellent companion to Plato's Dialogues.

The Republic

The Republic PDF

Author: Plato

Publisher: Lulu.com

Published: 2016-04-23

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 1365067564

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The Republic is a dialogue by Plato in which the famous Athenian philosopher examines the nature of an ideal society. The insights are profound and timeless. A landmark of Western literature, The Republic is essential reading for philosophy students.

Plato's 'Republic': An Introduction

Plato's 'Republic': An Introduction PDF

Author: Sean McAleer

Publisher: Open Book Publishers

Published: 2020-11-09

Total Pages: 233

ISBN-13: 1800640560

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It is an excellent book – highly intelligent, interesting and original. Expressing high philosophy in a readable form without trivialising it is a very difficult task and McAleer manages the task admirably. Plato is, yet again, intensely topical in the chaotic and confused world in which we are now living. Philip Allott, Professor Emeritus of International Public Law at Cambridge University This book is a lucid and accessible companion to Plato’s Republic, throwing light upon the text’s arguments and main themes, placing them in the wider context of the text’s structure. In its illumination of the philosophical ideas underpinning the work, it provides readers with an understanding and appreciation of the complexity and literary artistry of Plato’s Republic. McAleer not only unpacks the key overarching questions of the text – What is justice? And Is a just life happier than an unjust life? – but also highlights some fascinating, overlooked passages which contribute to our understanding of Plato’s philosophical thought. Plato’s 'Republic': An Introduction offers a rigorous and thought-provoking analysis of the text, helping readers navigate one of the world’s most influential works of philosophy and political theory. With its approachable tone and clear presentation, it constitutes a welcome contribution to the field, and will be an indispensable resource for philosophy students and teachers, as well as general readers new to, or returning to, the text.

Plato

Plato PDF

Author: Malcolm Schofield

Publisher: OUP Oxford

Published: 2006-08-31

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 0191530433

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The Founders of Modern Political and Social Thought series presents critical examinations of the work of major political philosophers and social theorists, assessing both their initial contribution and their continuing relevance to politics and society. Each volume provides a clear, accessible, historically informed account of a thinker's work, focusing on a reassessment of the central ideas and arguments. The series encourages scholars and students to link their study of classic texts to current debates in political philosophy and social theory. In this authoritative general account of Plato's political thought, a leading scholar of ancient Greek philosophy explores its key themes: education, democracy and its shortcomings, the role of knowledge in government, utopia and the idea of community, money and its grip on the psyche, ideological uses of religion. Between them these define what Plato considered to be the fundamental challenges for politics. All remain live issues. On all of them Plato took radical and uncomfortable positions. The radicalism derives above all from his reflections on the fate of Socrates at the hands of the Athenian democracy in 399 BC. So the book begins with chapters situating Plato's alienation from contemporary politics in its historical context, and examines at length the images of Athens and the Spartan alternative which pervade his writings on politics. The Republic is a main focus of discussion throughout, but ideas and arguments in many other dialogues from Apology and Gorgias to the Statesman and the Laws are examined. Plato: Political Philosophy assumes a broad range of readers - with backgrounds in varied fields (politics, philosophy, classics, history) - who may have little prior knowledge of Plato. It articulates and analyses his main lines of thought, illustrating them with a liberal use of translated excerpts, and highlighting affinities with modern theorists from Machiavelli and Mill to Rawls and Habermas. Schofield's distinctive line of approach to Plato's problems constitutes a lucid and accessible guide for those needing an introduction, and at the same time will provide those who know Plato well with much food for thought.

The Republic

The Republic PDF

Author: Plató

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2014-08

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781500711306

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The Republic (Plato) The Republic (Latin: De Republica) is a Socratic dialogue, written by Plato around 380 BC, concerning the definition of justice , the order and character of the just city-state and the just man, reason by which ancient readers used the name On Justice as an alternative title (not to be confused with the spurious dialogue also titled On Justice). The dramatic date of the dialogue has been much debated and though it must take place some time during the Peloponnesian War, "there would be jarring anachronisms if any of the candidate specific dates between 432 and 404 were assigned". It is Plato's best-known work and has proven to be one of the most intellectually and historically influential works of philosophy and political theory. In it, Socrates along with various Athenians and foreigners discuss the meaning of justice and examine whether or not the just man is happier than the unjust man by considering a series of different cities coming into existence "in speech", culminating in a city (Kallipolis) ruled by philosopher-kings; and by examining the nature of existing regimes. The participants also discuss the theory of forms, the immortality of the soul, and the roles of the philosopher and of poetry in society. 21st century One of Plato's recurring, and seemingly logical techniques in the Republic is to refine the concept of justice with reference to various examples of greater or lesser injustice. However, in The Concept of Injustice, Eric Heinze challenges the assumption that 'justice' and 'injustice' form a mutually exclusive pair. Heinze argues that such an assumption traces not from strict deductive logic, but from the arbitrary etymology of the word 'injustice'. Heinze critiques what he calls 'classical' Western justice theory for having perpetuated that logical error, which first appears in Plato's Republic, but manifests throughout traditional political philosophy, in thinkers otherwise as different as Aristotle, Aquinas, Locke, Rousseau, Hegel and Marx.Place in Plato's corpus The Republic is generally placed in the middle period of Plato's dialogues-that is, it is believed to be written after the early period dialogues but before the late period dialogues. However, the distinction of this group from the early dialogues is not as clear as the distinction of the late dialogues from all the others. Nonetheless, Ritter, Arnim, and Baron-with their separate methodologies-all agreed that the Republic was well distinguished, along with Parmenides, Phaedrus and Theaetetus. However, the first book of the Republic, which shares many features with earlier dialogues, is thought to have originally been written as a separate work, and then the remaining books were conjoined to it, perhaps with modifications to the original of the first book.

