Plato’s Ideal State and Why it is An Impracticable Reality

Statesmanship is an art requiring careful and planned management of the State affairs. Who we give this power to needs to master it before coming to rule. But who is this person? In democracy, it is whoever WE elect, in monarchy, it is the hereditary monarch, in oligarchy, it is a few in shared power, in anarchy, it is no one, and so on. Every form of Government is good as well as bad; the ruler needs to plot out which set-up will work the best for their State. For Plato (428/ 427 BCE – 348/ 347 BCE), an ancient Greek philosopher, this best set-up was Aristocracy (“Aristos” meaning “best” and “Kratos” meaning “rule,” therefore, the “rule by the best”), where a selected few with high social ranks would govern. To understand Plato and his ideologies better, it is desirable to study the environment that nourished him. 

The Era of Socrates  

Socrates (477 BCE – 399 BCE) mentored Plato. He was not a philosopher originally. He used to serve diverse occupations ranging from sculpting to guarding the State. It was only when the Oracle at Delphi had pronounced him to be the wisest of the Greeks that he set on a philosophical journey to prove them wrong. And, today, he is rightly regarded as the father of Western Philosophy. 

During his reign, youths would flock around him to collect the wisdom that he poured, Plato being one among them. He taught them this wisdom by dialectics. 

Socrates’ Criticism of Democracy 

Socrates’ criticism of democracy came mainly due to it letting even those without the learned knowledge of politics vote. He wanted only the selected best to cure an ill State, like how one would want only the most qualified, skilled and educated to treat their illness. So, when the democratic revolution came in, his legacy was over, for he was the alleged intellectual leader of the revolting party and the fountainhead of the aristocratic philosophy. Charges of “corrupting the youth” and “impiety” were framed against him. And, from hereon, Plato discusses the tragic fate of the philosopher in his books Phaedo, Crito, Euthyphro, and Apology. 

The Impact of Socrates on Plato 

Plato was twenty-eight when Socrates passed away. His hatred for democracy and the democratic leaders fuelled even more. To ensure his safety, he was urged by his friends to leave Athens (399 BCE). For twelve years he wandered the distant lands of Egypt, Sicily, Italy, Judea and the banks of the Ganges— every visit shaping his very ideology of the State that Greece lacked. The year 387 BCE marked his return to Athens and the establishment of his university, The Academy. 

Plato’s Ideal State 

Plato’s ideal State, chiefly discussed in his book, the Republic, represents the utopian vision of the philosopher of governance and societal structure. He believed that the State is what it is because its people are what they are—that the human nature flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge. Desire sits in the loins; emotion, in the heart, in the flow and force of the blood, and knowledge, in the head. Everyone has these qualities, just in varying degrees. Some are absorbed in the material quests; burning with the lust for luxuries and show; rating their gains as “nothing” and desiring more. These people dominate and manipulate the industry. Then there are some who are pugnacious, who always take pride in their power and find joy in the battlefield. They are courageous and thus, best suited for the military and navy. Lastly, a few yearn for meditation and knowledge, whose haven is the “truth”. These are the men of wisdom. Plato’s ideal State was built to reflect the ideal individual.  

Principles Highlighted in Plato’s Ideal State 

The following principles for his State were envisaged by Plato- 

 1. Tripartite Division of Society 

The society would be divided into three classes- 

• The Rulers (Philosopher-King): These are the educated and enlightened individuals responsible for governing the State. Plato placed them at the highest level in his State. 
• The Soldiers (Auxiliaries): Having received training in military, this class would comprise of individuals serving and protecting the State. 
• The Producers: The industrial, agricultural, trade, and all other forces of material goods and services useful to the State’s survival will remain the responsibility of the producers. They were placed at the lowest level in the society.

2. State is an Individual Writ Large 

For Plato, the principles governing individuals (morals and ethics) and the principles governing the State (Politics) cannot be different, as the idea of a “good life” and a “good political life” cannot be separated. His ideal individual would be reflected in his ideal State, which is why this ideal individual must remain untouched and unguided by their elders’ corrupt experiences and be educated how Plato had envisioned. 

3. Universal Education 

For the first ten years of their lives, the children shall be educated in physical fitness and music. Music would serve as a medium providing the soul with harmony and rhythm. Plato believed that an individual who is so harmoniously constituted can never be unjust. Moreso, special attention would be paid to the healthy upbringing of a child; Plato cannot afford to have a nation of malingerers. 

After the age of sixteen, studies in Mathematics, Science and History will be focused upon and remain unforced on an unwilling mind.  

After twenty, an impartial and impersonal elimination would begin. A test would be conducted to determine the corresponding class in which an individual falls. This test would be “more democratic than democracy,” as Plato states. Those who pass it shall receive ten more years of education and training and stand qualified for the second test, while those who fail shall constitute the military force of the State. But what is to say that these two contending classes would not fight, thereby crushing Plato’s utopia? Plato foresaw it and turned towards religion and faith for help. 

