Latest / Logic Library / 33 - The Republic - Plato

Transcript

33 - The Republic - Plato · Logic Library

0:00
Book nine, Part one. Last of all comes the tyrannical man, about
0:05
whom we have once more to ask, how is he formed out of the
0:09
democratical and how does he live in happiness or in misery? Yes, he
0:16
said, he is the only one remaining. There is, However, I
0:21
said, a previous question which remains unanswered. What question? I do not
0:28
think that we have adequately determined the nature and number of the appetites, And
0:32
until this is accomplished, the inquiry will always be confused. Well, he
0:38
said, it is not too late to supply the omission. Very true,
0:43
I said, and observe the point which I want to understand. Certain of
0:48
the unnecessary pleasures and appetites I conceive to be unlawful. Everyone appears to have
0:53
them. But in some persons they are controlled by the laws and by reason,
0:58
and the better desires prevail over them. Either they are wholly banished,
1:02
or they become few and weak, while in the case of others, they
1:06
are stronger, and there are more of them. Which appetites do you mean?
1:12
I mean those which are awake. When the reasoning and human and ruling
1:17
power is asleep, then the wild beast within us gorged with meat, or
1:22
drink, starts up, and, having shaken off sleep, goes forth to
1:26
satisfy his desires. And there is no conceivable folly or crime, not accepting
1:30
incest or any other unnatural union, or parricide, or the eating of forbidden
1:36
food, which at such a time, when he has parted company with all
1:40
shame and sense, a man may not be ready to commit. Most true,
1:45
he said, But when a man's pulse is healthy and temperate, and
1:49
when before going to sleep, he has awakened his rational powers and fed them
1:55
on noble thoughts and enquiries, collecting himself in meditation, after having first indulged
2:00
his appetites, neither too much nor too little, but just enough to lay
2:04
them to sleep, and prevent them and their enjoyments and pains from interfering with
2:08
the higher principle, which he leaves in the solitude of pure abstraction, free
2:14
to contemplate and aspire to the knowledge of the unknown, whether in past,
2:17
present, or future. When again he has allayed the passionate element, if
2:22
he has a quarrel against any one, I say, when after pacifying the
2:27
two irrational principles, he rouses up the third, which is reason, before
2:31
he takes his rest. Then, as you know, he attains truth most
2:35
nearly and is least likely to be the sport of fantastic and lawless visions.
2:40
I quite agree in saying this, I have been running into a digression.
2:46
But the point which I desire to note is that in all of us,
2:50
even in good men, there is a lawless, wild beast nature which peers
2:53
out in sleep. Pray, consider whether I am right, and you agree
2:58
with me? Yes, I agree. And now remember the character which we
3:04
attributed to the democratic man. He was supposed, from his youth upwards to
3:08
have been trained under a miserly parent, who encouraged the saving appetites in him,
3:14
but discountenanced the unnecessary, which aim only at amusement and ornament. True,
3:21
and then he got into the company of a more refined, licentious sort
3:24
of people, and, taking to all their wanton ways, rushed into the
3:28
opposite extreme from an abhorrence of his father's meanness, at last, being a
3:34
better man than his corruptors, he was drawn in both directions until he halted
3:38
midway and led a life not of vulgar and slavish passion, but of what
3:43
he deemed moderate indulgence in various pleasures. After this manner, the democrat was
3:47
generated out of the oligarch. Yes, he said, not was our view
3:52
of him, and is so still. And now, I said, years
3:57
will have passed away, and you must conceive this man such as he is.
4:00
To have a son who is brought up in his father's principles, I
4:05
can imagine him. Then you must further imagine the same thing to happen to
4:11
the son which has already happened to the father. He is drawn into a
4:15
perfectly lawless life, which by his seducers is termed perfect liberty, and his
4:19
father and friends take part with his moderate desires, and the opposite party assist
4:25
the opposite ones. As soon as these dire magicians and tyrant makers find that
4:30
they are losing their hold on him, they contrive to implant in him a
4:33
master passion to be lord over his idle and spendthrift lusts, a sort of
4:39
monstrous wing drone. That is the only image which will adequately describe him.
