Socrates and Plato’s Views on the State

Somewhere in the balance of rhetoric and politics, the greatest philosophers find their personal stance. Socrates believed in the absolute authority of the state and believed that it was always wrong to disobey the state. He likened the state and its people to parents and a child, and as it is always wrong for a child to disobey their parents, it is always wrong for a citizen to disobey their state. He also believed that it was never right to break an agreement, and since he saw voluntarily living in a state as an agreement to obey it, he refused to believe it was ever acceptable to break this agreement by disobeying the state. He was so convinced of these matters that he gave his life through execution rather than to commit an injustice and disobey his state by escaping prison.

While Plato believed in a similar fashion of obeying those above you, he did not only believe in obeying the leaders of the state. Plato’s belief was that in an ideal state there would be three separate classes, which would rest in a specific hierarchy: rulers, soldiers, and the people. The basic idea was that everyone fit into these casts and would continue in this place for the rest of their lives, with each generation after following. He believed it was right that everyone stays in their place and work together for the common good of the state and its citizens, and similarly to Socrates, believed it to be unacceptable to disobey those in a higher position than yourself.

While each of the philosopher’s views has their merits, and each has something to contribute to society, I do not personally agree with either of their views in full. I do not agree with submission to authority without question, because the leaders of any state are just as human as their people, and I do not agree with the idea of a person being born to a certain place in society and not having any room to make their lives better. Modern society requires a view on the state that allows for individualistic thinking and social movement.

Work Cited

Deutsch, Kenneth L., and Joseph R. Fornieri. An Invitation to Political Thought. Boston, MA: Thomson Higher Education, 2009. Print.