Today we would read about the theory of justice
The concept of justice is the most important principle of Plato's political philosophy. The sub-title of
the Republic, ‘Concerning Justice’ shows the extra ordinary importance which Plato attached to
justice. Plato saw in justice the only practical remedy of saving his beloved Athens from decay and
ruin. The main argument in the republic is a sustained search after the location and nature of
justice. He discovers and locates the principle of justice with the help of his ideal state.
An ideal state for Plato possessed the four cardinal virtues of wisdom, courage, discipline and
justice. It would have wisdom because its rulers were persons of knowledge, courage because its
warriors were brave, self discipline because of the harmony that pervaded the societal matrix due to
a common agreement as to who ought to rule, and finally, justice of doing one's job for which one
was naturally filled without interfering with others. For Plato, the state was ideal, of which justice
was the reality. Justice was the principle on which the state had to be founded and a contribution
made towards the excellence of the city.
According to Plato, justice does not consist in mere adherence to the laws, for it is based on the
inner nature of human spirit, it is also to the triumph of the stronger over the weaker, for it protects the weaker against the stronger. A just state, Plato argues, is achieved with an eye to the good of
the whole. In a just state or society, the rulers and military, the producers all do what they ought to
do. In such a society the rulers are wise, the soldiers are brave, and the producers exercise selfcontrol
or temperance.
For Plato, justice is a moral concept. As Prof: Ernest Barker has rightly pointed out; justice for Plato
is at once a part of human virtue and the bond which joins men together in the states. It makes man
good and make him social" A similar view has been expressed by a Prof. Sabine when he wrote
that for Plato' “Justice is a bound which holds the society together.
So thanks for reading.
The concept of justice is the most important principle of Plato's political philosophy. The sub-title of
the Republic, ‘Concerning Justice’ shows the extra ordinary importance which Plato attached to
justice. Plato saw in justice the only practical remedy of saving his beloved Athens from decay and
ruin. The main argument in the republic is a sustained search after the location and nature of
justice. He discovers and locates the principle of justice with the help of his ideal state.
An ideal state for Plato possessed the four cardinal virtues of wisdom, courage, discipline and
justice. It would have wisdom because its rulers were persons of knowledge, courage because its
warriors were brave, self discipline because of the harmony that pervaded the societal matrix due to
a common agreement as to who ought to rule, and finally, justice of doing one's job for which one
was naturally filled without interfering with others. For Plato, the state was ideal, of which justice
was the reality. Justice was the principle on which the state had to be founded and a contribution
made towards the excellence of the city.
According to Plato, justice does not consist in mere adherence to the laws, for it is based on the
inner nature of human spirit, it is also to the triumph of the stronger over the weaker, for it protects the weaker against the stronger. A just state, Plato argues, is achieved with an eye to the good of
the whole. In a just state or society, the rulers and military, the producers all do what they ought to
do. In such a society the rulers are wise, the soldiers are brave, and the producers exercise selfcontrol
or temperance.
For Plato, justice is a moral concept. As Prof: Ernest Barker has rightly pointed out; justice for Plato
is at once a part of human virtue and the bond which joins men together in the states. It makes man
good and make him social" A similar view has been expressed by a Prof. Sabine when he wrote
that for Plato' “Justice is a bound which holds the society together.
So thanks for reading.
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