Plato on Women

Plato on Women PDF

Author: Harald Haarmann

Publisher:

Published: 2016-03

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 9781604979183

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Plato (ca. 427- ca. 347 BCE), the preeminent Greek philosopher, has been extensively studied. A major field of Plato's comprehensive work is his political philosophy, which is multifaceted and multidimensional. The discourse on gender issues forms an integral part of it. In this context, one is surprised to notice that Plato's elaborations have been interpreted in quite contrasting ways. In some feminist discussions of classical philosophy, Plato's intellectual enterprise is evaluated as reflecting Greek male chauvinism. Such identification carries all manner of stereotyping, and this is neither enlightening nor helpful for an overall understanding of Plato's teachings and his world of ideas. In the scholarly literature, one can make the surprising discovery that Plato's contribution to the understanding of gender roles in society slips the attention of authors who specialize in this topic. Plato was neither feminist in the modern sense nor a sexist. Plato was not a liberal thinker, and he did not take the initiative to make a case for women's liberties. And yet, he elaborates amply on issues of what is subsumed under women's liberation in our time: What else would we call a philosopher who, under the conditions of Greek society in the classical age, advocated for the participation of women in sports competitions and approved of the access of women to public offices, even to political leadership? In this study, priority lies in reconstructing Plato's ideas on women's roles viewed against the zeitgeist of gender issues in Greek society of classical antiquity. The analysis shows that Plato's speculations about gender and gender issues in an ideal society were nothing short of revolutionary. Plato on Women is a major contribution to political philosophy and gender studies as well as an important book for collections of Plato's works and scholarly literature focusing on this philosopher.

An Evaluation of Plato's Ideal State

An Evaluation of Plato's Ideal State PDF

Author: Oluwafemi Bolarfinwa

Publisher: GRIN Verlag

Published: 2011-12

Total Pages: 85

ISBN-13: 3656089582

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Scientific Essay from the year 2009 in the subject Politics - Political Theory and the History of Ideas Journal, grade: 1.0, University of Lagos, language: English, abstract: This work is an attempt to undertake an evaluation of Plato's ideal state. It argues the position that there is a need to realign Plato's ideal State to embrace the contemporary realities of today without negating its goal for a transformed society brought about by transformative leadership. Plato posit that the human race will have no respite from evils until those who are really philosophers acquire political power or until, through some divine dispensation, those who rule and have political authority in the cities become real philosophers. Plato came to the conclusion that all existing governments were bad and almost beyond redemption thus he theorized for an ideal State. The ideal state, according to Plato, is composed of three classes. The economic structure of the state is maintained by the merchant class. Security needs are met by the military class, and political leadership is provided by the philosopher-kings. In an attempt to re-evaluate Plato's ideal state, this work re-emphasized the relevance of transformative leadership as a necessary tool for societal good and transformation. It urges for the adoption of the relevant areas of Plato's concept of an ideal State anchored on the prevailing need and realities of the contemporary society.

Plato and the Mythic Tradition in Political Thought

Plato and the Mythic Tradition in Political Thought PDF

Author: Tae-Yeoun Keum

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2020-12-08

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 0674984641

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An ambitious reinterpretation and defense of Plato’s basic enterprise and influence, arguing that the power of his myths was central to the founding of philosophical rationalism. Plato’s use of myths—the Myth of Metals, the Myth of Er—sits uneasily with his canonical reputation as the inventor of rational philosophy. Since the Enlightenment, interpreters like Hegel have sought to resolve this tension by treating Plato’s myths as mere regrettable embellishments, irrelevant to his main enterprise. Others, such as Karl Popper, have railed against the deceptive power of myth, concluding that a tradition built on Platonic foundations can be neither rational nor desirable. Tae-Yeoun Keum challenges the premise underlying both of these positions. She argues that myth is neither irrelevant nor inimical to the ideal of rational progress. She tracks the influence of Plato’s dialogues through the early modern period and on to the twentieth century, showing how pivotal figures in the history of political thought—More, Bacon, Leibniz, the German Idealists, Cassirer, and others—have been inspired by Plato’s mythmaking. She finds that Plato’s followers perennially raised the possibility that there is a vital role for myth in rational political thinking.