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

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6 Benefiting Friends and Harming Enemies See 334c-336a. Socrates first convinces Polemarchus to change his definition of justice from benefiting friends (apparent friends) and harming enemies (apparent enemies) to benefiting good people (true friends) and harming bad people (true enemies); for the mark of a true friend is goodness, the mark of a true enemy is badness, apparent friends are not always true friends, and apparent enemies are not always true enemies. But he then convinces Polemarchus to drop the part about harming enemies. The argument for this is as follows: Justice is “human virtue” – that which makes us excellent as human beings. And to harm something, to truly harm it, is to damage it with respect to what makes it excellent. So if justice were to involve harming one’s enemies, then it would involve damaging them with respect to what makes them excellent. This would mean that justice involves making people unjust, which seems impossible. Therefore, justice may be a matter of benefiting (making more just) good people (our true friends) but it is not a matter of harming (making less just) bad people (our true enemies). Suppose someone were to present the following argument to Socrates: It is just to punish criminals. Punishment causes suffering. Suffering is a kind of harm. Therefore it is sometimes just to harm people. How do you suppose Socrates would reply? (He is going to share his opinion on this matter, in passing, at 380b. For a longer treatment, see 476e-480d in the dialogue Gorgias.) Is justice the entirety of human virtue – does it in some way encompass all the human excellences – or is it only a part of virtue? Suppose someone were to present the following argument to Socrates: There is much more to excelling as a human being than justice. There is, for instance, being aggressively competitive. This is a character trait that has often been admired in human beings, particularly in men. (The heroes of Homer’s Iliad come to mind.) But this virtue involves in its very nature competing with and triumphing over others. To triumph over someone – be it in warfare, or business, or love – is to harm them. Therefore human virtue
Back is not incompatible with harming people. How do you suppose Socrates would reply? The conversation between Polemarchus and Socrates is about to be sharply interrupted. But consider what Polemarchus might have come up with were he to have gone on to revise his definition of justice yet again. Where does their conversation seem to be heading?
Page 2 and 3: The Intelligent Troglodyte’s Guid
Page 4 and 5: 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
Page 10 and 11: 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 18 and 19: 7 The Advantage of the Stronger See
Page 20 and 21: 8 The Good Shepherd See 339a-348b.
Page 22 and 23: 9 The Blushing Argument See 348b-35
Page 24 and 25: 10 Function, Virtue, and the Soul S
Page 26 and 27: Book II
Page 28 and 29: 12 The Social Contract Theory of Ju
Page 30 and 31: 14 The Challenge See 360e-362c. Soc
Page 32 and 33: 15 The Teaching of Justice See 362c
Page 34 and 35: 16 Glaucon’s Lover See 368a. Not
Page 36 and 37: 18 Making the Most of Differences S
Page 38 and 39: 20 The Good Soldier See 374a-376e.
Page 40 and 41: 22 Gods Causing Bad Things See 377d
Page 42 and 43: 23 Gods in Disguise or Speaking Fal
Page 44 and 45: 24 Fear and Grief See 386a-388e. So
Page 46 and 47: Back Can a distinction be made bet
Page 48 and 49: 27 Narrative Style and Personal Int
Page 50 and 51: 28 The Emotional Power of Tune and
Page 52 and 53: 29 Love of the Fine and Beautiful S
Page 54 and 55: sexually attractive the lovers may
Page 56 and 57: 31 Doctors and Judges See 405a-410a
Page 58 and 59: 32 Harmony in the Soul See 410a-412
Page 60 and 61: 33 Rulers See 412b-414b. It has bee
Page 62 and 63: 35 Private Property, Private Intere
Page 64 and 65: 36 The City as a Whole See 419a-423
Page 66 and 67:
37 Lawfulness Internalized, Legisla
Page 68 and 69:
38 Wisdom in the City See 427d-429a
Page 70 and 71:
40 Temperance in the City See 430d-
Page 72 and 73:
Back families you may be fortunate
Page 74 and 75:
pleasures of the body, with sensual
Page 76 and 77:
43 The Spirited Part of the Soul Se
Page 78 and 79:
Back sufficient to prove that Socra
Page 80 and 81:
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 132 and 133:
76 The Oligarchic Soul See 553a-555
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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