Plato's Utopia

The case for the ideal city has been discussed from the Socrates era to the modern day. People have made many suggestions on how to form an ideal city where there will be balance, justice, rights, and equality; but not many are logistic. Plato argues in his Republic that to form a just city there must be order, structure, and strict roles; a stark opposite to a modern-day festival that takes place in the middle of a Nevada desert called Burning Man. This festival promotes a society in which there are no strict roles; what people bring to the week-long event is what they can give in exchange for other items they may need. This festival provides a platform in which creativity along with expression are the forefront to its’ existence. Plato’s Republic defines justice as a tension between justice and equality, furthermore where each part of the whole does the job which is appropriate to it. Burning Man defines freedom through allowing a radically different sense of inclusion, giving, and finding one’s inner self through a community that is supportive as well as open. The more ideal city is Plato’s Republic as it provides structure, order, and security; all things humans thrive on for survival.

"Unless," I said, "the philosophers rule as kings or those now called kings and chiefs genuinely and adequately philosophize, and political power and philosophy coincide in the same place, while the many natures now making their way to either apart from the other are by necessity excluded, there is no rest from ills for the cities, my dear Glaucon, nor I think for human kind, nor will the regime we have now described in speech ever come forth from nature, insofar as possible, and see the light of the sun."(THE REPUBLIC OF PLATO By Allan B- 473d - 473e)

There are many different definitions to describe a true perfect Utopia. The reason that there are so many people with many different ideas about the perfect world is because the act of making something perfect in a person vision of utopia is created to suit what that creator deems to be perfect. Perception is the key to understanding what makes a Utopia perfect and what makes it flawed. My view of a Utopia requires several different managements and trade-offs of what is believed to be best for the community. This Utopia cannot be strong unless it has a powerful backing of several democratic leaders, many sound and agreeable rules, understanding of peace, lack of war, and desire to work in harmony within the

Plato is remembered as one of the worlds best known philosophers who along with his writings are widely studied. Plato was a student of the great Greek philosopher Socrates and later went on to be the teacher of Aristotle. Plato’s writings such as “The Republic”, “Apology” and “Symposium” reveal a great amount of insight on what was central to his worldview. He was a true philosopher as he was constantly searching for wisdom and believed questioning every aspect of life would lead him to the knowledge he sought. He was disgusted with the common occurrence of Greeks not thinking for themselves but simply accepting the popular opinion also known as doxa. Plato believed that we ought to search for and meditate on the ideal versions of beauty, justice, wisdom, and other concepts which he referred to as the forms. His hostility towards doxa, theory of the forms, and perspective on reality were the central ideas that shaped Plato’s worldview and led him to be the great philosopher who is still revered today.

Throughout history, many utopian societies have been established in hopes of creating a protected and uniform environment. In order to maintain a perfectly equal and errorless environment, some basic human rights are often violated. Many of the utopian principles put in place are based on the fear that the citizens will gain knowledge and notice the absence of their basic human rights. Unfortunately, once the citizens figure out that the government has infringed on their civil liberties they become disillusioned and want to revolt. This ultimately causes dissention and unhappiness throughout the utopia, which defeats the sole intention the leaders had when creating it. To avoid the rebellion, leaders of utopian experiments infringe on

The next day as I walk through the school doors, I see Hunter glaring at me. Remembering what my mom said, I continue walking to class. I go to my first two periods and I read the book Utopia by Thomas Moore through both my classes. When the lunch bell rings, I jump up from my seat and head to the cafeteria where I sit down at my usual table alone. I start eating my peanut butter and jelly sandwich as Hunter and a bunch of his friends enter the cafeteria. I freeze in fear and I start to become enraged. My hands start to shake and my face turns bright red with anger. Without thinking about it, I stand up towering over Hunter. Hunter’s friends begin to laugh at my idiotic decision. I become even more enraged as I hold my hands up in front

One of the major themes Mitchell plays with in his novel is the concept of a utopian society, and what it is comprised of. In each story, there is a setup for a ‘perfect’ society, but humanity, or humanity’s spirit got in the way. Each story represents how the interpretation of things can shape a society, depending on how literal they take the events. In the story “Sloosha’s Crossin’ an’ Everythin’ After”, the tales are in place to develop the role of each character. Zachry fights his inner demons, just as Truman Napes does with Old Georgie. Zachry chooses to protect and befriend Meronym, even though it goes against his initial judgement. Meronym fights for the overall good of the people just as the crow does in “Prescient yarnie”. She goes out and lives with the villagers to gather information, and saves Zachry’s sister. She is making diplomatic decisions to take on the risk of changing the course of things by helping her. The function of Zachry and Meronym are to be foils of each other, even the story is told from the biased perspective of Zachry. Meronym is focused on long term goals, and the redevelopment of society, while Zachry is very much focused on the present time, and the folklore that affects his day to day life.

Plato continues to relate the categories of a just state to the individual soul. He says that the soul has different parts to it as well and for them to be in harmony is for

Thomas More and Plato create their ideal Utopia. A utopia is described as a perfect world. Thomas Moore and Plato have different mentalities when it comes to the selection of an individual’s occupation. Thomas Moore focuses on a Utopia were the work force is strictly determined by the society’s needs while Plato believes that each individual should perform the task that best fits with his or her natural ability.

In our lives today, we take advantage of all the luxuries that are presented daily. Freedom alone is one of the greatest luxuries we possess as an American nation. In Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs and Utopia by Thomas Moore, we are presented two life styles, which some might consider very similar in various ways. Both authors focus on a peaceful living lifestyle, to better the people of the nation. Although some of their specific details are different, I believe that Jacobs would definitely approve of the features that More develops in Utopia.

Plato's Republic      Critics of The Republic, Plato's contribution to the history of political theory, have formed two distinct opinions on the reasoning behind the work. The first group believes that The Republic is truly a model for a political society, while the other strongly objects to that, stating it as being far too fantastic for any society to operate successfully by these suggested methods. In an exchange between Crito and Dionysius, this argument is first introduced, with Crito siding with those who agree that The Republic is a realistic political model, and Dionysius arguing on behalf of those who doubt it as being realistic, claiming it to be a criticism of politics in general.

A utopian society is amongst many things that we as humans strive towards. In an ideal world, a society where everyone is treated equally and sin does not exist, is the definition of a perfect society. However, what many people neglect to understand is that they are striving to reach a goal that is nearly impossible to accomplish. A utopian society is nearly impossible to have because of power imbalances, different values, and the existence of sin. All of which are a part of human nature, and controlling the actions and feelings of humans cannot easily be done, especially without the use of extensive technological devices.

Firchow, Peter Edgerly. "George Orwell's Dystopias: From Animal Farm to Nineteen Eighty-Four." Bloom's Literature. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 11 Mar. 201

“the having and doing of one’s own and what belongs to one would be agreed to

Through Plato’s theory on the ordering of souls, he justifies the separation of people into groups and the hierarchy of these groups by saying that the nature, or soul, of a person is