Imagine
using a time machine to go back to the period of the classical thinkers like
Plato and Martin Luther. When given the chance, what would you ask them? While
the possibilities are practically endless, these two great philosophers
revealed in their works, the circumstances and political and social atmosphere
required to create and maintain a good society. It will be discovered how Plato’s ideas found in The
Republic reveal what justice is in three realms, political, social and
individual. The relationships between classes create a just society. It will be
shown that while Martin Luther’s ideas on Christianity and the ideal society
are vastly different than Plato’s, each great thinker contributes something to
political thought that remains relevant today and elements of each author can
contribute to a more ideal society, even in modern times.
History
reveals that many systems of thought have existed and each following generation
has viewed the world with a slightly different lens. While this is clear, many
of the same social issues have been discussed since the beginning of recorded
history. In order to get a clearer understanding and foundation for comparison,
we must first focus our attention on the life and theories of Plato. It is said
that political thought began to emerge around 400 B.C through the philosophical
ideas created by Socrates. While he was very well known for his contributions
to political thought, he never officially recorded his ideas for others to
share. This is what makes Plato so important and a worthy subject of research,
as he was the man to follow Socrates and was responsible for recording much of
what is known about both Socrates and Plato’s ideas, as an offshoot of his
teacher. Plato’s method of thinking was different than that of the thinkers who
came before him. Authors note “Plato’s explorations of political questions in
the form of written dialogues, or fictitious philosophic conversations, that are
still admired for the beauty of their composition and studied for the depth of
their wisdom” (Deutsch & Fornieri, 2009, p. 2). What is remarkable about
this great thinker was his devotion to truth and justice, through continuous
and deep reflection. Perhaps Plato’s most notorious political concepts are
contained within his great work known as the Republic. In this work, he
utilizes his creation of dialogues to evaluate many aspects of life, particularly
of great relevance to our discussion, is the idea of a good society.
Throughout
the Republic, Plato continues to utilize Socrates as a main character of his
philosophical inquiry. Through the conversations with close friends and other well-known
thinkers, he is able to bring up the ideas commonly held by others and follow
up with reasons why these ideas are valid or not, and to what extent. During
book one of the Republic, his conversation with others focuses on the meaning
of justice, and commonly held notions of how to go about acting upon this idea.
It is said “In response to Thrasymachus’contention that injustice is more profitable
than justice, Socrates observes that in justice leads to faction or conflict
among human beings, so that they cannot then cooperate with a view to a common
enterprise” (Deutsch & Fornieri, 2009, p. 4). With this thought in mind,
what can be said about the social and political climate that allows for the
creation of order yet seeks to create harmony and find the good of the
community? These ideas are discussed in further detail in book one and other
sections of the Republic.
The nature
of justice itself is only an intangible dream. What makes the ideal worthy of
study is the practical application of the ideal settings in which justice can
thrive and the common good can be met, thus creating the ideal society. One
main concept discussed by Plato is the idea of social classes, giving way to a
more productive society and one which allows specialized involvement of each
member of society for a preconceived purpose. In this way, Plato also goes on
to discuss the importance of the ideal society having appropriate rule. This
can be established through a relatively unknown concept at the time. Plato
believed that while each class had their purpose in this ideal society, the
ruler should be a philosopher, capable of dialectic inquiry. Authors note;
He concludes by writing that those
who become properly trained in argumentation must be tested in the city’s
matters before being allowed to practice philosophy and rule the city…Plato
argues through the allegory of the Cave and the divided line that philosophers
possess true knowledge, and thus are best suited to be guardians (Lublink, 2011,
p.5)
The idea of an educated and justice
seeking ruler is not the only forefront of the just society but also includes
three other classes, with could be said to be just as important. Many have
argued the direct reason for acting just during very trying times as
experienced by Plato and his fellow thinkers. Due to an imbalance of power and
strength, injustice, as manifested through acting out on what one wants despite
the chances of others getting hurt as a result, is not the ideal state of being
for the common good. We should understand that “Rather than suffer this, the
many agree to treat each other justly—not because they believe justice is good
in itself, but rather because they fear being treated unjustly by others” (Deutsch
& Fornieri, 2009, p. 5) This inherent need throughout society would benefit
from a system intended on creating harmony. Perhaps one of the most interesting
and important additions to the ideal city is out of the need to find a balance.
