Plato’s Ethics and Politics: Virtue, Justice, and the Degeneration of States
Platonic Ethics: Virtue, the Soul, and the Good
For Plato, the determination by reason of the activity of each function is achieved through a specific virtue. Virtue means a “training” of the soul. All habits that lead us toward the good are virtues, and habits that lead to evil are vices.
The Good, for Plato, is an idea based on the principle of “Know Thyself.” This theory, when put into practice, requires a core ability: prudence (practical wisdom). Prudence leads us to estimate justly what we have, ensuring no excesses or defects.
The moral good is a mixture, according to extent, of what is proper to man: knowledge coupled with sensation. Pleasure, in this context, does not necessarily involve pain. This estimate, this prudence, is related to the rational part of the soul and is fundamentally a form of wisdom.
The Virtues of the Soul
If each part of the soul (the rational, the spirited/irascible, and the appetitive/concupiscible) performs its proper function, the result is mental harmony. For Plato, this harmony is equivalent to the just individual.
- Prudence (Wisdom): Related to the rational part of the soul.
- Temperance: The ability to impose reason upon desires.
The idea of Justice has evolved over the centuries, but originally, for Plato, it meant precisely this internal harmony. This entire ethical approach, however, only works—individuals will only be truly just—in an appropriate social environment, which inherently links the problem of morality with politics. Hence, Plato turned his focus to political philosophy.
Plato’s Political Philosophy: The Just City
Plato’s political philosophy centers on the crucial problem of creating a just city, a concern deeply rooted in the history of his people, Athens. Athens was a city-state that evolved from a monarchy to an aristocracy, through a period of tyranny, to democracy, eventually leading to collapse and disappearance as a city-state.
The origin of these transformations lay in the struggle between two opposing social classes: the landed aristocracy and the common people. The people desired to acquire more and more power, opposing the aristocracy’s desire to retain it.
Over two centuries, this struggle led to significant political transformations involving figures like Aracon, Solon, Pisistratus, and Ephialtes. Plato viewed these changes not as progress but as a cyclone of political degeneration, culminating in the worst possible crime: the death of Socrates.
Given this degeneracy, Plato admired states where the constitution and basic laws remained unchanged, resulting in political stability. He specifically admired Sparta (which lasted a thousand years) and the Egyptian monarchy (which lasted almost 3,000 years).
Designing the Perfect State
Plato aimed to design a political system so perfect that it would never need to be changed. To achieve this design, he considered two options, the first being empirical analysis, which he detailed in the dialogues The Republic and The Policy (Statesman).
The Cycle of Political Degeneration (Analysis in The Republic)
- Aristocracy: The most perfect form, where the rulers in the city are governed by prudence and wisdom.
- Timocracy: Aristocracy degenerates when rulers seek personal gain and honor. The result is that the upper classes might oppress the lower classes.
- Oligarchy: Timocracy degenerates into a system where wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few. This creates two major classes: the very rich minority (oligarchs) and a vast mass of poor who seek to remove them from power.
- Democracy: When the people take power. Plato viewed the result as chaotic, leading democracy to degenerate quickly into tyranny.
- Tyranny: The worst political regime. It is ruled by the most audacious and violent individual, who suppresses freedom, equality, and justice. Therefore, it is considered by Plato as the worst possible political regime.