The Intelligent Troglodyte’s Guide to Plato’s Republic, 2016a

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76 The Oligarchic Soul See 553a-555b. Socrates imagines the oligarchic man coming to be when his timocratic father, a lover of honor, is falsely accused, tried, convicted, and stripped of his property. The son, feeling the bite of poverty and suffering a general disillusionment with the pursuit of honor, gives himself over to money-making. Seeking material security, the appetitive part takes command of the soul and subordinates the other parts. The spirited part has its competitive energies turned to the arena of the marketplace, and the rational part is reduced to contemplating the equivalent of Franklin’s maxims, the Wall Street Journal, and Fortune magazine. Socrates explains that it is really only a portion of the appetitive part that rules in the oligarchic person, the “necessary appetites.” By this he means those desires we are compelled by nature to satisfy that are beneficial to our health and “useful where work is concerned.” (See 558d-559d.) Our desire for nourishing food is an example. As oligarchic people see it, health is a good investment, and so they eat well, exercise regularly, and don’t smoke. If they are like Cephalus and believe the gods can help arrange a desirable afterlife, then they take part in the appropriate liturgies. One thing Socrates is willing to say for oligarchic people is that they are generally trustworthy, this being good for business. Justice, of a certain conventional sort, pays. But when injustice can be done with impunity – when, say, an opportunity for undetectable tax evasion happens to present itself – then oligarchic people cannot be counted on (to do the right thing). Also, as Socrates wryly observes, although they are basically thrifty and conservative, most of them give in to their “dronish,” unnecessary appetites “when they have other people’s money to spend.” Can a person with an oligarchic soul be happy (possess eudaimonia)? As the Republic draws to a close, one should recall the challenge Socrates is trying to meet. He is to prove that justice is desirable for its own sake, so desirable, in fact, that it is more desirable to be a just man, falsely accused and facing the prospect of being tortured to death, than an unjust man, believed to be just and therefore honored. How bad is the oligarchic life?
Back How good, by comparison, is the aristocratic? The oligarchic person has “dronish,” unnecessary appetitive desires, but these, as a rule, are kept well in check. Would Socrates consider such a person temperate (possessing sophrosune)? Why does Socrates think the oligarchic soul is less just than the timocratic? In distinguishing necessary from unnecessary appetites is Socrates suggesting that the appetitive part of the soul is really more than one part? How might Socrates go about arguing that this is not the case?
Page 2 and 3:
The Intelligent Troglodyte’s Guid
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19 Luxuries in the Just City 20 The
Page 6 and 7:
Book IX 80 Lawless Desires 81 The R
Page 8 and 9:
Book I
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Back Is it possible to persuade a
Page 12 and 13:
3 Treasure for Heaven See 329d-331b
Page 14 and 15:
5 The Craft of Justice See 332b-334
Page 16 and 17:
6 Benefiting Friends and Harming En
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7 The Advantage of the Stronger See
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8 The Good Shepherd See 339a-348b.
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9 The Blushing Argument See 348b-35
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10 Function, Virtue, and the Soul S
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Book II
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12 The Social Contract Theory of Ju
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14 The Challenge See 360e-362c. Soc
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15 The Teaching of Justice See 362c
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16 Glaucon’s Lover See 368a. Not
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18 Making the Most of Differences S
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20 The Good Soldier See 374a-376e.
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22 Gods Causing Bad Things See 377d
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23 Gods in Disguise or Speaking Fal
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24 Fear and Grief See 386a-388e. So
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Back Can a distinction be made bet
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27 Narrative Style and Personal Int
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28 The Emotional Power of Tune and
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29 Love of the Fine and Beautiful S
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sexually attractive the lovers may
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31 Doctors and Judges See 405a-410a
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32 Harmony in the Soul See 410a-412
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33 Rulers See 412b-414b. It has bee
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35 Private Property, Private Intere
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36 The City as a Whole See 419a-423
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37 Lawfulness Internalized, Legisla
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38 Wisdom in the City See 427d-429a
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40 Temperance in the City See 430d-
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Back families you may be fortunate
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pleasures of the body, with sensual
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43 The Spirited Part of the Soul Se
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Back sufficient to prove that Socra
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Back appetitive part can be educate
Page 82 and 83: Book V
Page 84 and 85: 47 The Natures of Men and Women See
Page 86 and 87: Back Consider school sports teams.
Page 88 and 89: Back
Page 90 and 91: 50 The Waging of War See 466c-471e.
Page 92 and 93: 51 Philosophers and Knowledge of th
Page 94 and 95: Back imagined on the other? If so,
Page 96 and 97: 52 The Virtues of the Philosopher S
Page 98 and 99: Back Is the kind of understanding
Page 100 and 101: Back Do the people who would make
Page 102 and 103: Back provided to ordinary students?
Page 104 and 105: 57 The Form of the Good See 504a-50
Page 106 and 107: 58 Every Soul Pursues the Good See
Page 108 and 109: 60 Degrees of Clarity (the Line) Se
Page 110 and 111: Book VII
Page 112 and 113: Back lead them out of the cave? Wh
Page 114 and 115: 63 The Craft of Education See 518b-
Page 116 and 117: 65 Numbers as Summoners See 521c-52
Page 118 and 119: 66 Further Mathematical Studies See
Page 120 and 121: 68 Selecting Students for Philosoph
Page 122 and 123: 70 Completing the Education of the
Page 124 and 125: Book VIII
Page 126 and 127: Back authority, or would it be harm
Page 128 and 129: (chivalry and bushido respectively)
Page 130 and 131: 75 The Oligarchic City See 550c-552
Page 134 and 135: 77 The Democratic City See 555b-558
Page 136 and 137: 78 The Democratic Soul See 558c-562
Page 138 and 139: 79 The Tyrannical City See 562a-569
Page 140 and 141: Book IX
Page 142 and 143: 81 The Right Way to Fall Asleep See
Page 144 and 145: Back Imagine a person who is obses
Page 146 and 147: Back What about the democratic cit
Page 148 and 149: 85 The Third Proof: True Pleasures
Page 150 and 151: Back Socrates likens the people wh
Page 152 and 153: 87 An Emblem of the Soul See 588b-5
Page 154 and 155: 88 Will the Just Person Take Part i
Page 156 and 157: 89 Return to Poetry See 595a. In Bo
Page 158 and 159: truth are highly entertaining. Cons
Page 160 and 161: 92 A Call to Poetry’s Defenders S
Page 162 and 163: 94 The Soul Without Barnacles See 6
Page 164 and 165: 96 Suffering, Philosophy, and the C
Page 166 and 167: INDEX Numbers are to the 96 section
Page 168 and 169: Definition, 4, 5, 6, 7, 17, 29, 38,
Page 170 and 171: 43, 74, 90, 96 Homosexuality, 16 Ho
Page 172 and 173: Painters and painting, 19, 29, 56,
Page 174 and 175: 79, 82, 83 Suffering, 6, 12, 14, 22
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The Intelligent Troglodyte’s Guide to Plato’s Republic, 2016a

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