The Tripartite Soul Argument In Plato's Republic

In the Republic, Plato introduces many of his viewpoints and ideals through arguments. Some examples of what he introduces are what defines a city, principles of specialization, the tripartite soul and the sun, the line and the cave. In this paper, we are going to focus on the tripartite soul argument and the nature of justice. The tripartite soul argument states that a human soul is divided into three distinct parts that all want to achieve different goals. The soul, according to Plato, is composed of a rational, a spirited, and an appetitive factor. Each covets for wisdom, courage, and physical desires respectively. The nature of justice is when the three parts of the soul perform their functions creating a harmony. Once the soul achieves harmony it is considered to be just which is essential to living …show more content…
I believe that Plato’s definition of a happy life is not faultless since people can live unjust lives and be just as happy. If this is true then just people are not the only ones that can live a happy life and Plato’s definition is inaccurate. Plato elaborates on the tripartite soul by saying that it is composed of three parts and he classifies them as the rational, the spirited, and the appetitive parts. He defends the argument by stating that nothing can at the same time and same respect do opposite things. An example he presents is a top, as it can move in a circle in one respect but cannot move in another (Republic, 436d). Since the soul does different things at the same time it cannot be composed by only one part. He identifies the parts of the soul by stating that the rational part of the soul is what desires wisdom. The desires of the rational part of the soul sometimes oppose the desires of the appetitive part. Reason being that the thinking part , which discerns reality, judges what is true or false, and makes the rational decisions. While the appetitive part is what desires “unqualified