Notes on Plato's Republic, focusing on Books 5 and 6

Announcements and Objectives

• The lecture on March 28 focuses on Book Six of Plato's Republic, following a detailed discussion of the tripartite soul in Book Four.
• The sequence is non-linear to consolidate topics related to the soul, psychology, and epistemology.
• A brief look at Book Five will precede the analysis of Book Six, specifically focusing on the introduction of philosophers as rulers.
• Two specific passages, one in Book Five (page 476) and another in Book Six, will be examined for their descriptions of the philosopher.

Plato’s Method and the Role of the Interlocutors

• Plato structured The Republic as a dialogue to gradually persuade individuals with opposing views, such as Glaucon and Adeimantus, who were raised to believe in their entitlement to political roles.
• Socrates' interlocutors, Glaucon and Adeimantus, represent individuals with a deeply ingrained belief in their right to political involvement due to their family's prominence.
• The dialogue includes persuasive elements like discussing common societal observations and learning, which can seem tedious but serve to gently sway perspectives.

The Philosopher in Book Five

• The discussion about true philosophers begins a few pages before page 476, focusing on the love of knowledge and the pursuit of specific aims.
• The honor-driven individuals would rather be honored in a small village than be second in a city of 10,000, reflecting their singular focus on honor.
• Those who love truth and knowledge desire to know everything, raising the question of whether theater enthusiasts who attend every performance qualify as philosophers.
• Socrates must distinguish between a general love of seeing everything and the specific love of truth that characterizes the philosopher.

Historical Context: Pythagoras and the Origin of the Term "Philosopher"

• The term "philosopher" and the concept of "philosophy" are attributed to Pythagoras.
• Pythagoras is known for the Pythagorean theorem: a^2 + b^2 = c^2.
• The Pythagoreans analyzed the world mathematically, attributing proportions to elements like hot, cold, dry, and wet, and applying these proportions to health and cosmic order.
• Allegedly, they associated numbers with concepts, such as 10 with man and 4 with justice, reflecting proportions and relationships rather than literal numerical assignments.

Theoretical and Practical Significance of the Pythagoreans

• The Pythagoreans referred to Pythagoras as "himself," implying a sense of elevation or special status.
• They considered themselves "true philosophers," which may be alluded to in The Republic when discussing genuine philosophers.
• Practically, Pythagoreans gained a significant following in Southern Italy and Sicily, where they formed ruling oligarchies in some Greek cities.
• The idea of philosophers ruling was, therefore, not entirely theoretical, as it had occurred in certain Greek cities led by Pythagorean rulers.

Relevance to Plato and The Republic

• The fact that Pythagoreans had ruled cities is relevant to the theme of philosophers as rulers in The Republic.
• Most Athenians were likely unaware of these distant Pythagorean rulers, as suggested by Aristophanes' comedies, which indicate limited geographical awareness among common people.
• Plato's travels to Sicily and the background of characters like Polemarchus suggest an awareness of Magna Graecia among the Athenian elite.

Socrates' Definition of Truth and Justice in the Republic

• The speaker, Socrates' interlocutor, may not be thinking of the Pythagoreans, but Plato's educated readers might recognize the reference to "true philosophers" as a Pythagorean term.
• From this point in The Republic, the dialogue could either present Pythagorean doctrine or Plato's unique perspective on true philosophy.
• Scholars debate whether Plato fully embraced Pythagorean beliefs, such as the transmigration of the soul, or if he subtly critiques them.
• From the end of Book Five to the end of Book Six, the discussion gradually builds toward defining concepts like justice, moderation, and the true constitution of a city.
• Socrates gradually introduces ideas unfamiliar to Glaucon and Adeimantus, such as Platonic Forms or Ideas and the Form of the Good.
• The question, "Then who are the true philosophers? Those who love to see the truth," leads to further exploration of the meaning of truth.

Exploring the Nature of Opposites and Singleness

• The question of what "truth" signifies leads Socrates to develop similes, allegories, and images.
• Socrates posits that opposites like beauty and ugliness are two distinct entities, each being single or one in itself.
• Similarly, justice and injustice, good and evil, and all qualities are each single in themselves but appear as multiplicities due to their combination with actions, bodies, and each other.

Analogy of "Chair" to Understand Singleness and Multiplicity

• To illustrate this, the lecturer uses the example of chairs: despite variations in appearance, they are all referred to as "chair" because they share the essential property of being something one can sit on.
• The physical properties of a chair (color, material) are accidental and do not define what it means to be a chair.
• The concept "chair" is one thing, even though it manifests in many physical examples.

Challenge to the Analogy: Justice vs. Chair

• The lecturer acknowledges that justice and chair are not the same, as one is an abstract noun, and the other refers to a concrete object.
• A student raises the objection that people agree on what a chair is, but not on what justice is.
• The lecturer explains that Socrates spent considerable time defining justice, particularly in relation to the harmonious proportion of aims that govern action.

Justice as a Harmonious Proportion of Aims

• To challenge Socrates' definition of justice, one must critique the definition arrived at by the end of Book Four.
• Socrates defined justice as a certain arrangement within each individual that concerns the combination of desires, ambitions, and intellectual aims.
• Another student suggests that justice is about what is fair, which implies a consideration of the results of actions rather than the processes.

Importance of Defining Justice

• The lecturer clarifies that talking about justice in terms of fairness is useful because fairness is a tangible concept associated with actual things.
• In The Republic, justice is related to the soul, and Socrates has defined justice as the function of the soul.
• At this point in the dialogue, anyone objecting to Socrates' definition of justice must explain which aspect they disagree with, considering the discussions in Book Four.