How Did Plato Criticize Athenian Democracy

Democracy in the city-state of Athens occurred in 632-500 B.C.E. The Greeks invented the system of government. The polis is “the Greek city-state, an independent community of citizens not ruled by a king” (Hunt, 51). Democracy initiated real political power division in the polis. Athens is very important because it became one of the most known democratic city-states because “its government gave political rights to the greatest number of people, financed magnificent temples and public buildings, and in the fifth century B.C.E.,

It is clear that Plato’s opposed the concept of democracy. In fact he ‘ranks both timocracy and oligarchy as favourable to democracy and maintains that only tyranny is a less preferable form of government’ (Plato 1955 ). John Wild believed “The most serious charge against Plato from a modern point of view is that he is an enemy of democracy.” (Thorson 1963) In his book “the republic” he describes what he perceives to be the ideal state, in so doing he lays out his criticisms of the Athenian democracy. His criticisms are as follows : inherent class tension, the pillars of equality and liberty and the ability of normal people to rule justly.

During the fifth-century BCE, Athens was one of the most powerful Greek city-states around. Before its demise during the Peloponnesian War, Athenians strongly believed their government was the superior of all and should have been emulated by any state that wanted to be considered a successful society. However, Athenian democracy was not able to withstand the test of time and eventually crumbled as a city. During the height of its success, Athens exemplifies a political paradigm for other societies to imitate. Both Plato and Thucydides argue democracy is the best attainable form of politics for a society.

In 508 B.C, a civil war in Athens ceased; giving rise to a new democratic constitution under the leadership of Cleisthenes. The changes made under his leadership and other subsequent reforms resulted in a relatively radical form of government for the time known as democracy (Hyland Lecture, 26/09/2013). Democracy is a system of collective decision-making in which the participants have equality at least at one essential point of the decision making process (Christiano, “Democracy”). Furthermore, the term ‘democracy’, which comes from the Greeks, literally means rule by the people. The system of government, created by the Greeks, known as Democracy possessed many unique characteristics such as judicial review that have come to influence

Plato is a firm believer in a Aristocracy. Through years of preparation and precision a small group of philosophers would rule. However as Aristotle claims that this way of government would lead to an oligarchy, spreading the wealth gap and creating factions within the society. As mentioned in Republic, this is how a tyranny would arise, from one compelling ruler who claims to fight for the people be engulfed by their power and do worse for society. Aristotle's resolution is to have a monarchy for that in his eyes would be the best for society. But the way a monarchy hands power down if from generation to generation which means that a ruler could be in power who doesn't have the same virtues and morals as Aristotle points out in Ethics and Politics. Both philosophers make a compelling argument for answering the question, who should rule? Winston Churchill, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom said it best, “It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government, except all those others that have been tried”. Democracy has a its fair share of issues and for people it seems like a flawed system. However Democracy is a better system of government than Plato's aristocracy, and Aristotle's monarchy. For it ensures that there cannot be one single ruler who can become corrupted and therefore affect the city as a whole. In a democracy officials are elected by

Continuously throughout history the Greeks ideas had displayed themselves multiple times in many different ways. Most Americans had become familiar with the famous description of a democratic government by Abraham Lincoln, “a government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Although, unfortunately less known that the word democracy comes from our ancient Greek companions. Demokratia, a Greek word for “power of the people,” came to life in Athens in the 7th century BC. A democracy described itself as a government in which citizens elect representatives to advocate for them in the government. As the city-states oligarchy exploited citizens and created economic, political, and social problems, Athens became inspired by the prosperous, semi-democratic model Sparta had adopted. They turned their ways in trying to help the struggling majority

The basis of a democracy goes back as far as 507 B.C. It was introduced by Ancient Athens’ first leader Cleisthenes. His primary mean was to ensure equality among his people; however, Cleisthenes’ “equality declaration” only spread so far and accomplished so much. Only forty thousand men over the age of eighteen were allowed to be part of Athens’ political affairs. This Athenian democracy was separated into three parts: “the ekklesia - a sovereign governing body that wrote laws and dictated foreign policy; the boule - a council of representatives from the ten Athenian tribes; and the dikasteria - the popular courts in which citizens argued cases before a group of lottery-selected jurors.” Cleisthenes’ democracy only survived for two centuries. However, his political reform of a democracy is one of Ancient Greece’s best contributions to the entire world.

In book one of Plato’s Republic, Socrates states that “no one, in any position of rule, to the extent that he is a ruler, considers or enjoins what is advantageous for himself, but what is advantageous for his subject - that on which he practices his craft.” According to Plato, treating political rule as a craft with master craftsmen in power is the greatest way have a successful political rule. This idea is pessimistic when viewed in terms of a democratic society, as a true democracy places a value on the ability of everyone to exercise political authority either through voting or being elected into a political office. Socrates believes that democracy is inherently flawed because it gives a political voice to those who lack experience in political craft.

