Socrates seeks to define justice as one of the cardinal human virtues , and he understands the virtues as states of the soul. So his account of what justice is depends upon his account of the human soul. According to the Republic, every human soul has three parts: reason, spirit, and appetite.
What kind of good does Socrates think justice is?
He reiterates Glaucon’s request that Socrates show justice to be desirable in the absence of any external rewards: that justice is desirable for its own sake, like joy, health, and knowledge .
What does Socrates say about justice in the apology?
In The Apology, Socrates professes to know that he does not know. However, he explicitly states: “I do know that injustice and disobedience to a better, whether God or man, is evil and dishonorable. ” From this it can be inferred that Socrates supposes to know what is moral and what is not.
What is the meaning of justice according to Plato?
Plato defined ‘justice’ as having and doing what is one’s own . In other words, everybody does their own work. Mind is stated to be just when every part of it functions in its own sphere under the overall guidance of reason, which is the pilot of mind and soul.
Is justice instrumentally good?
Now, Glaucon explains, it appears that justice is a type of good like pain: justice is at best instrumentally good , but certainly not desirable for its own sake—and in fact people are reluctantly just. ... And to emphasize his point, Glaucon tells the story of Gyges.
Does Socrates answer Glaucon?
Philosophers have struggled with Glaucon’s challenge and Socrates’ response for a variety of reasons, but perhaps the most serious criticism is that Socrates does not completely answer the challenges posed by Glaucon and Adeimantus. ... Here, Socrates gives his account of the tyrannical soul and of his moral psychology.
What does injustice mean to Socrates?
Socrates: individuals should never commit an injustice ( never do wrong ) ... One of Crito’s arguments to Socrates was that he was wrongly imprisoned, so it would not be wrong for him to escape prison; he would merely be righting a past wrong.
How does Socrates defend justice?
Glaucon allows this since Socrates has already defended justice by itself in the soul . Socrates indicates justice and injustice do not escape the notice of the gods, that the gods love the just and hate the unjust, and that good things come to those whom the gods love (612e-613a).
What did Socrates say about injustice?
Socrates says that Thrasymachus is wrong on three counts: that the unjust man is more knowledgeable than the just, that injustice is a source of strength; and that injustice brings happiness . In his argument at this point, Socrates again employs analogies, in this case the physician and the flute-player.
What are the three views of justice?
Plato, through Socrates, muses that his three views about justice are as follows: Justice is a balance of reason, spirit, and appetite . Injustice...
What is justice according to philosophy?
Justice, In philosophy, the concept of a proper proportion between a person’s deserts (what is merited) and the good and bad things that befall or are allotted to him or her . ... The notion of justice is also essential in that of the just state, a central concept in political philosophy.
What is justice according to Plato class 11?
Answer: For Plato, justice implies a life of people conforming to the rules of functional specialisation means that one man should practice only one thing to which his nature is best suited: ... When each class minds one’s own business without meddling in other classes, justice exist in the state.
Does Socrates value justice?
Socrates, in this connection, seems to summarize his view that justice (here called virtue) is intrinsically good because it affords health to the soul : “Virtue seems, then, to be a kind of health, fine condition, and well-being of the soul, while vice is disease, shameful condition, and weakness” (Rep. IV, 444d-e).
Is justice an intrinsic value?
Intrinsic value is also often taken to be pertinent to judgments about moral justice (whether having to do with moral rights or moral desert), insofar as it is good that justice is done and bad that justice is denied, in ways that appear intimately tied to intrinsic value.
Why is justice good for its own sake?
Glaucon and Socrates agree that although most people would count justice as a C-good, i.e., desirable only for its consequences, they believe that justice is a B-good , i.e., it is desirable both for its own sake and for its consequences.
Why does Socrates disagree with Glaucon?
The Republic book II begins with Glaucon arguing against Socrates’ position of justice. Glaucon argued that by nature humans are selfish and unjust , and that justice is not good in itself; instead justice is a consequential good (it is only valued for the beneficial consequences).
