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BOOK 5 - Coggle Diagram
BOOK 5
Women
Plato's view
Plato believes that women should be trained alongside men, receiving the same education, and taking on the same political roles.
Generally, women are the ‘weaker’ sex and less able ‘at everything’ (455d). However, there will be women who are better at particular tasks than many men. The abilities of every individual should be developed and employed to the full. jobs in society are open to everyone and are to be filled based on merit regardless of sex.
He believed women were inferior to men within that class. So, women in the guardian class would be superior to other classes but inferior to most men within their own class.
Plato says that women are inferior to men in all ways, including in intellect.
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Outside perspectives
Traditional feminism (e.g., Simone de Beauvoir in ‘The Second Sex’) has long argued, like Plato, that the biological differences between the sexes are socially irrelevant. On this basis it has fought for the equality of women with men in public life: in education, work and politics.
liberal feminism perspective which focuses on issues such as equality in the workplace would not view Plato as feminist.
Plato’s plan is to make women into men, into rational Guardians or military Auxiliaries. His proposals involve a denial of the distinctively feminine abilities and virtues.
My view
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Plato's time he was being forward thinking as in Athenian society women were excluded from much of i though I do not believe that this makes play to a feminist as he goes against the fundamental position within feminism that women are equal to men.
I think that the Platonic approach to this issue does emphasise equality in a one-sided way and ignores the differences between the sexes.
Family
Plato's view
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Sexual relations between men and women are strictly controlled for the good of society. Plato envisages an elaborate system of ‘mating festivals’ in which the Guardians are paired off by a system of rigged lots.
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His purpose is to breed the ‘best’ with the ‘best’ with the aim of rearing a ‘pedigree herd’ of rulers
Outside persepctives
Hegel things that society is too large for the unification of the individual with the community so families are necessary which individuals can relate to and more readily identify with society and state.
Eugenics formed as an idea in 1883 by Galton but Plato talked about it as he wanted only the best to breed with the best.
Issues of eugenics with nazism and it people in US being told they were unfit due to them being poor/immigrants/migrants which suggests it was based on social/racial perspectives not bad genes
My view
I agree with Hegel as I believe that families provide crucial environments for children to be raised in.
Families provide support and acceptance for society allow the child to grow up and explore in stable encouraging environment. Can teach us social skills needed for society and to satisfy our emotional needs.
I disagree with the idea that families should be abolished, plato's ideas about who should mate with who create a repressive society which is restrictive and will not prosper.
War
Plato's view
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Greek enemies should be vanquished not enslaved as all greeks are brothers and they will eventually find peace
Non-greeks does not matter how you treat them, anything goes
At the end of the chapter, he does predict war crimes as he lists them:
Believed the aim of war was not to destroy the other side completely. Warfare is a natural state, but greeks should unite. War would make his state disunited.
Outside persepctives
JUST WAR THEORY - taking human life is wrong, states have a duty to protect their citizens, protecting innocent lives sometimes needs violence
Jus ad bellum - war must have a just cause, and must be declared by a proper authority, it must be fought to promote good and avoid evil with the aim of restoring peace.
Jus in bello - war must be a last resort when all other methods have failed, the good which is achieved should be greater than the evil which has led to war
My view
I agree with the just war theory and jus ad bellum and jus in bello as I believe this maintains peace as war disrupts society and is often morally wrong as war crimes are committed and innocent family is taken
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I believe that war crimes should be dealt with by spreading factual information should be spread and those who committed them should be charged.