Plato, Republic

The Allegory of the Cave Assistant Professor Sandrine Bertaux

Outline of the Lecture

• The Pre-Socratic Philosophy, Socrates and Plato;

• Plato’s Republic;• The Allegory of the Cave

Plato, Republic

• “until philosopher rule as kings or those who are now called kings and leading men genuinely and adequately philosophize, that is, until politics and philosophy entirely coincide…cities will have no rest from evils…nor will the human race.” (B.V)

Some important translation/interpretation issues

• Republic: Politeia (constitution) as a particularpolitical regime and political culture;

Kallipolis (the beautiful city)= the just city=ruled by philosophers;• The rulers: translated often as “philosopher-

kings” omits the “philosopher-queens” philosopher-rulers

Plato’s incorporation of women in the polis

• One of three radical propositions:(qualified) women have the ability to rule;(qualified) women have the ability to defend

the polis;Therefore, they can receive the same

education as their brothers, they can becomephilosophers.Kallipolis vs. the democratic polis

Pre-Socratic philosophers

• Natural philosophers: Materialist approach tophysical reality: quest for primary matter (water,air)

• Pythagoras: mathematical and metaphysicalview: abstract

• Democritus: atoms (imperceptible by senses)• Parmenides: senses not to be trustedTruth (immutable) vs. opinion (change)Plato: sensible (change) vs. intelligible (permanent, unchanging)

Philosophy: Love (philo) of wisdom (sophia)

• Philosophy: no separation before the 18th

century between study of the cosmos andnature and the study of politics

• Political philosophy:Normative questions: what is a good life?Epistemological question: How do we know?

Socrates Method

• Ti esti? What is it?• Elenchus: examination of a question through a

dialogueDialogue is about doing philosophyPlato, Republic (politeia): Dialectic: abstract and nonsensible realm of the forms: First principle: the GoodTheory of Forms or Ideas

Epistemology: How do we know?

The problem with reality:• The Matrix “Welcome to the desert of the

real”• Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6T9dBsJ6ig

The Death of Socrates Jacques Louis David, 1787

Plato (428?-348?)

Athenian aristocratic background;Family close to Pericles;18 yrs old in 409: probably fought in the Peloponnesian War;Plato: founder of the Academy (387) Socrates, Plato’s teacher, is the main protagonist of Plato’s dialogues

PLATO

Republic (Politeia): Kallipolis

Kallipolis: Beautiful City3 classes of peoples:• The producers: craftsmen, farmers• The auxiliaries: soldiers• The guardians: rulersPrinciple of Specialization (PoS) vs. democracy (all citizens –free men- participate i.e. Pericles)

Democracy vs. the Just Polis

PericlesHere each individual is interested not only in his own affairs but in the affairs of the state as well: even those who are mostly occupied with their own business are extremely well-informed on general politics.. We do not say that a man who takes no interest in politics is a man who minds his own business; we say he has no business at all.

PlatoThe Just Polis: when each class minds its own business (Book IV).

Why do we read Plato today? Plato’s primary question: What is Justice?

Plato’s three radical propositions

• Rulers and auxiliaries have no private propertyor family life;

• Women can rule and defend the state;• Philosophers should be the rulers.

Education and censorship

• Homer part of the curriculum for the wealthyclass

• Plato education based on censorship• Political myth to sustain the caste system

The Allegory of the Cave

A thought experiment: (Socrates to Glaucon, Plato’s brother) “Imagine…”An allegory: symbolic representation, fiction,

to convey ideas about human existence.

•Progress of the mind.

The Allegory of the Cave

Inside the caveThe ascent from the caveThe theory of FormsThe return to the cave– the apparent paradox of

the philosopher-rulersWhy do they have to return?The political implications• The best rulers are so because they have no

interest to rule

The allegory of the cave (Book VII)

“compare the effect of education and of the lack of it on our nature to an experience like this (B.VII, 514a, tr. Gruber-Reeve) ”

The role of education• Socrates explains that the allegory of the cave

evidences that current understanding of education is wrong:

• (518c, tr. Grube-Reeve)“Education is not what some people declare it to be, namely, putting knowledge into souls that lack it, like putting sight into blind eyes”

• Rather, education is about the “turning around” of the mind itself namely, towards the right direction that is, the Good.

• The process of learning is like the slow and painful ascent from the cave into the sunlight (VII 514a-517b)

Inside the cave (VII-513e-514c)• Men are prisoners since

their childhood• They cannot move and

they cannot turn theirhead : they can only lookstraight ahead at a wall

• Behind and above them:men are carrying artifactsincluding figures ofpeoples and animals;some talk

The world of ignorance and illusion

• “Then the prisoners would in every waybelieve that the truth is nothing other thanthe shadows of those artifacts” (515c, tr.Grube-Reeve)”

• “they are drawn from life” (515a)

Socrates: What would happen if one is freed?

The Ascent out of the cave : Stage 1• 1) he realizes that

the figures of thepuppeteers aremore real than theshadows;

• Leaves the world ofillusion andimagination to theone of belief

The Ascent out of the cave : Stage 22) outside the cave:the real objects-trees,flowers, birds: morereal than the figuresthat are only copies;Leaves the world of belief to the one of thought

The Ascent out of the cave : Stage 3• 3)Looks at the sun

and realizes thatthe sun is thesource of light andwhat causes him tosee in the firstplace– the Sun isthe source ofeverything. Leavesthe world ofthought for that ofunderstanding.

Plato’s Theory of Forms (Ideas)Set of binary oppositions

• The sensible vs. the intelligible• Opinion vs knowledge• Becoming vs. Being

• Primacy of Idea or Forms over the material world• We do not know through experience but only through philosophy

that is, by studying the Forms= Dialectic• Implications:1) Only the philosophers know the form of the Good-the highest

Form (and other Forms)2) They are therefore best suited to rule the polis

Descending back to the cave

Opening line of Republic:Socrates “I went down to the Piraeus …”

“They would kill him…” (517a) think of Socrates’ trial and condemnation.

The apparent paradox of the philosopher-rulers

• Apparent paradox: by definition, philosophers do not want to rule but for Plato it is precisely because they do not want to rule that they are the best to rule;

• They must be forced to rule: won’t they be unhappy then?

• Plato abolished private property and family life for the guardians and auxiliaries:

• Plato: private property is the main reason why men sacrifice public interest to private interest; thus their happiness will lie in the service of the community and not of any particular class. They will be happy.

Questions

• Do you agree with Plato that lack of interest inpolitics is what makes the best rulers?

• Is depriving rulers from having property and afamily is the best way to keep them away fromprivate interest?

• How does Plato’s view of politics differ fromPericles’ one?

• Is Plato’s incorporation of women into politics agood response to Aristophanes? What does it sayabout the distinction of the oikos and the polis?