By following this line of thinking it can be said,
Thus Socrates (as purposed by Plato)
contends that the human community requires a division of labor according to
which people work only at the jobs for which they are best suited by nature, or
for which they have the greatest aptitude. ‘‘One man, one art’’ and ‘‘minding
one’s own business’’ become fundamental principles of the Republic’s city in
speech (Deutsch & Fornieri, 2009).
Three classes each have their own
role in the ideal society. The Artisans purpose is to create goods that can be
used by the rest of society. Next, there must be citizens willing to lay their
life on the line and protect the public as well as carry out orders of the
ruler. Finally, the ruler is meant to be full of wisdom and seek justice. This
is why the ruler should ideally be a philosopher. In some ways, the ruler would
be known as the true guardians of the city. Authors state “The city’s guardians
must be ‘naturally dialectical’, which means that they must be capable of achieving
the kind of unified vision described in the allegory of the Cave” (Lublink,
2011, p. 5).
Not only is the class system an
important part of the ideal society, other subjects work to form elements that
either add or take away from achieving this end. Other virtues are important
for the individual as well as the whole society and can be particularly
important for the ruler.
These ideas are the emphasis on
self-discipline to control physical desires, the value of dialogue, and the
requirement that leaders of the ideal state must have acquired adequate
knowledge, sufficient experience and wisdom that comes from reaching a mature
age before they can start their work as rulers (Lotter, 2003, p.190)
The notion of the
importance of wealth in the idea society is also discussed by Plato, and is
imperative in understanding his political thought. Not only does this notion
allow for the betterment of the citizens but also perpetuates Plato’s notion of
seeking and being just. Plato
uses dialect found in the Republic to speak on important issues concerning
individual morality and thus, also introduces us to circumstances which would
either create the ideal society or prevent it. In speaking with an old man in
the beginning of the Republic, Plato (technically his characters) question the
value of old age and in doing so, gets the response that some money is necessary
to help aid morality and good behavior. Authors note “By implication Plato is
saying that a lack of money-poverty-makes it very difficult to live a moral
life. Adequate resources to escape poverty thus seem a prerequisite for living
Plato’s moral life” (Lotter, 2003, p. 192). Other important subjects relevant
to fostering the ideal city according to Plato include education and the development
of the youth. Perhaps he believed that raising the youth required careful
planning and deliberate introduction to certain ideas. Deutsch and Fornieri
note;
Both the formation of character in the young
and the preservation of character in the mature, it seems, require that some things
not be heard. Thus the city in speech, the just city, requires a regime of censorship
or public control of speech and artistic expression (Deutsch & Fornieri,
2009, p.13).
The ideas developed by Plato are ones which
may seem foreign to the modern society but used and adapted accordingly could
serve to bolster a stronger economy and create a just community of loving and
caring citizens. The practical application of such ideas will be discussed
later in terms of how our modern society may benefit from reverting to
classical modes of thought.
Many philosophers have
learned and adapted theories of previous great thinkers while some have looked
at an issue or concept in a completely different way. Given the time gap
between Plato and Martin Luther, it would be easy to assume that the theories
held by each would be drastically different even when attempting to find
solutions to similar problems. The theories held by Martin Luther will be the
next topic of discussion. A central focus of Luther’s is the idea of giving an
order to the balance between politics and Christian thinking. It is through his
ideas on Christianity and just actions that we may understand what he may have
believed to be the ideal society. He is well known for his actions in resisting
the Catholic Church and many of their political expressions of authority over the
common people. Authors note the extremist views of the church during the time
of Martin Luther in stating “By the end of the Middle Ages such religious
claims over the political realm had been formalized in the clearest and most
extreme fashion in the idea of absolute papal supremacy” (Deutsch &
Fornieri, 2009, p. 145) It was Luther who played a significant role in changing
the tide of roman catholic rule and thus helped changed the political culture
of the era.
An important concept to
understand is the basis of Christian belief and distinction between Roman
Catholicism and Lutherans ideas. Previous thinkers like Aristotle developed the
notion of learning to cultivate virtuous and moral behavior through equally virtuous
and moral deeds. Authors note;
Theologians from Aquinas down to Ockham and
Gabriel Biel had adapted this teaching in various ways to limit the biblical
teaching concerning the fallenness of human nature and thereby to define a role
in the economy of salvation for the moral efforts of human beings” (Deutshce
& Fornieri, 2009).