At thirty, the philosophical education of the guardians shall begin. It will help them- 

• To think clearly, and 
• To rule wisely. 

4. The Form of the Good 

In the Republic, Plato places the Form of the Good as the superior authority, not some spiritual God, or deity. By “form” he meant an “ideal” capable of inspiring hope, devotion and sacrifice, and instilling fear. Belief in personal immortality, that one will live another life, would control an individualist. His God will be a sensible being created by his utopian State. 

5. The Noble Lie—The Myth of the Metals 

To prevent his utopia from falling, the citizens would be told that the class under which they had fallen was God-decreed and cannot be revoked. He assigns each class with a metal. 

However, switching between these metals is possible. One who portrays competence of whichever metal shall be assigned it. Possibility of a golden parent having a silver child and vice versa exist. 

6. System of Communism 

Plato envisioned communal ownership of property and wives among the ruling class, ensuring that their only priority remains the promotion of common interests, not personal interests. Shall they ever acquire private homes or lands, they would befall as housekeepers and husbandmen. Collective ownership of property and not private ownership of property would prevail. 

7. Loss of Parentage  

Plato mentions a time when some guardians would seek the out of celibacy. When this happens, their children are to be taken away from their mothers at birth. All guardian mothers would take care of all guardian children. There will be no “my son,” or “my daughter;” only “our son,” or “our daughter”.  

8. Eugenic Society 

Plato argues that if we breed our cattle so selectively as to ensure that only the best traits are passed on to the next generation, then why do we not practise the same with our specie? His ideal State, therefore, barred men and women from mating unless they had perfect health. Any offspring born from unlicensed ties would be left to die.  

Only men above thirty and below forty-five, and women above twenty and below forty may mate. If a man or a woman mate before or after these prescribed age limits, the offspring must be aborted.  

Plato prohibits marriages between relatives for it would degenerate the population.  

9. Equality  

In Plato’s ideal State, there will be equality between men and women. When Glaucon objects the appointment of a woman for holding a public office, Plato replies that the division of labour must be by ability and aptitude, not sex.  

10. Justice 

“Justice,” according to Plato, “is having and doing what is one’s own.” Justice prevails when the society functions harmoniously, and the society functions harmoniously when there remains a perfect coordination between the three classes. Interference in the matters of other class by one class would only destroy this harmony. Plato talks about justice in a moral sense, not legal. Therefore, justice must be ensured at both the individual level and the social level. 

• Justice at Individual Level 

To establish justice at an individual level, people should choose their profession based on their dominant trait. 

• Justice at Social Level 

To establish justice at a social level, every class should function according to their dominant ability with full efficiency. 

Impracticability with Plato’s Ideal State 

One might consider that Plato’s ideal State is impracticable, but it is not. One example being the customary division of the society into laboratores (labours), bellatores (soldiers), and oratores (clergy) during the Middle Ages in Europe, with each class functioning exactly how Plato had sought. However, we must acknowledge a few associated impracticable aspects as are argued by his critiques while bearing in mind that it stays an “ideal” for it is, in fact, just an ideal. 

• Plato wrongly assumes that the mothers would readily give up their child and hold another’s child, treating it with as much care and warmth as it was her own. What his idea meant was destruction of the institution of family. 

• Plato mocked democracy for most of its part it neglected the individual’s value and supported the common benefit, but he practices the same in his aristocracy by holding that the three classes must harmoniously balance themself. People are egoistic by nature. They seek constant recognition and praises.  

• Locking up the society inside his hierarchical pyramid while upholding equality stands absurd. 

• Plato mistakenly held that the guardian class would be fine without procreating; suppressing their very instinct.  

• Assigning absolute political power is as dangerous as assigning limited economic power. And the guardians held both at the same time. Their economic and military dependence would soon bring them UNDER influence. 

• Plato wanted order to prevail in his State, but no society can ever remain static. It is mere science without art, and where there is no art, liberty gets relinquished. A society offering no freedom will be no one’s ideal. 

• When property is collectively owned, everything belongs to everyone, and when that happens, no one takes care of anything.  

Conclusion 

All in, even Plato agreed that his ideal Government would work only in an ideal world, which we are not. When Dion (408 BCE – 354 BCE) invited Plato to transform his nephew, Dionysius, the ruler of Syracuse, into the philosopher-king from his utopia, he failed because doing so required Dionysius to either become a philosopher or give up his authority, neither being feasible nor apt. Rumor has it that Plato had to pay the price by being sold to slavery. Nonetheless, Plato had in his attempt to immortalize Socrates’ wisdom proven himself to be a central figure in philosophy. Later, his pupils would award him with honour everywhere that they went, spreading his words far and wide. To them, he was not just a philosopher, but a friend and guide. His contribution to political philosophy remains an integral and worthwhile concept, even today.