4:45
Yes, he said, that is the only adequate image of him. And
4:49
when his other lusts amid clouds of incense and perfumes, and garlands and wines
4:56
and all the pleasures of a dissolute life. Now let loose come buzz around
5:00
him, nourishing to the utmost the sting of desire which they implant in his
5:04
drone like nature. Then at last this lord of the soul, having madness
5:09
for the captain of his guard, breaks out into a frenzy. And if
5:12
he finds in himself any good opinions or appetites in process of formation, and
5:16
there is in him any sense of shame remaining to these better principles, he
5:20
puts an end and casts them forth, until he has purged away temperance and
5:25
brought in madness to the full. Yes, he said, that is the
5:30
way in which the tyrannical man is generated. And is not this the reason
5:34
why of old love has been called a tyrant? I should not wonder further,
5:42
I said, has not a drunken man also the spirit of a tyrant?
5:46
He has? And you know that a man who is deranged and not
5:50
right in his mind will fancy that he is able to rule not only over
5:55
men, but also over the gods. That he will. And the tyrannical
6:01
man, in the true sense of the word, comes into being when,
6:05
either under the influence of nature or habit or both. He becomes drunken,
6:11
lustful, passionate. O, my friend, is not that so? Assuredly?
6:17
Such is the man, and such is his origin? And next,
6:21
how does he live? Suppose, as people facetiously say, you were to
6:27
tell me, I imagine I said, at the next step in his progress,
6:32
that there will be feasts and carousals, and revelings and courtesans and all
6:36
that sort of thing. Love is the lord of the house within him and
6:41
orders all the concerns of his soul. That is certain. Yes, And
6:46
every day and every night desires grow up many and formidable, and their demands
6:51
are many. They are, indeed, he said, His revenues, if
6:58
he has any, are soon spent. True, then comes debt and the
7:03
cutting down of his property. Of course, when he has nothing left.
7:09
Must not his desires crowding in the nest like young ravens be crying aloud for
7:14
food. And he goaded on by them, and especially by Love himself,
7:18
who is in a manner. The captain of them is in a frenzy,
7:21
and would fain discover whom he can defraud or despoil of his property in order
7:27
that he may gratify them. Yes, that is sure, to be the
7:30
case. He must have money, no matter how, if he is to
7:35
escape horrid pains and pangs, he must. And as in himself, there
7:43
was a succession of pleasures, and the new got the better of the old
7:46
and took away their rights. So he, being younger, will claim to
7:49
have more than his father and his mother. And if he has spent his
7:53
own share of the property, he will take a slice of theirs, No
7:57
doubt he will. And if his parents will not give way, then he
8:01
will try, first of all to cheat and deceive them, very true.
8:05
And if he fails, then he will use force and plunder them. Yes,
8:09
probably. And if the old man and woman fight for their own what,
8:13
then, my friend, will the creature feel any compunction at tyrannizing over
8:18
them? Nay, he said, I should not feel at all comfortable about
8:24
his parents. But oh, heavens adeimantus, on account of some new fangled
8:28
love of a harlot who is anything but a necessary connection. Can you believe
8:33
that he would strike the mother, who is his ancient friend and necessary to
8:37
his very existence, and would place her under the authority of the other when
8:41
she is brought under the same roof with her, Or that under like circumstances,
8:46
he would do the same to his withered old father first, and most
8:48
indispensable of friends, for the sake of some newly found blooming youth, who
8:54
is the reverse of indispensable. Yes, indeed, he said, I believe
9:00
that he would. Truly, Then I said, a tyrannical son is a
9:05
blessing to his father and mother. He is, indeed, he replied.
9:11
He first takes their property, and when that fails and pleasures are beginning to
9:15
swarm in the hive of his soul, then he breaks into a house or
9:18
steals the garments of some knightly wayfarer. Next he proceeds to clear temple.
