Phil 301- Prof. Schroeder_ Purdue University (Exam Two)

The City-Soul Analogy

Plato argues that both the city and the soul have three distinct parts, and justice arises when each part performs its proper role without interfering with the others. The analogy helps explain why a just person is happier than an unjust one.

Three Parts of the City

Rulers: Govern with wisdom and reason.

Auxiliaries (Guardians): Defend the city and enforce the rulers’ decisions; they embody courage.

Producers: Provide goods and services; they represent moderation and appetite

Three Parts of the Soul

Rational: Seeks truth and governs the soul.

Spirited (Thumos): Source of ambition and emotions; supports reason.

Appetitive: Desires physical pleasures and material goods.

Provisional Account of Civil Justice

Plato uses the City-Soul Analogy to argue that justice is a kind of order and harmony, not just fairness in transactions or legal obedience. It’s a steppingstone to his deeper psychological account: justice in the soul is when the rational, spirited, and appetitive parts are properly aligned.

Tripartite Soul Theory

Plato uses this theory to explain human psychology and morality, drawing a parallel between the structure of the soul and the structure of the ideal city. (Some people are guided by emotion and not reason).

First Part of Tripartite Soul Theory

1. Rational Part (Logistikon)

Function: Seeks truth, wisdom, and knowledge.

Role: Governs the soul through reason and deliberation.

Virtue: Wisdom

City Parallel: Rulers

Second Part of Tripartite Soul Theory

2. Spirited Part (Thumos)

Function: Pursues honor, ambition, and emotional strength.

Role: Supports the rational part, especially in resisting base desires.

Virtue: Courage

City Parallel: Auxiliaries (Guardians)

Third Part of Tripartite Soul Theory

3. Appetitive Part (Epithumia)

Function: Craves bodily pleasures—food, sex, money, comfort.

Role: Must be regulated by reason.

Virtue: Temperance (when desires are moderated)

City Parallel: Producers

Socrate’s Argument Pro-Tripartition

His argument is based on the observation that the soul can experience conflicting desires, which implies it must have distinct parts.

Non-conflict Principle

A single entity can’t simultaneously want and not want the same thing in the same way. So, if we observe conflicting desires within a person, they must come from different parts of the soul.

Conflict Cases

Thirst v. Refusal to Drink

Hunger v. Refusal to Drink

Key Constraint

One entity cannot both pursue and avoid the same thing at the same time (this theory sets up the conflict cases and allows Plato to create the tripartite soul theory).

Thirst Example

Someone wants to drink because they are thirsty (appetitive), but they don’t want to drink because they know it is poison (rational).

Spirit v. Reason: Leontius

Leontius wants to look at corpses out of morbid curiosity (appetite), but his guilt (spirit) holds him back from doing so. Even though he KNOWS it’s wrong he runs to the corpses and looks at them anyways.

Spirit v. Reason: Homer

Achilles is fighting with Agamemnon and is very angry with him (spirit), he manages to reign his emotions in (rational) and does not kill the king even though he wants to.

This happens in the Iliad.

Justice/virtue v. Injustice/vice

Internal Harmony v. Internal Disorder

Internal Harmony

Justice, or when each part of the soul performs its proper function and creates balance

Internal Disorder

Injustice, or when one part of the soul usurps another part of the soul ruining the balance

Glaucon and Adeimantus’ Challenge

They want Socrates to prove that justice is intrinsically valuable, that justice makes the soul happier (even if the just person suffers outwardly), and that injustice corrupts the soul (even if the unjust person prospers outwardly)

Socrates response to Glaucon and Adeimantus in Book Four

He develops the tripartite soul theory to show that justice is inner harmony of reason, spirit, and appetite

Socrates response to Glaucon and Adeimantus in Book 9

Justice- happiness because it produces harmony and true pleasure and Injustice- misery because it produces slavery to appetite and inner conflict