Freedom or Indulgent?
Brooke Rohlfing
Ethics as an Introduction to Philosophy
December 1, 2014
My thesis is that Cephalus is correct when he says that it is better to be free from bodily desires than to indulge them. The term free refers to acting as one chooses without being restrained by an authority figure. A bodily desire is defined as a want taking control of a person’s body. Indulge means to give into desires in an overly disproportionate way. Cephalus’ best argument for my thesis is that leaving bodily desires behind brings peace. Cephalus states, “the majority of our members lament, longing for the lost pleasures of their youth and reminiscing about sex, drinking parties, feasts, and the other things that go along with them. They get irritated…” (Republic, 3, 329a). Plato’s Republic suggests the conquest to fulfill desires (such as partying, sex, and feasts) wreak havoc on one …show more content…
Cephalus states, “If he finds many injustices in his life, he often even awakes from sleep in terror, as children do, and lives in anticipation of evils to come. But someone who knows he has not been unjust has sweet good hope as his companion…” (Republic, 4, 331a). Because one indulges in bodily desires, the desires will ultimately run the individual creating fear within a soul. A person controlled by bodily desires will be afraid to make any actions and be at a standstill in every aspect of there life because they will fear making the wrong decision or doing something wrong. An individual who indulges in bodily desires will be afraid to sleep at dusk and often wake in terror numerous times throughout the night. Because evils and fear are associated with bodily desires, evils can strike a soul anytime throughout the day. Due to the possibility of bad situations to come, one will live a life full of fear and constantly worry about when the next tragedy will
Brooke Rohlfing
Ethics as an Introduction to Philosophy
December 1, 2014
My thesis is that Cephalus is correct when he says that it is better to be free from bodily desires than to indulge them. The term free refers to acting as one chooses without being restrained by an authority figure. A bodily desire is defined as a want taking control of a person’s body. Indulge means to give into desires in an overly disproportionate way. Cephalus’ best argument for my thesis is that leaving bodily desires behind brings peace. Cephalus states, “the majority of our members lament, longing for the lost pleasures of their youth and reminiscing about sex, drinking parties, feasts, and the other things that go along with them. They get irritated…” (Republic, 3, 329a). Plato’s Republic suggests the conquest to fulfill desires (such as partying, sex, and feasts) wreak havoc on one …show more content…
Cephalus states, “If he finds many injustices in his life, he often even awakes from sleep in terror, as children do, and lives in anticipation of evils to come. But someone who knows he has not been unjust has sweet good hope as his companion…” (Republic, 4, 331a). Because one indulges in bodily desires, the desires will ultimately run the individual creating fear within a soul. A person controlled by bodily desires will be afraid to make any actions and be at a standstill in every aspect of there life because they will fear making the wrong decision or doing something wrong. An individual who indulges in bodily desires will be afraid to sleep at dusk and often wake in terror numerous times throughout the night. Because evils and fear are associated with bodily desires, evils can strike a soul anytime throughout the day. Due to the possibility of bad situations to come, one will live a life full of fear and constantly worry about when the next tragedy will