Surname 1

Name

Course

Professor

Date

Can Plato’s Kalllipolis Come into Being?

One of the striking works in the world was the Republic, and even with more passing

time, it still is on the top list of intellectually and historically compelling writings of political

as well as philosophical theories. Of the earliest philosophers, Plato was famous for

developing a utopian state model. Utilizing his concepts of a just society, Plato had an

assertion of creating an ideal city using a fictitious discourse between Socrates and other

philosophers. There has been a lot of arguments amongst scholars over the centuries

regarding the intent of Plato in writing the Republic. However, its effect on succeeding

philosophers and societies tends to be evident. Among the purposes of Plato's Republic is

bringing forward the concept of a just state. He gives a sketch of how such a nation should be

structured, the people that would govern it, the type of education that could be offered to the

children and several other aspects.

Plato additionally goes into detail, declaring the ideas that might strike a

contemporary leader to be petty, and more so wicked. Utopia is a society characterized by

extremely desirable aspects or rather a perfect community.1 Nevertheless, the most crucial

question is if Plato's Kalllipolis can come to being. Arguments around the query tend to differ

among various philosophers with some stating that his ideas were just but fictional while

others visualize a strong possibility. Some of the elements comprised in the utopia are

1
Myles Burnyeat,Culture and society in Plato's Republic, pg 217
 Surname 2

exceedingly current, but it is indeed impossible for Plato’s Kalllipolis to be built and prevail

in the modern society.

The initial suggestion for the Republic’s deal city is regarded as a sincere and health

model for utopian life. The city offers only the most fundamental necessities for its citizens

encompassing shoes, shelter, food, and clothing. Its construction is on a modest division of

labour whereby every person performs a simple task depending on his most proficient

skills.2Everyone agrees to take his stand in the City and engages in activities that are

supposed to benefit him as well as the rest of the citizens.The reason for doing is this that his

requests are met. Plato proposes kallipolis to be the ideal political state. His proposition of

presenting the ideal city is the construction of a model of justice as it may be evident in a

governmental entity or nation. He argues that the city, as well as the people, are just and as

such competition among the citizens does not exist. Consequently, a government is not

necessitated.

According to Plato, the reason for forming political organizations is because no

person is self-satisfactory. This principle could be referred to as the principle of non-self-

sufficiency. He maintains that people join together since they understand that doing so is in

their shared interest. He additionally declares a policy of specialization which suggests that

needs are more adequately met when a person pays attention to his/her exertions on a single

product to be shared with everyone. As such, a small political entity of around four or five

people could exist in which a builder, farmer, physician, cobbler and weaver are present.

Plato further affirms that intrinsic variations in humans will be more suitable for one person

in one job more than another. As such, a person will be right for a specific communal task,

and this may be termed as a suitability principle. The outcome is a first city that Socrates

2
Sean Sayers, Plato's Republic, pg 63
 Surname 3

defines in rather bucolic if modest terms. Glaucon, however, objects that Socrates has

realized a town for pigs devoid of luxuries and delicacies.

The rigid codes of public as well as private morality and law which ought to be

strictly practical could exert a little pressure and confusion among citizens. No rules might

have the facility to deflect such interference. Additionally, the ideal society by Plato does not

permit needless luxuries. Not incorporated in the education system are dialectic, mathematics

as well as music fields that may considerably lead to the development of human behaviour.

Prosperity may fail to prevail if the appropriate faith in God does not exist. With this, there is

not a right of free will among people.

During their creation by God, the guardian mansion was made of gold, the guards

aided of silver and the creators using copper and iron. This displays racist act rather than

justice. The ideal state termed appears to be highly tranny. The order of Plato’s State is

justice, and the city is the observable embodiment of fairness under the provisions of the

human community. 3The utopia is not a model that promotes freedom to all people.

Conversely, it is an excellent depiction of the liberty of a state in its uprightness and

togetherness. As such, Plato has brought into being a totalitarian system that has the aptitude

to split people into varied social classes.

Plato's encouragement of injustice is on an intense level. Regardless of how perfect a

state is, things can never be right with inequality in the picture. Plato tends to believe that

political control should be concerted in a miniature, intelligently superior elite. There is the

promotion of inclusive governance of art, speech, thought and the nation gets to choose the

job that a person takes. In other words, every aspect of life is utterly planned according to the

top-down state philosophy that is executed by force. The reason for drawing comparisons

3
Sean Sayers, Plato's Republic, pg 9
 Surname 4

with the Soviet Union still is beyond comprehension for most people. And yet, there appears

to be additional totalitarianism noticeable in its Fascist strands which extends further as it

raises above and past the personals so possesses its organic eminence as well as combined

value. The mechanisms through which people form groups and attempt promoting the lives of

one another is individuals are s fetish as an association superior and fundamentally

meaningful in its own right.

The concept of Plato on justice is propelled by his verdict that all the things in nature

are the composition of a hierarchy and that nature tends to be preferably a massive harmony,

the cosmic symphony with all the species and people serving a purpose. The satire of

prevailing in governments is intensified by the natural and seemingly subsidiary way in

which there is an introduction of previous remarks.4The perception of anarchy tends to be the

superlative evil, the greatest unnatural and unjust state. Like nature, the unjust state is

hierarchical, and people are positioned by their capabilities and ultimately located in the

social hierarchy. The platonic perception is entirely foreign to the contemporary open-minded

democratic world. People are used to a diversified, free and sometimes chaotic community

which understands nearly nothing of rigid hierarchies. The life of Plato was in an Athens

which to his irritation was in jeopardy of losing the cultural as well as military reputation. As

such, it was succumbing to crumbling impacts from within and internationally. He visualized

an older improved nation collapsing around him, and he wanted to comprehend the things

that had gone astray and the strategies that could be used in fixing it.