Luther believed that the Roman church used
this thinking to control the citizens of the community in expecting them to do
certain deeds, all of which did not necessarily help the individual gain
religious salvation. According to his famous posting on the church door at Wittenberg;
For this reason most people are necessarily
deceived by that indiscriminate and high-sounding promise of release from
penalty… Thus those indulgence preachers are in error who says that a man is
absolved from every penalty and saved by papal indulgences (Fordham, 2013).
It is
with this focus that we could take elements of Luther’s beliefs to create the
ideal society, through the actions of the individual affecting the rest of
society. Luther does not use his ideas
to deny the just and helpful actions of individuals in society yet he
understood that these actions could not lead to salvation but nonetheless could
lead to a better society. Authors state “ At the same time, the very meaning of
good works shifts from an emphasis on sacramental performances, dependent upon
the authority of ordained priests, to ordinary service addressing the mundane
needs of one’s neighbor” (Deutshce & Fornieri, 2009). In a way, Luther
believed that if society was made up of true Christians, who did good deeds and
worked towards the betterment of all mankind, there would be no need for
traditional leadership or kingship. Another concept covered by Luther was the
idea of resistance to tainted authority. He allowed the community to resist the
powers of the ruling class if they were to work against the things that were
commanded as Christians. It is on this reformation of thought that Martin
Luther’s political thoughts are based and despite the fact that they may not
hold outwardly obvious relations to political application, the very society
created by followers of Luther’s ideas would in fact result in a more ideal
society, an important focus of political ideology.
After examining some key points of each philosopher,
we can see how each topic discussed can stand alone and also be useful in
understanding the larger picture. Each philosopher’s perspective establishing
justice, the ideal citizen and the proper use of authority and morality, work to
form the ideal society. While the topic is the same, the methods of getting
there differ from thinker to thinker; therefore a comparison is needed for
further reference. Luther’s ideas were not inherently political while Plato’s
did appear to have a more obvious political tone. Both philosophers spoke adamantly
about justice yet it was defined in different terms and was manifested in
different ways. Luther’s ideas were based mostly off of the recognition of
Christian based values and teachings while he spoke out about Roman Catholicism
and their political use of papal authority. Plato focused more on establishing
a class that helped the ideal society through the division of labor and ruler
being distinctly capable of virtuous and moral dialectic thought. To this end,
the ruler must be a philosopher to be an effective guardian (ruler). Plato
spoke about the role of each person in society in the terms of this separation
of jobs based on specific abilities yet Luther used the idea of Christian
virtues and actions to establish that everyone should be ministers of Gods
words despite the current separation of priests and laity. He believed in the
concept of the priesthood of all believers. Plato also spoke about communism of
property in regards to the way in which the guardians lived. Luther did bring
up concepts regarding the order in which power was established for secular and
religious authority and worked against the traditional established ideas of his
time and spoke up about the authority of the individual citizen to resist tyrannical
authority. This type of resistance did not appear to be a significant idea held
by Plato.
While these two philosophers had different
ideas on what could lead to the ideal city or society, each author was a
product of their era. Luther’s reform and ideas of the importance of Christian
beliefs has been an element that has stood the test of time. To some extent,
Christian virtues are still seen as an important commodity among political
actors. Plato’s idea of the just city is one which may be more practical in
theory than in reality when it comes to modern day society, yet many elements
of his works hold important relevance to today. Earlier accounts of an attempt
to utilize elements that mirrored Plato’s republic were only somewhat
successful to say the least. It had been termed the perfectionist movement in
the 19th century and was a cult type setting established by John
Humphrey Noyes. One element that was derived from Plato’s republic was the
sharing of property and wealth. Authors state “From the mid-1840s on,
therefore, they agreed to share all their belongings, giving their goods and
money over to the community and in turn being supported by it” (Foss,2010,
p.4). This was similar to the concept of community forced upon the guardian
class of Plato’s republic. Other elements from family relations to sexual
partners were dictated by rules which could be seen in both Plato’s Republic
and Noyes’s society. Regardless of this early attempt to follow Christian
teachings and elements of Plato’s political ideas, the Republic has
implications for the 21’st century.
The idea that mature age brings knowledge and
helps calm the desires, choosing moral obligation and conversation over
desires, is one which we currently hold, to a small degree, in America.
