Latest / Logic Library / 06 - The Republic - Plato
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- But two Part two. I had always admired the genius of Glocan and Adimantus, But on hearing these words, I was quite delighted, and said, sons of an illustrious father, That was not a bad beginning of the allegiate verses which the admirer of Glorcan made in honor of you, after you had distinguished yourselves at the Battle of Magawa. Since of Ariston he sang divine offspring of an illustrious hero, the epithet is very appropriate, for there is something truly divine in being able to argue as you have done for the superiority of injustice, and remaining unconvinced by your own arguments. And I do believe that you are not convinced. This I infer from your general character, for had I judged only from your speeches, I should have mistrusted you. But now the greater my confidence in you, the greater is my difficulty in knowing what to say. But I am in a strait between two. On the one hand, I feel that I am unequal to the task, and my inability is brought home to me by the fact that you were not satisfied with the answer which I made to thrusty Marcus, proving as I thought, the superiority which justice has over in justice. And yet I cannot refuse to help while breath and speech remain to me. I am afraid that there would be an impiety in being present when justice is evil spoken of, and not lifting up a hand in her defense. And therefore I had best gives such child as I can. Glaucan and the rest entreated me by all means, not to let the question drop, but to proceed in the investigation. They wanted to arrive at the truth, first about the nature of justice and injustice, and secondly about their relative advantages. I told them what I really thought. That the inquiry would be of a seerious nature and would require very good eyes. Seeing then I said that we are no great wits. I think that we had better adopt a method which I may illustrate. Thus, suppose that a short sighted person had been asked by someone to read small letters from a distance, and it occurred to someone else that they might be found in another place which was larger, and in which letters were larger if they were same, and he could read the larger letters first, and then proceed to the lesser, this would have been thought a rare piece of good fortune. Very true, said other menis but how doesice illustration apply to our inquiry? I will tell you, I replied. Justice, which is the subject of our inquiry, is, as you know, sometimes spoken of as a virtue of an individual, and sometimes as a virtue of a state. True, he replied, and is not a state larger than an individual. It is then in the larger the quantity of justice is likely to be larger and more easily discernible. I propose therefore, that being inquired into the nature of justice and in justice, first essay appear in the state, and secondly in the individual, proceeding from the greater to a lesser, and comparing them. That he said, is an excellent proposal. And if we imagine the state and possess of creation, we shall see the justice and injustice of the state in process of creation. Also, I dare say, when the state is completed, there may be a hope that the object of our search will be more easily discovered, Yes, far more easily. But or be to attempt to construct one, I said, For to do so, as I am inclined to think, will be a very serious task. Reflect. Therefore I have reflected, said Adamantis, and a manxious that you should proceed. A state, I said, arises, as I conceive out of the needs of mankind. No one is self sufficing, but all of us have many wants. Can any other origin of a state be imagined? There can be no other. Then, as we have many wants, and many persons are needed to supply them. One takes a helper for one purpose and another for another. And when these partners and helpers are gathered together in one habitation, the body of inhabitants is termed a state. True, he said, in the exchange with one another, and one gives and another receives, under the idea that the exchange will be four deggad Very true, then, I said, let us begin and create an idea estate. And yet the true creator is necessity, who is the mother of our invention. Of course, he replied, Now, the first and greatest of necessities is food, which is the condition of life and existence. Certainly, the second is a dwelling, in the third clothing and the like. True. And now let us see how our city will be able to simply this great demand. We may suppose that one man is a persant, man, another a builder, someone else a weaver. Shall we add to them a shoemaker, or perhaps some other purveyor to our bodily wants. Quite right, the barest notion of a state must include four or five men, clearly, and how will they proceed? Will each bring the results of its labors into a common stock? The individual husbman, for example, producing for four and laboring four times as long and as much as he need in the provision of food with which he supplies others as well as himself. Or will he have nothing to do with others, and not be in the trouble of producing for them, but provide for himself alone a fourth of the food in the fourth of the time, and in the remaining three fourths of his time be employed in making a house, or a coat or a pair of shoes, having no partnership with others, but supplying himself all his own wants. On the mountis thought that he should aim at producing food only, and not at producing everything. Probably, I replied that would be the better way. And when I hear you say this, I am myself reminded that we are not all alike. There are diversities of nature among us, which are adapted to different occupations. Very true, And will you have a work better done when the word man has many occupations, or when he has only one. When he has only one. Further, there can be no doubt that a work is bought when not done at the right time. No doubt. The business is not disposed to wait until the doer of the business is at leisure. But the duer must follow up what he is doing and make the business his first object. He must, And if so, we must infer that all things are produced more plentifully and easily, and of a better quality. When one man does one thing which is natural to him, and does it at the right time, and leaves other things. Undoubtedly, then more than four ssons will be required. For the husbanman will not make his own plow or matter, nor other implements of agriculture, if they are to be good for anything. Neither will the builder make his stalls empty to need many and a night manner the weaver and shoemaker. True, then carpenters and smiths and many other artisans will be shaffers in our little state, which is already beginning to grow. True. Yet, even if we add neither shepherds and other hurtsmen. In order there are husbanmen may have oxen to plow with, and builders as well as husbandmen may have drive cattle, and couriers, and weavers, fleezes and heights. Still, all states will not be very large, that is true. Yet neither will it be a very small state which contains all these. Then again there is the situation of the city. To find a place where nothing needs to be imported is well nigh impossible. Impossible, then there must be another class of citizens who will bring the required supply from another city. They must. But if the trader goes empty handed, having nothing which they require or would supply his need, he will come back empty handed, that is certain. And therefore what they produce at home must be not only enough for themselves, but such both in quantity and quality as to accommodate those from whom their wants are supplied. Very true, then more husbandmen and more artisans will be required. They will not mention the importers and exporters who are called merchants. Yes, then we shall want merchants, we shall. And if merchandise is to be carried over the sea, skillful sailors will also be needed, and inconsiderable numbers, Yes, and considerable numbers. Then again, within the city, how will they exchange their productions to secure such an exchange? Was, as you will remember, one of our principal objects, when informed them into a society and constituted a state. Clearly they will buy and sell. Then they will need a market place and the money token for purposes of exchange. Certainly, suppose now that a husbandman or an artisan brings some production to market, and he comes at a time when there is no one to exchange with him, is he to leave his calling and sit idle in the market place? Not at all. He will find people there who, seeing the want, undertake the office of salesmen. In all ordered states. They are commonly those who are the weakest in bodily strengths, and therefore of little use for any other purpose. Their duty is to be in the market and to give money in exchange for goods to those who desire to sell, and to take money from those who desire to buy. This want, then creates a class of retail traders in our state. Is not the tailor, the term which is supplied to those who sit in the market place, engaged in buying and selling, while those who wander from one city to another are called merchants, Yes, he said, and there is another class of servants who are intellectually hardly on the level of companionship. Still they have plenty of bodily strength for labor, which accordingly they sew and are called. If I do not mistake higher things, higher being the name which is given to the price of the labor, true, then hirelings will help to make up our population. Yes, and now are the amounts? Is all state mature and perfected? I think so? And the pup two Part two