Plato believed that all constitutions and laws were
inherently bad in that they did not meet the constantly changing events of
modern life. He believed that states were not stable in that they
relied on laws that could not keep up with the needs of the society.
To him what was needed were men with a godlike insight that could lead the
state. These wise leaders would be able to rule the state as they
would use their intellect rather then outdated laws.
Out of his idea of what a state should be he wrote "The
Republic". To him a perfect state would consist of the Guardians,
the Auxiliaries, and the rest of society. That is the wise leaders,
the military, and the rest of society.
In his perfect society no social or economic classifications
would be allowed, nor would there be differences between the rich and the poor. The rulers
in this society would be strictly forbidden to have property,
marry or have a family, in this manner they would constantly have their mind
on the state.
There would be no discrimination based on sex in the perfect
society.
However, discrimination would occur in aptitude with the highest
educational training being given to the brightest boys or girls, either of
which could eventually become guardians of the state. To foster unity within
the society the
children would be taken care of by all in the society and no one would know who was in fact
their own child. All children would be children of the state and taken
care of by all.
Plato's idea of a perfect society was never realized.
He became so disillusioned with mankind that he decided that mankind could not
be governed by reason. He then created a model by which he felt
mankind could co-exist. This model of co-existence was a state
that was governed by solid unyielding laws that had to be followed rigidly
by its population. In these second class states laws would be formed
by the "experts" and would be followed by its population to the
letter.
To Plato the second class societies were drastically
different from first class societies, as first class societies were based on
free choice, whereas in second class societies there existed no
choice. Plato passed away in 347 B.C. with his dream of a "perfect
state" never being realized.
Directly Related:
Take a look at an ancient quote from Plato: Ancient
Quote from Plato.
