The Early Stoa's Analysis

There are many ways a government can be run, and within a government how the society is and what concept the people believe in and follow also have many different views. All four theorists, Pericles, Socrates, Protagoras, and Machiavelli have very good points on authority and obligation, democracy, and freedom. Though the same concept, each has their own view on how society and government should approach it.

Pericles takes time to laud democracy as a form of government. He believes the division of political power equally amongst citizens inevitably leads to laws that benefit the Athenian people as a whole. This in turn increase overall equality, and by extension, social mobility. Such a government is a just government in the eyes of Pericles, and thus, a shining example of Athenian superiority. “[Athens’] administration favors the many instead of the few; this is why it is called a democracy. If we look to the laws, they afford equal justice to all in their private differences; if no social standing, advancement in public life falls to reputation for capacity, class considerations not being allowed to interfere with merit; nor again does poverty bar the way, if a man is able to serve the state, he is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition.” (2.37.1).

It’s that time of year again where you are voting for your choice of government, what will you choose? Monarchy. Oligarchy. Tyranny. Democracy. They were all different forms of government back in Greece, every form of government had the goods and the bads. Every city had their own laws, army, and money, but by far their government was the most important. That’s why we the ancient Greek cities are called city-states. Democracy and Oligarchy are two of the four governments, they both have the goods and bads, but which is really the best?

Government was a form of order among both the Athenian Democracy and the Roman Republic. It lead to a simple unification as a whole, causing their separate civilizations to prosper. It allowed the citizens to become a part of leadership that wasn’t so enforced from the beginning of civilization. Through agreements as a society joined together, they established firm laws and developed different systems that each reaped their own benefits. Each had similar yet contrasting outcomes through organization and development, leading to a new perspective for both governments. However, despite the fact both had exceptional ideas of government, the Athenian Democracy stands out as more prominent because they gave quality citizenships, they gave the opportunity for common men to participate in affairs, and they strictly enforced

Throughout the time of recorded history, humans have had the natural desire for protection and order. That desire is where government comes in. There have been many forms of government throughout history, according to Aristotle, there have only been two types, oligarchies and democracies. Aristotle goes on to say that there are variations of these governments; for example, an aristocracy is considered to be an oligarchy where the wealthy land owners make the decisions in government. Later in that same paragraph, he states that a republic is a form of democracy; these are not the only variations of democracies and oligarchies as there are many variations of these two types of government along the spectrum (Aristotle 3). Societies all through history have one thing in common, they all had some form of government; This raises the question though, what is the difference between a good and bad government?

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(23-4). Specifically, Pericles is credited with having developed unique criteria for those responsible for an organization’s fate. Pericles’ criteria consisted of three components that the strategos, a democratically elected “supreme commander”, must possess; strategic “vision” and the ability to “effectively articulate” and “communicate” said vision (Cummings 23-4, Menaldo 103). According to the Greek historian Thucydides (460-395 b.c.e.), Pericles suggested that without these qualities, a strategos might as well be completely absent thought (Cummins

Epictetus, a Stoic philosopher who lived from 50-130 AD, was instrumental in allowing the Stoic philosophy to grow and flourish. As ideas have come and gone throughout the years, this is a philosophy, a way of thinking, or even a lifestyle that has maintained its validity ever since its inception into the human mind, and continues to be a formative way of thinking to this day. Without knowing it, I have adopted several of the views that are explicitly written in Epictetus’ The Handbook. As I grew tired and annoyed with the events happening around me, it dawned on me that I can only control how I live my life, and that has been a central philosophy in my life for several years. In this paper, I will use different excerpts from The Handbook to support my claim that this philosophical way of thinking is a superior path to eudaimonia, and I will look at counter-arguments and discuss why they are less valid than the Stoic outlook on life.

Epictetus, Plutarch’s ‘Life of Lycurgus,’ and Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”. Each of which, play a role in achieving a stronger community. While the laws instilled in citizens reflect a leader’s inspiration, confidence creates prudence to ensure the stability of a state.

The democratic, democratic, tyrannical, tyrannical, etc. establishing the rulers that's just what suits them and punish those who violate these laws as guilty of unfair. And in this case the government is the one with power, that is, the strongest. Socrates says that sometimes the rulers are wrong, dictating laws that do not suit them. Then concludes that justice, as Thrasymachus reasoning is to make suitable and not suitable for the stronger. 2.

Stasiland was a really sad book, I honestly wanted to close the book after reading some of the things that happen to the people in Germany. You'll think an army would be there for support reasons but not the Stazi. The Stazi was just a nasty group of people that tortured these innocent people. Julia will be scarred for life after what happened to her. "She felt fear, she says, ‘like a worm in my belly'" (STASILAND108). Nobody should ever feel this way when meeting somebody for the first time. The way they acted around her scared her to the point where she thought she was worthless. The worst part about it was that Julia was already going through it because he father needed constant medication because he was always depressed. Julia thought if she would find love things would get better.

After having read the excerpt from The Histories, a rather clear picture is formed on Polybius’ leanings in terms of government. When prompted with the question of how he, Polybius, would organize a state, it’s only clear to look at the text and observe his opinions: he, in fact, finds the constitution of Sparta to be, what he claims, the best of all possible arrangements.

As one of the most significant works in philosophy, The Republic has been one of the most historically and intellectually influential basis of many political theories and philosophical approaches since its first appearance. It is also crucial to mention that the book contains both Plato’s and Socrates’ arguments of life and the view of the Athenian Democracy in the ancient Greek world. Therefore, it can be confusing and complicated to decide to which philosopher the arguments belong. The main focus of the book is to find the definition and the whereabouts of order, justice and to establish a just state, as well as to prove that a just man is happier than the unjust man by providing examples. The true importance of The Republic lies in the fact that everything has meaning in it, not only the arguments, but also the people who act as metaphors for the different kind of roles, which they fulfill in the Athenian society, furthermore the way they speak symbolizes those roles and every one of them embodies a part of the soul and the city-state. Even though it is not obvious, Plato / Socrates criticizes the Athenian society and tries to establish a new, ideal one with the different people he meets and talks to in the book.

Stoicism is, without a doubt, one of the most widely misunderstood schools of Philosophy ever established and followed by a wide number of people. The common opinion of Stoic adherents is that they are merely cold, somber individuals dedicated to the idea that happiness is evil, emotion is to be avoided at all costs and pleasure is wicked. Although they do stress control over strong emotions and that pleasure is not the sole end of life, this is a gross misunderstanding of Stoicism. According to Dr. Zeno Breuninger, "Stoics believe a person is born with everything he needs." The Stoic seeks to lead a life at peace with himself and the world

government are outlined in Plato’s The Last Days of Socrates , along with Machiavelli’s The