Ancient philosophy. Plato and his public ethics

Plato considers individual ethics one-sided and insufficient: it complements and ends in the social one. The main issues of human well-being, its high purpose, virtue and justice are only solved in society. "Justice" encompasses all normal, correct public attitudes and therefore goes into politics. Plato precisely defines politics as "an art and skill to equitably govern public relations". Plato sees all the shortcomings of his existing states, so he creates his own ideal of the state.The first sign of this state is its enhanced centralism, its strong state power. According to him, the state arises from a natural necessity in the interest of mutual protection and mutual assistance. But only that state is real, guided by the idea of ​​justice, and which has enough moral and material strength to plan and organize the ministry of general good. In order to create such a state, it is necessary to eliminate class and professional selfishness and to serve everyone in the place where it will be most useful.

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Plato declares against the rule of the state of casual, incompetent and self-conscientious people who stir and destroy everything instead of creating. He resents that any other craft or profession seeks trained people, specialists, but only when it comes to this "royal art" the government of the state - take prophanas and casual persons who serve not the common but their personal or class interests. To eliminate this, Plato considers it necessary to educate and train a management class of about a thousand people / Plato has in mind a state as big as Athens itself. This class is a governing body, but it does not use power for itself but serves the people. Therefore, it has no private property over anything, even women and children here are common. It lives completely on a communal basis: a common chair, camp life, education and waxing, raw and simple life, no sophistication and luxury, no silver and gold. Men are entitled to a married life between 25-55 years and women between 20-40 years of age. Sexual intercourse during this time is permitted or disabled depending on the needs for children. The children of the governing group are not private, but general, state-owned. They are educated in view of their future service. Men and women have the same rights. Women are not related to housework, as are men. They are equally able to participate in governance. This governing class consists of two unequal parts.

A small part of them are rulers in the true sense of the word, and the other are wars or guards. Here are the military and police officers who stand to preserve domestic order. As far as the qualities of the rulers and the guards are concerned, Plato believes that only that state will thrive in which the wisest, the philosophers manage - that philosophers become rulers, or that rulers become philosophers, and that the preservation of the country is entrusted to the most courageous, the most self-reliant and selfless, the unloving with their given sword. In addition to rulers and military in the state, there is the third most numerous branch of the businessmen: farmers, craftsmen, merchants, etc. They do not belong to the communal order: they have private property, private women and families, but they are subordinate to authority, and law, of the first two divisions, so that they can not empty themselves. With power, economic relations are regulated to avoid excessive wealth and poverty, but to create social solidarity and harmony. With such a triple-minded arrangement, and when every profession fulfills its duties universally, without interfering with the rights and duties of others, the state has the rule of public justice, harmony and common welfare. As in the soul of the individual man, justice is in this, the mind through wisdom leads the heart, the will through the courage to perform, and the feelings, the desires by abstinence to discipline and regulate, so it is in the state: the wise govern, the brave defend, and the abstained farmers build the state