9:24
Meanwhile, the old opinions which he had when a child, and which gave
9:28
judgment about good and evil, are overthrown by those others which have just been
9:31
emancipated, and are now the body guard of Love and share his empire.
9:37
These, in his democratic days, when he was still subject to the laws
9:39
and to his father, were only let loose in the dreams of sleep.
9:43
But now that he is under the dominion of love, he becomes always and
9:48
in waking reality what he was then very rarely and in a dream only he
9:52
will commit the foulest murder, or eat forbidden food, or be guilty of
9:56
any other horrid act. Love is his tyrant, and lives lordly in him
10:01
and lawlessly, and being himself a king, leads him on as a tyrant
10:05
leads a state to the performance of any reckless deed by which he can maintain
10:09
himself and the rabble of his associates, whether those whom evil communicates have brought
10:13
in from without, or those whom he himself has allowed to break loose within
10:18
him by reason of a similar evil nature in himself, have we not here
10:22
a picture of his way of life? Yes, indeed, he said.
10:28
And if there are only a few of them in the state, and the
10:31
rest of the people are well disposed, they go away and become the bodyguard
10:35
or mercenary soldiers of some other tyrant, who may probably want them for a
10:39
war. And if there is no war, they stay at home and do
10:41
many little pieces of mischief in the city. What sort of mischief? For
10:48
example, they are thieves, burglars, cut purses, foot pads, robbers
10:52
of temples, man stealers of the community. Or if they are able to
10:56
speak, they turn informers and bear false witnes and take bribes a small catalog
11:03
of evils, even if the perpetrators of them are few in number, yes,
11:07
I said, but small and great are comparative terms. And all these
11:13
things, in the misery and evil which they inflict upon a state, do
11:16
not come within a thousand miles of the tyrant. When this noxious class and
11:20
their followers grow numerous and become conscious of their strength, assisted by the infatuation
11:24
of the people, they choose from among themselves the one who has most of
11:28
the tyrant in his own soul, and him they create their tyrant, yes,
11:33
he said, and he will be the most fit to be a tyrant
11:37
if the people yield well and good. But if they resist him, as
11:41
he began by beating his own father and mother. So now if he has
11:45
the power, he beats them and will keep his dear old fatherland or motherland.
11:48
As the Cretans say in subjection to his young retainers, whom he has
11:52
introduced to be their rulers and masters, this is the end of his passions
11:58
and desires. Exactly when such men are only private individuals, and before they
12:03
get power, this is their character. They associate entirely with their own flatterers
12:09
or ready tools, or if they want anything from anybody, they in their
12:13
turn are equally ready to bow down before them. They profess every sort of
12:16
affection for them, but when they have gained their point, they know them
12:20
no more. Yes, truly, they are always either the masters or servants,
12:26
and never the friends of anybody. The tyrant never tastes of true freedom
12:28
or friendship. Certainly not, and may not we rightly call such men treacherous,
12:37
no question. Also they are utterly unjust. If we were right in
12:41
our notion of justice, yes, he said, and we were perfectly right.
12:48
Let us then sum up in a word, I said, the character
12:50
of the worst man. He is the waking reality of what we dreamed most
12:56
true. And this is he who, being by nature most of a timearrant,
13:00
bears rule. And the longer he lives, the more of a tyrant
13:03
he becomes. That is certain, said Glaucon, taking his turn to answer.
13:09
And will not he who has been shown to be the wickedest be also
13:13
the most miserable, And he who has tyrannized longest and most most continually and
13:18
truly miserable, Although this may not be the opinion of men in general.
13:22
Yes, he said, inevitably, And must not the tyrannical man be like
13:28
the tyrannical state, and the democratical man like the democratical state, and the
13:33
same of the others. Certainly, and as state is to state in virtue
13:37
and happiness, so is man in relation to man. To be sure,
13:43
then, comparing our original city, which was under a king, and the
13:48
city which is under a tyrant, how do they stand as to virtue?
13:52
They are the opposite extremes, he said, for one is the very best
13:56
and the other is the very worst. There can be no mistake, I
14:01
said, as to which is which. And therefore I will at once enquire
14:05
whether you would arrive at a similar decision about their relative happiness and misery.
