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Drew Cunningham
Dr. Kaufman
Intro to Philosophy
10/10/13

Socrates and Education

In Platos Republic there are many ideas brought forth by Socrates
through his dialogue with the various other characters that are present.
Topics range from the definition of justice to the tripartite nature of the soul.
One of the most interesting topics that are discussed is the idea of education
and the reform of education that is necessary to make the Kallipolis a
successful society. Socratess account of his ideal educational system is
drastic and unlike most any other system that has been used in the ancient
world. This system of education is odd and may make perfect sense in the
mind of Socrates in trying to create the Kallipolis, but there are several
issues that need to be addressed before this can be considered the best
educational model for the Guardians in the Republic.
The first thing that Socrates outlines as a necessary component in the
Guardians education is musical training. This is interesting as the first thing
that he suggests, but makes sense in the context. He states that we tell
stories to children to help them learn before they are assigned physical
tasks, so from a pedagogical standpoint this is the perfect place to begin

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educating the auxiliaries. Here is where the educational plan takes a very
interesting turn. Socrates wants to basically do away with all popular Greek
culture. He wants to eradicate the stories that feature Gods warring or doing
other unjust activities such as overthrowing their fathers in the case of
Zeus, or Hephaestus being banished from Olympus for trying to protect his
mother from a beating.
Socratess main complaint with the mythological accounts of the Gods
is that they are not meant for the young. In book II he states, For the young
cannot distinguish what is allegorical from what is not. And the beliefs they
absorb at that age are difficult to erase and tend to be unalterable (59).
Although this could be true, Socrates is underestimating the power of young
minds by generalizing that they would be unable to grasp the meaning of the
stories. Many stories that have been used as tools for education throughout
history have been allegorical in nature while carrying many moral
implications. Examples of this would be the fairy stories of the brothers
Grimm. Some aspects of their stories were very gruesome, such as Rapunzel
being banished to the desert when it is discovered that she is pregnant.
However, the moral lesson to be learned from this (or the moral when the
story was first published) is to not have premarital sex. While this is an
abstract thought and children may not explicitly think this, they are taught
from the story to listen to the demands of their guardians and therefore learn
a lesson in morality. The Greek mythological canon is full of stories that

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have many lessons to be learned from them, even if they included some
unsavory topics.
Socratess denouncement of the entirety of Greek popular culture is
surprising and it seems that he is arguing for a very conservative and
traditional society. His distaste with contemporary culture is odd but is
solidified throughout his discussion of education for the guardians. In book
IV he says, there must be no innovation in musical and physical training
that goes against the established order (108). This statement is very odd
since it seems that he is urging there to be no forward thinking in the
kallipolis. This statement does two things: first, it solidifies Socratess view
that thoughts must be censored for the good of society, and two, it
discourages forward thinking by demonizing innovation. For a philosopher to
discount further thinking on a topic and feeling that one view is the absolute
perfect way to educate students is very disheartening. It seems as if his
view on this is anti-philosophical in nature and I find great issue with his
condemnation of innovation in the area of education.
Another Socratic educational practice that is odd is Socratess belief
that one is naturally predisposed to one occupation. While it is true that
many people are naturally gifted in some areas and not others, it does not
mean that they are only meant to do one task for eternity. There are several
objections that can be raised to this. The first is that these choices would be

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made at a very young age since the education of a person is tailored to what
their natural abilities are. It is impossible to know what a person will do with
their life and how suited they are for a profession while they are a child.
Another issue is the interest of a person in their chosen occupation. Passion
can do a lot towards making a person more appropriate for a task than
another. This passion cannot be determined when someone is young
because they do not know what they want to do. If Socrates thinks that a
child cannot distinguish the allegorical from the literal how does he expect
them to show signs of being good as a cobbler? A final objection is the level
of education given to a person based on their future task. Socrates makes a
point that the level of education invested in a person will equal how
important it is to be educated for their career. Guardians will have the most
time invested in their education while a farmer will have much less time.
This would create an unequal society that is heavily censored and not open
to innovation. So far, based on the description of the educational system,
the kallipolis sounds to be a dystopian society instead of the moral utopia
that Socrates is hoping to create.
One final issue that is found in the kallipoliss educational structure is
the extreme level of specialization that occurs. Socrates believes that a
person can only specialize in one area and this practice fundamentally
opposes everything that I hold dear in an education. I chose Transylvania
because of the liberal arts education that is offered at this university .

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Socrates would not agree with any of the educational practices that many
people think develop educated citizens. He would be appalled to find that a
person is required not only to take a wide selection of classes from all areas,
but they are requisite for them to take upper level classes in two areas
outside of their major. It is here where the philosophical differences of
education come to a head. While there are merits to being specialized in one
field, it is not the only way to produce well-educated people and therefore, it
is not necessary to have it in the Kallipolis. In fact, it could be argued that
focusing too much on one area is detrimental to an education by not allowing
the exploration of other areas, but this would be a difficult position to argue.
While Plato has offered several interesting ideas on the ideal education
for the Kallipolis through Socratess dialogue, there are many reasons that
can be used to oppose Platos views. This educational model is attempting
to create just citizens and therefore a just city, but it has many aspects that
weaken it. It is hard to argue that some of these views are the only way in
which moral expertise can be achieved and therefore serve as the perfect
way to educate citizens in matters of justice.