Throughout the years of maturing to adulthood, many children are informed in no uncertain terms that “life isn’t fair.” Less-talented employees receive promotions. Friends betray one another. Innocent people are murdered, raped, and stolen from by criminals who seemingly give no care for what is “right” or “just.” But what if this wasn’t the case? Is it possible to envision, or, far more audaciously, even create a utopian society in which everyone gets exactly what they deserve and is treated equally by all? While both the ancient Babylonian ruler Hammurabi and, over 1000 years later, the philosopher Plato attempted to do just that, each went about achieving their respective goals in extremely different ways, with Plato imagining a unique
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For Plato, justice was a matter of an individual’s soul. To understand Plato’s theory of justice, one must first become familiar with his so-called “tripartite” idea of the soul. In book four of his Republic, the philosopher engages in a lengthy conversation on the topic with his colleague Glaucon, ultimately coming to the conclusion that “the same principles which exist In the State exist also in the individual, and that they are three in number” (Plato, n.p.). The three “principles,” or parts, of the soul he refers to are an individual’s appetite, his or her spirited nature, and, most importantly, the mind or source of reason. Throughout Book Four, Plato discusses the need for moderation to keep appetite in check, courage to assist humanity’s spirited nature, and wisdom to guide the reasoning aspect of the soul. Plato insists that justice can only be truly attained when all three parts of the soul are in harmony, stating “But in reality justice was such as we were describing, being concerned however, not with the outward man, but with the inward. . . for the just man does not permit the several elements within him to interfere with one another. . . he. . .is his own master. . . and at peace with himself” (Plato, n.p.). Both in this specific passage and throughout The Republic, Plato underlines the idea of justice originating from within the self, refuting the notion that what is “right” be decided by external forces, and because of this refuses to include a system of laws or code of conduct for his utopian vision of a city (Plato,
For Plato, justice was a matter of an individual’s soul. To understand Plato’s theory of justice, one must first become familiar with his so-called “tripartite” idea of the soul. In book four of his Republic, the philosopher engages in a lengthy conversation on the topic with his colleague Glaucon, ultimately coming to the conclusion that “the same principles which exist In the State exist also in the individual, and that they are three in number” (Plato, n.p.). The three “principles,” or parts, of the soul he refers to are an individual’s appetite, his or her spirited nature, and, most importantly, the mind or source of reason. Throughout Book Four, Plato discusses the need for moderation to keep appetite in check, courage to assist humanity’s spirited nature, and wisdom to guide the reasoning aspect of the soul. Plato insists that justice can only be truly attained when all three parts of the soul are in harmony, stating “But in reality justice was such as we were describing, being concerned however, not with the outward man, but with the inward. . . for the just man does not permit the several elements within him to interfere with one another. . . he. . .is his own master. . . and at peace with himself” (Plato, n.p.). Both in this specific passage and throughout The Republic, Plato underlines the idea of justice originating from within the self, refuting the notion that what is “right” be decided by external forces, and because of this refuses to include a system of laws or code of conduct for his utopian vision of a city (Plato,