Plato’s Republic

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Plato’s Republic Thrasymachus challenge is that justice is not something worthy and appropriate because it serves the best interests of the powerful to the detriment of the less privileged. He argues that it its goes beyond what is real, hence he challenges Socrates to affirm if justice is good and conventional. According to Thrasymachus justice does not exists in real world because rules and norms that govern a particular society are set by those in power to advance their interests.

Persons who adhere to the set rules and regulations do so to the benefit of the powerful who often flout them for personal gains. In essence, justice does not exist in real world.

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Socrates objection 1 is that strong rules also make mistakes about the advantage they enjoy, underpinning the need to disobey them to promote justice. The strong are not always without errors as Thrasymachus puts it (Plato, 2019). When a ruler behaves unjustly, it becomes the duty of the subjects to disobey them. Socrates holds that the objective of the rule is to serve the interests of the ruled juts like medical skills are meant to serve patients. Rulers are to serve the welfare of those they govern for them to hold on power for long. A society would hardly maintain a rule that works against it (Allen, 2021). Disobedience is inevitable where the rule and ruler do not promote the best interests of subjects.

Socrates objects Thrasymachus’ view that injustice comes with more benefits than justice does not take into account the effects of unjust system. At its best, where injustice rules, anarchy becomes inevitable to the detriment of rulers and subjects, underscoring the little benefits of injustice. The just system is good for all because it is anchored on virtues that guide the society (Plato & Jowett, 2007). On the other part, an unjust system promotes divisions between people by promoting feuds, hence not good for long term stability. Justice also produces happiness while injustice produces unhappiness, making the benefits of the former great. Thrasymachus claim about the value of unjust does not hold when the disadvantages of injustice are analyzed.

Socrates looks at injustice as the source of suffering rather than happiness in the society (Allen, 2021). In this respect, the advantages of unjust system cannot overshadow the benefits of a just system.

Socrates succeeds in showing that justice matters in any given society by asserting the value of a just system against injustice. His view of justice is linked to how I think about justice in the world. I hold that justice should protect the interests of all. A just person would avoid doing what I bad, immoral, because committing injustice would bring him trouble (Plato &

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Jowett, 2007). For instance, every just person knows that killing another human being would attract legal action that can result in unhappy life in prison. The soul should be able to guide an individual in doing what is writing. Even those who commit crimes, at the back of their minds they know that they are making errors because just are a virtue of the soul. In this respect, a just person would strive to avoid unjust acts for his or her own good.

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References Allen, J. (2021). Zoom Lecture -- Plato's Republic - Book 1. youtube.com .https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WijMZJdQ5NU. Plato. (2019). The Republic. Samaira Book Publishers.

Plato & Jowett, B. (2007). Plato's The Republic. Wilder Publications, LLC.