In The Republic, Plato lays out several virtues that reside in his imagined city, Kallipolis, and therefore upon comparison, make up our souls. Wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice each have a certain place where they thrive. These virtues are rigid, applying only to the certain social groups Socrates dictates and therefore strictly relate to certain parts of the soul. Although through most of The Republic, Socrates deals with building his city of speech; this thought exercises exists to answer the fundamental question of the work, namely what is justice? Each virtue adds a piece to the equation of what justice is.
Socrates out rightly describes courage as being the key virtue of the auxiliary, or military, class. These people must possess …show more content…
Socrates agrees with this stating that, “courage is a sort of preservation” (Book 4, 114). However, Socrates’ definition merely refers to the auxiliary’s courage, and he refuses to acknowledge courage in the lower classes. The revised definition seems to apply to everyone in the city, as each face personal or public pains every day and must decide if they are willing to subject themselves to that suffering for the greater good, either personally or for the city. This continuous striving to continue doing good even in the face of calamity, is what would make someone truly courageous. The virtues of courage, wisdom, justice, and temperance combine to create a just man, one who does not let his desires get the better of him. He fulfills Socrates’ definition of justice as, “doing one’s own work and not meddling with what is not one’s own,” by remaining in his own class and suppressing the desire for more (Book 4, 119). A fully courageous person who strives for what is best in the face of adversity would not be content with living this definition of justice, and this is where Socrates sees the danger in a soul only ruled by courage. He believes this quality is only appropriate for the auxiliary class, and precarious to the construction of Kallipolis if all the population possessed it. However, in their everyday lives each person must possess at least one form of courage in order to push on through the trials of everyday life and keep Kallipolis
Socrates out rightly describes courage as being the key virtue of the auxiliary, or military, class. These people must possess …show more content…
Socrates agrees with this stating that, “courage is a sort of preservation” (Book 4, 114). However, Socrates’ definition merely refers to the auxiliary’s courage, and he refuses to acknowledge courage in the lower classes. The revised definition seems to apply to everyone in the city, as each face personal or public pains every day and must decide if they are willing to subject themselves to that suffering for the greater good, either personally or for the city. This continuous striving to continue doing good even in the face of calamity, is what would make someone truly courageous. The virtues of courage, wisdom, justice, and temperance combine to create a just man, one who does not let his desires get the better of him. He fulfills Socrates’ definition of justice as, “doing one’s own work and not meddling with what is not one’s own,” by remaining in his own class and suppressing the desire for more (Book 4, 119). A fully courageous person who strives for what is best in the face of adversity would not be content with living this definition of justice, and this is where Socrates sees the danger in a soul only ruled by courage. He believes this quality is only appropriate for the auxiliary class, and precarious to the construction of Kallipolis if all the population possessed it. However, in their everyday lives each person must possess at least one form of courage in order to push on through the trials of everyday life and keep Kallipolis