Socrates Guardians Analysis

Having embarked on a quest to determine the goodness or badness of political justice, Socrates and company are led to discuss the origins of the polis (“city” or “city-state”). This discussion quickly leads to the topic of “guardians,” the class of citizens charged with defending the city’s regime against enemies, whether from without or within. What traits does Socrates claim these guardians will need to have? Why do they resemble noble, well-bred dogs?

When Socrates stated that a guardian must resemble a noble, well-bred dogs because according to Socrates, a well bred dog has the ability to use its senses and be “quick to see, and swift to overtake the enemy when they see him, and strong too if, when they have caught him, they have to fight

They must accept the necessities and not more. These descriptions present Socrates insistence on the guardians right to live or better, maintain a noble royal life style because according to him in page sixty-six he believes the guardian should be the one who will be honored in life and death, and will have sepulture and other memorials to honor him. He says all that because to him a guardian is the one who protects the citizens from foreign enemies and also preserves the peace within state. Socrates’ was insisting to have people understands that a guardian can not be provided of certain luxuries because than they will become something more other than being our

According to Socrates if three of the first descriptions are found in a state, then justice will be easily found. He goes on to saying how the definition for justice includes principles of some one practicing one thing only, and that thing should only be to which he can naturally adapt to. Justice also incorporates the concept one doing his own business. Socrates outlines how injustice is done to the state if one causes harm to his own city, so the one who handles his own business is doing just to the state is what defines justice. This definition differs when applied to an individual because when one only is practices temperance and self mastery to gain personal achievements by pushing lower class down, walking over the poor and using wealth and power to gain control and wealth is doing unjust to the people, where as those who treat others equally and fairly are the ones who portray the virtue of being just. To him temperance and self mastery come into play when the “evil desires are pushed down by virtuous and wisdoms of the few by proper state