THE REPUBLIC OF PLATO - Studyplace

18 CHAPTER III [I. 338
you are wrong to call me ungrateful. I give in return all I canpraise;
for I have no money. And how ready I am to applaud any
idea that seems to me sound, you will see in a moment, when you
have stated your own; for I am sure that will be sound.
Listen then, Thrasymachus began. What I say is that 'just' or
'right' means nothing but what is to the interest of the stronger
party. Well, where is your applause You don't mean to give it me.
I will, as soon as I understand, I said. I don't see yet what you
mean by right being the interest of the stronger party. For instance,
Polydamas, the athlete, is stronger than we are, and it is to
his interest to eat beef for the sake of his muscles; but surely you
don't mean that the same diet would be good for weaker men and
therefore be right for us
You are trying to be funny, Socrates. It's a low trick to take my
words in the sense you think will be most damaging.
No, no, I protested; but you must explain.
Don't you know, then, that a state may be ruled by a despot, or
a democracy, or an aristocracy
Of course.
And that the ruling element is always the strongest
Yes.
Well then, in every case the laws are made by the ruling party
in its own interest; a democracy makes democratic laws, a despot
autocratic ones, and so on. By making these laws they define as
'right' for their subjects whatever is for their own interest, and
they call anyone who breaks them a 'wrongdoer' and punish him
accordingly. That is what I mean: in all states alike 'right' has the
same meaning, namely what is for the interest of the party established
in power, and that is the strongest. So the sound conclusion
is that what is 'right' is the same everywhere: the interest of the
stronger party.
Now I see what you mean, said I; whether it is true or not, I
must try to make out. When you define right in terms of interest,
you are yourself giving one of those answers you forbade to me;
though, to be sure, you add 'to the stronger party"
An insignificant addition, perhapsI