Plato’s Theory of The Soul in The Republic Essay - 1755 Words

Plato’s Republic introduces a multitude of important and interesting concepts, of topics ranging from music, to gender equality, to political regime. For this reason, many philosophers and scholars still look back to The Republic in spite of its age. Yet one part that stands out in particular is Plato’s discussion of the soul in the fourth book of the Republic. Not only is this section interesting, but it was also extremely important for all proceeding moral philosophy, as Plato’s definition has been used ever since as a standard since then. Plato’s confabulation on the soul contains three main portions: defining each of the three parts and explanation of their functions, description of the interaction of the parts, and then how the the†¦show more content†¦For instance, consider an employee who has been assigned a project by his boss. The employee has been planning out the work he has to do, and has completed everything but one or two key parts, which can be left until the last night. However, on that night, the employee is invited by his friends to watch and tailgate for a football game, which he is lead to accept by council from his passions. This council, however, will also lead him to not complete the work project. On top of commonly being observed as at fault, the passions do not seem to have any apparent benefit either, as the appetite only directs one’s attention to his base needs, and not to higher pleasures or practices like the will and reason does. So, in the Platonic view, what is the worth of the appetite? Plato does not specifically enter the topic in his Republic, but the reader is able to come across a few conclusions from what is said. First, from all the time that Plato spends discussing and teaching about them, it is not likely (though still technically possible) for the passions to be a worthless part of the soul. Secondly, the fact the passions can be moderated by the other two parts of the soul (moderation like one restraining oneself from going to watch the football game in order finish the big project), seems to lead to the passions also being able to moderate the other two parts of the soul. An example of thisShow MoreRelatedPlatos View in Human Knowledge Essay examples1392 Words   |  6 PagesPlatos View in Human Knowledge Plato presents three different views about knowledge in Meno, Republic, and Theaetetus. In Menos case, Plato believes knowledge as something innate in us when we are born; in his later view, in Republic, Plato believes we perceive things and gain knowledge; and from the last view, in Theaetus, Plato believes knowledge is the combination of a true opinion and a rational opinion. 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