14:09
And here we must not allow ourselves to be panic stricken at the apparition of
14:13
the tyrant, who is only a unit, and may perhaps have a few
14:16
retainers about him. But let us go, as we ought, into every
14:20
corner of the city and look all about, and then we will give our
14:22
opinion a fair invitation, he replied. And I see, as every one
14:28
must, that a tyranny is the wretchedest form of government, and the rule
14:33
of a king the happiest and in estimating the men too. May I not
14:37
fairly make a like request that I should have a judge whose mind can enter
14:41
into and see through human nature. He must not be like a child who
14:46
looks at the outside and is dazzled at the pompous aspect which the tyrannical nature
14:50
assumes to the beholder. But let him be one who has a clear insight.
14:54
May I suppose that the judgment is given in the hearing of us all
14:58
by one who is able to judge, and has dwelt in the same place
15:01
with him, and been present at his daily life, and known him in
15:05
his family relations, where he may be seen stripped of his tragedy attire.
15:09
And again in the hour of public danger, he shall tell us about the
15:13
happiness and misery of the tyrant when compared with other men. That, again,
15:18
he said, is a very fair proposal. Shall I assume that we
15:22
ourselves are able and experienced judges, and have before now met with such a
15:26
person. We shall then have some one who will answer our enquiries by all
15:31
means. Let me ask you not to forget the parallel of the individual and
15:35
the state. Bearing this in mind and glancing in turn from one to the
15:39
other of them, Will you tell me their respective conditions? What do you
15:43
mean, he asked, beginning with the state, I replied, would you
15:48
say that a city which is governed by a tyrant is free or enslaved?
15:52
No city, he said, can be more completely enslaved. And yet,
15:56
as you see, there are free men as well as masters in such a
16:00
state, Yes, he said, I see that there are a few.
16:03
But the people, speaking generally, and the best of them are miserably degraded
16:07
and enslaved. Then if the man is like the state, I said,
16:12
must not the same rule prevail. His soul is full of meanness and vulgarity,
16:17
The best elements in him are enslaved, and there is a small ruling
16:19
part which is also the worst and maddest. Inevitably, and would you say
16:26
that the soul of such a one is the soul of a freeman or of
16:30
a slave. He has the soul of a slave, in my opinion.
16:34
And the state which is enslaved under a tyrant is utterly incapable of acting voluntarily,
16:41
utterly incapable. And also the soul which is under a tyrant, I
16:45
am speaking of the soul taken as a whole is least capable of doing what
16:48
she desires. There is a gadfly which goads her, and she is full
16:52
of trouble and remorse, certainly, And is the city which is under a
16:59
tyrant rich or poor poor? And the tyrannical soul must be always poor and
17:06
insatiable? True? And must not such a state and such a man be
17:11
always full of fear? Yes, Indeed, is there any state in which
17:17
you will find more of lamentation and sorrow and groaning and pain? Certainly not.
17:22
And is there any man in whom you will find more of this sort
17:26
of misery than in the tyrannical man, who is in a fury of passions
17:30
and desires impossible. Reflecting upon these and similar evils, you held the tyrannical
17:37
state to be the most miserable of states. And I was right, he
17:41
said, certainly, I said, And when you see the same evils in
17:45
the tyrannical man, what do you say of him? I say that he
17:51
is by far the most miserable of all men. There, I said,
17:56
I think that you are beginning to go wrong. What do you mean?
18:02
I do not think that he has as yet reached the utmost extreme of misery.
18:07
Then, who is more miserable one of whom I am about to speak?
18:14
Who is that? He who is of a tyrannical nature, and,
18:18
instead of leading a private life, has been cursed with the further misfortune of
18:22
being a public tyrant. From what has been said, I gather that you
18:27
are right, Yes, I replied, but in this high argument you should
18:33
be a little more certain and should not conjecture only, for of all questions,
18:37
this respecting good and evil is the greatest, very true, he said.
18:45
End of Book nine, Part one,