It has been said that Plato is guilty of his totalitarianism. This is because of his

persistence on finding Hegelian philosophy as well the 20th-century Fascist system to the

Republic. Supposedly, the fact that Plato emphasizes a lot on the significance of state stability

does not help his case. The philosopher speaks in length regarding the necessity of creating a

4
Sean Sayers, Plato's Republic, pg 21
 Surname 5

structure that could fight turbulence and remain strong. He describes political justice

regarding the deeds that assist in serving the goal. Therefore, people become little ethical

cogs essential only so long as they help in constituting the machine.

Struggles, worries and the concept of human nature are part and parcel of human

beings, and as such, people cannot live without them. Hardships enable humans to not take

the good things in life for granted. When it comes to Utopia, everything ought to be perfect

meaning that bad things would not exist. Without knowing that bad things do subsist, it

would be difficult to find happiness. People tend to be pleased because the bad things are not

technically happening to them. With the society being perfect, people would have to feel

satisfied. In achieving this, the community will require to bring instances of unhappiness.

One of the philosophers that are in contrast with Plato's insight is Aristotle. He

expresses the manner in which the state happened and asserts that every nation is natural. He

comes to this deduction by an examination of important human relations in their easiest form.

Plato and Aristotle tend to differ in the outlook about nature and its association to the state.

The whole validation of Plato for referring to his state as an ideal and clarifying the details of

its association to such a level is that it tends to replicate the description of justice. This shows

that it is merely his state that is natural.

Plato has to object the perception of Aristotle because if he did not, then his ideal state

would stop to be any more natural compared to the rest. The definition of justice would crush,

and as such, the following subjects on the Republic would cease to be of any significance. A

community originates from the wishes of men.5If Plato was to agree that every state is natural

like Aristotle states the, he ought to admit that each nation is also just in accordance to his

description of justice. Then, despite all states being just for the reason that they are natural,

they remain to be unnatural and unfair since they do not observe the rules of specialized

5
Sean Sayers, Plato's Republic, pg 21
 Surname 6

labour that would leave every nation unjust and just as well as natural and unnatural at

comparable times.

Additionally, if every state is just, then there is not a purpose for Plato’s state being

ideal or superior to any other type of nation. If the state he creates is not any better than

others, the precise exhaustive qualifications that Plato reveal in association to the leader

appear ridiculous, and the same applies to his book which is full of these notions. Plato does

not have any alternative other than rejecting the claims put forward by Aristotle that every

state is natural for reasons of preserving the validity of his description of nature, ideal state as

well as justice.6

Initially, it was declared that factual knowledge has as its entity that what is. Besides,

the other stages of ignorance thought, and opinion tends to hold as their objects

correspondingly that which is and that which is not and that what morality is not. The item of

ignorance is explicated as that which is not existent just like unicorns. Differentiating

between the phases of opining and knowledge is essential since the philosopher king ought to

have accurate knowledge as his object for the reason that it is dependable versus opinion

which is imperfect. The explanation of objects of knowing and opining was better by splitting

into two sections.

Knowing tends to possess its object t forms and math meaning that conclusions are

attained by belief and imaging. The definition of forms is that as the importance of beauty

and understanding that is everlasting, immaterial could only be recognized by education. The

philosopher kings should possess as their proper object acquaintance and ought to understand

math principles. Eventually, the most significance essence is the form of good to recognize if

6
Myles Burnyeat,Culture and society in Plato's Republic, pg 255
 Surname 7

justice is really good and rule for the advantage of the polis. The construction of Plato's ideal

state is from the more profound non-realistic outlook.

A citizen is just but a man, and not a slave or woman, who has the capacity of rational

thinking and judgement. The essence of man is political association because he has the

capability of language. Distinct from the sounds that animals make, that merely explicate

pleasure and pain, the language applied by people is not only used in declaring pain and

pleasure but also the just as well as unjust. Human beings have the facility to judge good and

evil matters of this nature. The competence of thought and language is accountable for the

formation of a family and polis since on a natural basis, man collectively groups depending

on the collective discernment of just and unjust.

In conclusion, Plato’s Kalllipolis is impossible to come into being. The initial

suggestion for the Republic's deal city is regarded as a sincere and health model for utopian

life. The town offers only the most fundamental necessities for its citizens encompassing

shoes, shelter, food, and clothing. The motive for forming political organizations is because

no person is self-satisfactory. This standard could be referred to as the principle of non-self-

sufficiency. He maintains that people join together since they understand that doing so is in

their shared interest. Plato's encouragement of injustice is on a high level. Despite how

perfect a state is, things can never be right with inequality in the picture. Plato tends to

believe that political control should be concerted in a miniature, intelligently superior elite

The concept of Plato on justice is driven by his verdict that all the things in nature are

the composition of a hierarchy and that nature tends to be preferably a massive harmony, a

cosmic symphony with all the species and people serving a purpose. In the perception of

anarchy tends to be the excellent evil, the greatest unnatural and unjust state. Struggles,

worries and the concept of human nature are part and parcel of human beings, and as such,

people cannot live without them. Hardships enable humans to not take the good things in life
 Surname 8

for granted. Plato has to object the perception of Aristotle because if he did not, then his ideal

state would stop to be any more natural compared to the rest. The interpretation of justice

would crush, and as such, the following subjects on the Republic would cease to be of any

essence. If every state is just, then there is not a purpose for Plato's state being ideal or

superior to any other type of nation

 Surname 9

Works Cited

Burnyeat, Myles . "Culture and society in Plato's Republic." Tanner Lectures on Human Values 20

(1999): 215-324

Sayers, Sean. Plato's Republic: an introduction. Edinburgh University Press, 1999