Presidents are meant to be over a certain age, most likely to have experience
enough to have gained wisdom and understanding. President Clinton made it
painfully clear how important control over physical desires can be when it comes
to an ideal society and acting as rulers. His inability to remain faithful to
his wife had gotten in the way of his moral and political obligations. The role of money and wealth is in fact an
important discussion to be made in regards to the ideal society both back then
(Plato’s era) and in modern times. In many ways, money is necessary to live a
life where other ideas and actions can be perused. If someone is in constant
need of money, they may be more willing to act immorally to get it and thus
individual justice and society’s justice is lost. An important idea of wealth
found in ideas by Plato also discusses the concept of having too much wealth. In
America, there is a significant gap between the rich and the poor and this may
be why there is a sense of jealousy, discontentment and immoral behavior.
Statistical analysis shows that there is a disparity between crime committed by
certain races, who tend to be minority and live in areas of high poverty and
little distribution of wealth. Immoral acts are committed in an attempt to gain
power and provide for oneself, a concept that was meant to be controlled in
Plato’s republic.
In some ways, politicians seem to rely on the
fact that the majority of society has no formal training and does not necessarily
know what is being spoken. Society members are not well versed in the ability
to follow Plato’s method to the truth and therefore, modern day politicians are
capable of easily leading and misleading the average voter and citizen. Authors
state “Plato’s warning in Republic VII is thus a warning about the practice of
dialectic in general, and especially a warning about practicing dialectic with
or in front of young people “ (Lublink, 2011 p. 9)..Plato seemed to believe
that those who blindly seek the truth, (let us say from dialectic questioning politicians)
will become more lost than they had been before and will most likely be at the
mercy of those providing the information. This has become a major problem with
the media and politics today, that the average person is bombarded by
information, and will likely trudge through to find the truth only to get lost.
Plato also believed in public control of speech and artistic expression. In a
modern society this does not exist in most cases. While we do have the FCC who
regulates certain mediums like the lyrics of music deemed inappropriate, our
society’s freedom of speech allows the expression of the utmost ridiculous
ideas and concepts. This can be seen by evaluating the purpose of music and
certain television shows. The youth could become corrupt through daily exposure
to these mediums and popular culture plays a large role in the socialization of
society. This has seemed to create a less than ideal society. Perhaps we would
benefit from the regimen of controlled public speech and artistic expression
purposed by Plato yet the reality is that Americans are too set in their ways
to relinquish this right they deem inalienable, as set forth by the
constitution. Despite the goodness it may cause, we are blind and dumb to the
far reaching consequences of our actions.
Luther’s contribution to modern thought is
also important. America is purported to be founded on Christian beliefs. The
constitution was written to be vague enough to allow for interpretation of
specific laws according to the situation at hand. It is a living document that
is the law of the land in modern times. As a whole, our society has become less
and less religious and our political correctness has attempted to establish a
clear cut line between church and state. It is based on Luther’s religious
focus that I believe many of our society’s problems could be remedied. His
ideas on the relevance of Christian virtues would allow us to treat others like
we want to be treated; the golden rule. His ideas of resisting tyrannical rule
also come into play in our modern society. At times, some rulers may come
across as being manipulative and may lie to gain control. Luther’s ideas of
resistance in accordance with morality and the harmony of the community would
serve the best interest of our nation.
Upon understanding the main concepts of Plato
and Martin Luther, we realize that certain blanket problems existed even during
their days and will continue to exist well past ours. While the problem of the
ideal society can be examined and reached by changing different elements of
that society, the combinations and actors will determine which route is
necessary in a dynamic society like the United States. We may understand the importance and
relevance of these two philosophers’ ideas yet their practicality may not be as
tangible as we may wish. A stubborn society will be one who is not open to new
ideas or even ones which were well established in different times throughout
history.
References
Deutsch,
K., Fornieri, J. (2009) An Invitation to Political Thought. Belmont, CA:
Thomson Wadsworth
Fordham (2013). 95 Theses. Retrieved from
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/luther95.txt
Foss, C. (2010). Plato's American Republic. History
Today, 60(12), 36-42
Lotter,
H. P. (2003). The significance of poverty and wealth in Plato's Republic. South
African Journal of Philosophy, 22(3), 189-206
Lublink,
S. (2011). Who May Live the Examined Life? Plato's Rejection of Socratic
Practices in Republic VII. British Journal for the History of Philosophy,
19(1), 3-18. doi:10.1080/09608788.2011.533009
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