John
Richter
JUSTICE
Justice is the elusive beast that Socrates chases throughout the Republic yet never seems to tame, and cannot get a clear idea about. When I think about justice myself, only a strange feint notion is present in my head, but no string of words can be pieced together to define what justice really is. Socrates attempts to gain a better understanding of justice by drawing parallels to the individual and a community, and how justice in each is similar. When I first read this I was surprised (I had never read Plato before), because a friend and I had had a discussion on how a person can be related to a greater community before. I think this idea of paralleling is very accurate.
The community is comprised of many parts according to Socrates, however, can be as small as 5 men. Each man in a community has a different task to fulfill in order for that community to function properly. When these tasks are all carried out by these men the community works. When there is “harmony” between the parts, there is justice and things are the way they should be. This relates to the individual insomuch that the soul is comprised of different parts that carry out different tasks.
There are virtues that one must hold in order to be harmonious and just. Socrates states that the soul has reasoning, spirit, and desire. This can be related to a city by showing the different positions men keep in their community. The leaders of a city serve as the reason and governing body, the soldiers perform courage’s acts of defending and keeping the city safe, and the people who produce things in the city serve as the desire. When these parts work together, the entity is just and functioning.
When a city has the leadership, the soldiers, and the temperance, and these qualities work together, there is justice and all is good. Justice in this city comes with the harmonious operation of all the different parts, being the man, carrying out their duties. The soul requires its parts to carry out there duties harmoniously as well in order to function justly.
In Socrates’ view, a city and an individual are much the same simply because they both are dependant on the functioning of their parts in order to operate justly. The harmonious interaction of these parts is what leads to justice, which can be seen in the city and in the individual. If a city can run smoothly and all of its inhabitants do their jobs harmoniously with one another, there is justice. If the parts of a soul operate and are in harmony with one another, there is justice. The question is, is it possible for these parts to operate justly together at all times? I can see where the relationship of the city to the individual lies, and understand it. I’m sure, however, Plato will have another way to further cast my thought into doubt about this troublesome topic.