The ancient city-state of Athens has long been celebrated for the foundation of the first democracy in the 5th century B.C.E. Though it was unrivaled by any other ancient civilization in the creation of a government that offered its citizens a way to directly participate in various democratic institutions and make their voices heard, it was far from perfect. Identifying the limitations of Athenian democracy at its peak and investigating some of the events that potentially let to its subsequent demise provides a more complete understanding of the weaknesses in the democratic system. While Athenian democracy granted ordinary male citizens unprecedented political power and is celebrated for being an innovative form of government in the ancient world and a model for contemporary democracy, it was inclusive of only a small portion of the Athenian population and had inherent flaws within the system that ultimately lead to its failure.

Plato, having defined his perfect society, now seeks to compare contemporary 'imperfect' societies with his ideal standard. He initially criticises the imperfect society as a whole, before leading onto a criticism of any given individual within that society; the imperfect character. He has already dealt with the Oligarchic society and character and now moves onto Democracy and the democratic character.

Philosophers are commonly viewed as useless and foolish in the modern world. Some people see philosophers of the past as people who attempted to understand important aspects of human nature, different ideologies, and social problems only to fail or not provide universal answers or solutions. However, there are others who see the importance of philosophers and how they have become to understand aspects of life and human nature before anyone else; Plato is a person who sides with the argument that philosophers play an important role in society. In Plato’s dialogue, Republic, he attempts to discover justice and to convey the importance philosophers possess in ensuring a just society. The main argument that will be addressed in this essay is that philosophers are useful and are essential to guarantee a truly just city. In this paper I will use Plato’s dialogue, Republic, and the claims mentioned throughout to support and build my agreement with Plato in arguing that having philosophers in rule ensures a just and honest society.

Plato’s Republic doesn’t shy from heavily totalitarian-associated values: censorship, “noble lies,” and elite rule to name a few. Scholars and political theorists alike have been quick to criticize him for these politics, claiming The Republic to be a blueprint for these especially conservative views. However, it can just as well be argued that those who insist that Plato’s work be in support of totalitarianism don’t fully grasp many of the concepts Socrates lays out in defense of democracy. In these contrasting interpretations, Plato can be pulled both ways. Still, it would be easier to find a sort of compromise in interpreting The Republic; although it is that Plato lays out his ideas much in favor of a totalitarian regime, he just as well articulates his arguments in a contrastingly democratic way. How he portrays his ideas depends on the well being of the people; even if through totalitarian means, Plato’s focus in governing is on the governed as opposed to those governing.

Where does democracy come from? Given that Greek democracy is the earliest known case of the appearance of democracy in an intricate society, the question of its origins is of specific significance. Democracy, in the Greek context, is best understood as a strong form of “Greek republicanism” – that is, of governments in which a large part of the native male population enjoys full political opinion (active citizenship), based on an assumed rough equality of public standing among citizens. Republics of this type discard the political monopoly of small and preventive bodies of elites. Democracy is an important part of the legacy of the Greeks.

Philosophers and sophists hold substantial differences from each other, these differences illustrate how societies would be, if run by one or the other. One such example is that the philosophers only motive is knowledge, which is why they would give their wisdom to others for free, for the sake of knowledge. In The Republic, it defines philosophers as “lovers of wisdom rather than of opinion.” (480). They want to rule in an unselfish manner, or at least the illusion of being unselfish. The philosophers embody the Socratic voice which encourages the ideas of others and creates a city of speech, they want to see others give their opinions. These are reasons why it would be beneficial to have a philosopher ruler,

To start, before the fifth century all of Greek’s city-states were all monarchies. Then, they moved into aristocratism. Most city-states were run by aristocrats also, known as an oligarchy. Only the richest men like generals and judges, oversaw the city’s government. By the 600s B.C. tyrants tried to bring down the aristocrats, but they were unsuccessful in the plot. Many Athenians did not like the too strict rules of the aristocrats and attempted to topple the aristocrats. After Draco made harsh laws permitting the common people from minor crimes because the will be punishable by death and they were ready to end aristocracy. The Athenians called these strict laws Draco’s laws. Solon tried to make the Athenian laws better by making everyone a citizen and giving non-aristocratic men a say in the government. Even though, Solon was moving in the direction of democracy he was not there. It took Cleisthenes to call on the people for help to overthrow the government. He was able to overthrow aristocracy forever. Cleisthenes was able to form a new government. Under Cleisthenes’ leadership, Athens developed the world’s first democracy and all citizens had a right to vote and share their opinion on things going on in the government. The first known democracy of history was Athens; Athens was first a monarchy with a king and around the fifth century B.C. Athens transitioned into a democracy. The Athens democracy developed in this Greek city-state and the surrounding areas. Unlike