What is Book 5 of the Republic about? Summary: Book V, 449a-472a. Having identified the just city and the just soul, Socrates now wants to identify four other constitutions of city and soul, all of
What is Book 5 of the Republic about?
Summary: Book V, 449a-472a. Having identified the just city and the just soul, Socrates now wants to identify four other constitutions of city and soul, all of which are vicious to varying degrees. Socrates then discusses the requirement that all spouses and children be held in common.
What are the three levels of knowing that Socrates distinguishes in Book 5?
He divides all of existence up into three classes: what is completely, what is in no way, and what both is and is not. What is completely, he tells us, is completely knowable; what is in no way is the object of ignorance; what both is and is not is the object of opinion or belief.
How are children raised in Plato’s Republic?
In the Republic, parents are prohibited from raising their own children and even residing in the same vicinity as their children in order to preserve equality and avoid personal possession. However, in the Republic, children are shaped into a uniform mold that prevents the development of individuality.
What is the myth of the metals?
To ensure that there is never controversy over who should rule, Socrates suggests telling all citizens a useful fiction, usually termed “the myth of the metals.” The myth contends that all citizens of the city were born out of the earth. This fiction persuades people to be patriotic.
What is Kallipolis?
Callipolis is the Latinized form of Kallipolis (Καλλίπολις), which is Greek for “beautiful city”, from κάλλος kallos (beauty) and πόλις polis (city).
Why does Plato say that the youth should be raised by the state?
In addition, Plato believed that the interests of the state are best preserved if children are raised and educated by the society as a whole, rather than by their biological parents. So he proposed a simple (if startlingly unfamiliar) scheme for the breeding, nurturing, and training of children in the guardian class.
What is knowledge of the good?
Plato writes that the Form (or Idea) of the Good is the origin of knowledge although it is not knowledge itself, and from the Good, things that are just and true, gain their usefulness and value. Humans are compelled to pursue the good, but no one can hope to do this successfully without philosophical reasoning.
What is the purpose of the myth of metals?
The Greeks had a myth of metals. It was the idea that citizens were born of a certain metal according to their place in society. It was a useful lie- something that motivated people to do the right thing for the wrong reasons.