7) The Virtues of City and Soul

Political Philosophy
Course: An Introduction to Plato’s Republic
Class 7: The Virtues of City and Soul
Professor: Jonathan Culp, Ph.D., Director of International Studies & Associate Professor, University of Dallas
Course Description:
The purpose of this class is to introduce students to Socratic-Platonic political philosophy through a careful study of Plato’s most comprehensive work, the Republic. Commonly known as a book outlining a political utopia, Plato’s Republic is in truth a comprehensive reflection on the nature of the human soul, its longing for justice, and its place within the whole. The Republic is also complex, elusive, and often outrageous. In the course of reading the Republic, we shall consider many of the crucial questions it presents to us: What is justice? Is it good to be just? What is the best form of government? the best education? the best way of life? What are the obstacles in the way of these things? What is truth and how do we find it? We will read the Republic slowly and carefully and contemplate Plato’s responses to these questions.
Class 7:
In this class, Dr. Culp discusses Socrates’ definition of justice as “minding one’s own business,” and analyzes the path by which Socrates arrives at this definition. Socrates first defines the virtues of the city: its wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice. Dr. Culp shows how all four of these virtues are aimed at the good of the city as a whole. Next, Dr. Culp analyzes Socrates’ division of the soul into three “parts” that are analogous to the three classes in the city in speech. He explains why this procedure is necessary. Then, Dr. Culp explicates the four virtues of the soul that Socrates defines by means of analogy to the city: the wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice of the individual soul. Finally, Dr. Culp discusses some of the unresolved questions that remain even after justice has been defined: is this an adequate definition of justice? and does the education of the guardians produce justice of soul? Dr. Culp concludes that the relation between the private good and the common good still has not been resolved.