Platos The Republic and its Irrelevance to the Concept of Utopia and The Modern World,

Due to its More Prominent Political Nature

Plato expresses numerous primary messages in The Republic, none of which are genuine
attempts at the creation of an ideal world, a Utopia. This can be demonstrated by Platos
arguments outside of the context of the actual description of the republic itself, such as
those of the cave metaphor, and his purposeful dismissal of political systems. Platos
academic background, in terms of his Socratic education and philosophic ideals had also
largely dictated the message of the republic, which has been made evident in all examples of
his use of the Socratic dialogue. By analyzing Platos political themes as a subtext of The
Republic, it can be determined that the intentions of the literary composer are politically
tilted as an attempt to express the flaws of Athenian politics, rather than examinations of
the concept of Utopia.

Platos proposition of a society ruled by Philosophers is in a multiplicity of ways more so a
criticism of Athenian democracy than it is a message of the possibility of Utopia itself. Plato
criticizes the contemporary political state of Athens in his statement If you get, in public
affairs, men whose life is impoverished and destitute of personal satisfactions, but who hope
to snatch some compensation for their inadequacies by their political career, there can
never be good government. [556B] This is the only point in the text wherein Plato, rather
than constructing a system for a society to work, makes a personal criticism against a sect of
society. This means that, in addition to Platos numerous descriptions of the various classes,
and specific address to the education of the Philosopher King[throughout part 7], Plato is
taking every opportunity possible to not only criticize, but personally offend leaders in the
form of democracy. It can be seen that Plato is not simply envisioning a Utopia, The Republic
is a specific, and at that, persuasive attempt at a critique of the Athenian political status quo.

The argument that Socrates persecution affected Plato in his political views is both a
critically informed perspective, and one that influenced the political themes of Platos The
Republic. Philosopher Melissa Lane stated on Socrates death: Socrates death was a turning
point in Platos life. After it, he left Athens and travelled for some fifteen years before
returning to write dialogues in which Socrates was almost always the leading figure. In
Apology (of Socrates), written by Plato shortly after the death of Socrates, Socrates is quoted
as stating, I am that gadfly which God has attached to the state, and all day long arousing
and persuading and reproaching You will not easily find another like me. At the time of
Socrates death, Plato was highly aligned with the idea that Socrates, a rather large influence
on him at the time, was an entity that no matter his differing agenda to government could
work in cohesion with government as a gadfly that could change it. However, in this 15
year transformative period that Plato had undergone, Plato, from the beginning of the
republic, in the words of Lane, becomes more and more engrossed in political philosophy.
Thus, Platos criticism of contemporary society was not only an inherent trait in his work; it
can very easily be argued that the reason for Platos blatant political agenda in The Republic,
and perhaps the writing of The Republic itself, was rooted in the death of Socrates.

Platos accusation of democracy as a flawed system was highly coherent with more direct
political criticisms of the time, and with Platos Socratic beliefs. Student of Socrates,
Xenophon, is quoted as stating Wherever magistrates were appointed from among those
who complied with the injunctions of the laws, Socrates considered the government to be
an aristocracy. It seems to not be a simple coincidence that Socrates secondary quotable
student had a similar opposition to the political landscape as Socrates did. Plato states in The
Republic, under the topic of Tyranny, A democratic society in its thirst for liberty may fall
under the influence of bad leaders, who intoxicate it with excessive quantities of the neat
spirit; and then, unless the authorities are very mild and give it a lot of liberty, it will curse
them for oligarchs and punish them. [572B] Given this quote, it is no coincidence that
democracy and tyranny are the most talked about societies in Platos societal criticism, for
Platos contemporary opposition was a democratic one, and Plato used the concept of
tyranny as an exaggeration of his societys status quo. It was this more direct political
criticism, in addition to the less specific parts of his work, such as his references to the
philosopher king, (mentioned above) that solidified the nature of the work as an
ideological instrument.

In conclusion, Platos The Republic is indeed a minimal attempt at a creation of a truly ideal
society. Given that Plato creates a model society in this work, one could argue that the
notion of the creation of Utopia is prominent in his work, more so than his political critique;
however, this would be a valid thesis if not for Platos strong position on the life and
opinions of Socrates, a matter that was clearly demonstrated using the works of Xenophon,
as well as Platos earlier works, to conclude that there is an undeniable link between Platos
Republic and his political opinions, derived from the persecution of Socrates. Henceforth,
given the demonstrable bias in Platos work, the numerous political arguments present at
the forefront of The Republic, and the affirmation of this by Platos strong political
affiliations, it must be concluded that the composition is not designed to simply argue about
human nature, let alone the creation of a Utopia, but to be a politically stirring text aimed at
the contemporary society of Athens.