Plato's Republic: THe Virtues
I. The Virtues
In Robin Waterfield's translation of The Republic,Socrates attempts to
give a definition of justice. At the end of Book II he began a detailed
description of the construction of a good city. The good city is a relation to
the human soul, and its four virtues. In the following paper I will discuss
the virtues, what they are and where they are found. Also discussed will be
the foundation, arrangement, and the interconnectedness with each one. Next
discussed would be the 3 "H's" and the understanding Aristotle has on the role
of happiness in the moral life. Lastly, I will discuss the experience that I
had that related to Leonitus.
The four virtues used by Plato are prudence, courage, temperance, and
justice. Plato relates the virtues to a community, which is made up of the
rulers, army, and workers. Now the base line is the workers, and they do not
try to blend with the army as the army doesn't blend with the rulers. When all
of these do their own job, the community becomes one.
The first virtue to be discussed is prudence. Prudence, also known as
wisdom, is found in the rulers. "The people who have it are those rulers?"
(428d) In order to have wisdom one must be resourceful, in which he/she has
obtained knowledge. Plato says, "? resourcefulness is obviously a kind of
knowledge? it's not ignorance which makes people resourceful; it's knowledge."
(428b)
The second virtue is courage, which is foun ...