Plato’s Account of Justice in the Soul

342 words | 2 page(s)

As Plato defines and describes, justice in the soul to be in harmony within oneself. Plato says that “in order for a soul to stay in a just path it must have some sort of hierarchy.” The soul of humans is divided into the appetitive, spirited and rational. The spirited part is highly courageous on the rational part which is rendered the obligation to control the appetitive part. He identified the parts of the soul and within the entire prospective roles in realizing justice within oneself and the state. The link of justice in the soul to that of the state is proved through the identification of different people to be making part of the state or republic. The different persons in the state are: workers, soldiers and the rulers.

From the divisions of persons in the republic hierarchies, it is clear that the expression of justice and injustice within the communities is part of the lives of people within the states. It’s for this reason that Plato’s account of ‘justice in the soul’ overcomes Glaucon’s challenge that justice is conventional. Conventional justice as Glaucon provides is that justice which is independent of the social conventions. This claim is fully addressed in the normal world and life situations that in a community or state, not everyone is the same and justice is practiced in different hierarchies. The workers must respect the rulers as well as the soldiers who have the will to serve the republic.

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In the same situation the rulers are accorded with different level of justice from both the workers and soldiers. This is the same situation in the human soul in that the soul’s three parts operate with respect and need of concern of the other in order to realize the prospects of justice. In the state the different hierarchies of people are treated with concern of their social positions and interactions, consequently justice rooted to the social ties within the state, unlike what Glaucon says about justice as being independent of the social conventions.

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