Glaucon Being Unjust Analysis

562 Words2 Pages

If you can obtain anything you ever wanted but in order to obtain this item you have to break your moral codes; would you go for it? Glaucon feels like most people would jump at the opportunity and the people who do not would be an idiot not to. An idiot because they did not take full advantage of injustice and the benefits that can be reaped from it. Glaucon advocates that it pays to be unjust. He believes that our true nature would lead us to be unjust. For example, you have two people who now have Gyge’s Ring, which now grants them control over invisibility, prior to getting the ring one was just and one was unjust. Henceforth, now the unjust person will waste no time and continue being unjust. That unjust person would follow their human nature naturally which are one’s desires, greed, lust, and revenge. Eventually, the just person will succumb to his own desires and act unjustly. This ring now gives them power and the confidence to acquire whatever they could possibly want. So now he can do what he pleases morally or immorally and will not be reprimanded about it. …show more content…

He states people who are just are not purely just because they want to be just, but they are just because they want people to see them being just and because they fear getting into trouble. Glaucon feels that only the weak are just and the just person is not the winner in the end. With that taken into account I think Glaucon would agree with the nice guys finish last theory. I happen to believe that nice guys do have a tough time sometimes because they might get pummeled by an evil person who is only after their own well-being. Glaucon feels it’s natural for human beings to be unjust and if we were granted this gift of amnesty in the form of this ring our true desires imbued deep within will surface and motivate us to be

Show More
Related

  • The Logical Response To The Fool, By Thomas Hobbes

    1004 Words  | 3 Pages

    Glaucon presents an argument against justice in order to pressure Socrates to give a more convincing argument for living a just life. He was unsatisfied with Plato’s counterargument against Thrasymachus. Glaucon wants to believe that justice is good and that living a just life will result in a good life, unlike the Fool in the Leviathan. However, Glaucon strengthening the argument that the unjust life is better. Glaucon starts his argument with the three ways in which something can be good: good in itself, good in itself and good for its consequences, and bad or indifferent in itself but good for its consequences. After presenting these three types of good things, Glaucon asks Socrates to place justice into one of the three categories. Socrates’s responds by saying the he would define justice as the kind of good that we like both for its own sake and for its consequences. Glaucon then requests that Socrates present a convincing argument that justice is good for its own sake, regardless of its consequences. He essentially wants to hear a compelling argument that shows justice as a kind of good that is good for its own sake. Glaucon eventually developed a case that supports the unjust life. He argues that anyone, just or unjust, would commit acts of injustice if they could get away with it and not suffer any consequences. To support his claim, he

    Read More

  • Do The Right Thing In Plato's The Republic

    718 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is hard to do the right thing, especially when you feel that you aren’t being watched. In The Republic, Plato tells a story about a man who finds a magical ring that lets him become invisible, and he begins to steal anything he wants. Plato uses the story to wonder whether human beings only do the right thing because they fear being caught. Although that situation could vary for many different people, human nature persuades us to do the wrong thing.

    Read More

  • Sir Gawain and the Green Knight & color

    1426 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...Gawain’s time in the wilderness, living nature, and his acceptance of the lady’s offering of the green girdle teach him that though he may be the most chivalrous knight in the land, he is nevertheless human and capable of error.

    Read More

  • The Garden Of Eden Analysis

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Green Knight challenging Sir Gawain reminded me of the serpent challenging Eve to eat the Apple. She knew God told her and Adam that they can eat anything except fruit from the tree of knowledge. Sir Gawain did not need to accept this challenege, no one did. But the temptation to create a name for himself outweight any common sense. I also believe that when Sir Gawain was offered the green gridle, it was similar to the apple given to Eve. He did not need the gridle but his desire to live outweight any reasoning. He also went on to lie to the Lord about what he recieved that day so that he may live when his invevidable demise came from the Green Knight. Stories have always been allegored retells from epic floods to temptation driven stories. I believe the Green Knight tale was inspired by the Garden of Edan as many stories before it has

    Read More

  • Essay On Granovetter's Theory

    1124 Words  | 3 Pages

    In addition, Gladwell goes on to support Larkin and Granovetter by stating, “Larkin and Paton are describing the dynamics of Granovetter’s threshold model of group behavior” (Gladwell, Pg 8). If you were to conclude why shooters have such a range of people good or evil, it is because overtime the “riot” evolves and brings all who stand near or far to associate themselves with people they never dreamed of being with. La Due and Darion are the anomalies in the equation because they are said to be genuine good people, but at the end these “good” people ended up being absorbed by the riot around

    Read More

  • Glaucon's Challenge and Plato's Theory of Justice in Plato's Republic

    1807 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...cting unjustly. Therefore, justice is determined to be intrinsically valuable from the negative intrinsic value of injustice that was demonstrated, as well as from parts of the soul working together correctly. Glaucon also wants Plato to show that a just life is better than an unjust life. It has been shown that when the soul is in harmony, it only acts justly. It is in a person’s best interests to have a healthy soul, which is a just soul, so that the person can be truly happy. This means that by showing justice has an intrinsic value, it can also be concluded that it is better to live a just life opposed to an unjust life. The conclusion that I have drawn is that Plato’s argument against the intrinsic value of injustice is sufficient to prove that the just life is superior, even if the unjust life may be more profitable.

    Read More

  • The Role of Desire and Value in Glaucon’s Comparison of a Just and Unjust Life.

    1630 Words  | 4 Pages

    Glaucon begins his argument, for favouring an unjust life over a just life, by describing the nature of justice. He believes that being unjust is intuitively more favourable than being just (358e – 359). However, one that has both suffered from injustice and benefited from treating others unjustly concludes that suffering from injustice is far worse than the goodness gained from treating others unjustly (359a). Thus, it is better to act justly to prevent being treated unjustly, than to act unjustly and leave one’s self open to being treated unjustly. Glaucon proposes that those who cannot act unjustly establish agreements with each other (359b). Both parties agree to refrain from act...

    Read More

  • Examining Socrates' Views on Just and Unjust Laws

    2094 Words  | 5 Pages

    Is there a such thing of unjust, and just laws? If these unjust laws actually exist, should one disobey these laws if unjust. These questions can be applied to Socrates, a wise philosopher, who is on death row, for disobeying the law in the novel “Five Dialogues”. revised by John M. Cooper. Socrates believes that if he broke an unjust law, then one should still be penalized for these actions, even if that law that is being broken is considered unjust. Socrates would rather die than to actually escape from his wrongdoing. Is Socrates theory of the situation infact not conclusive? In this paper, I will argue that Socrates’ argument of what is unjust and just is not persuasive, but he contradicts himself and his arguments, and one should not succumb

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Plato's Ring Of Gygess

    1356 Words  | 3 Pages

    When relating Plato’s “Ring of Gyges” to the culture that we live in now, he explains that persons are selfish and egoistic. The reason is that people do not always do the unfair things because they fear of being caught and harmed. As a human being, everything we do is coherent. When it comes to Cultural relativism, it is our beliefs, customs, and ethical virtue that relate to our social context. The main purpose is that most people do the right or wrong things that affects the society. The story explains the meaning behind what Glaucon is saying about his culture and what he had to go through and it contradicts his egoism.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Moral Relativism By Gilbert Harman

    1800 Words  | 4 Pages

    First, it resonates with Jean Paul Sartre’s view that the meaning in life is defined by ourselves, and an ensuing positivity emanates from moral relativism. If we know that we can decide how to live a good life, then we will not wait for the single true morality to find us, but rather start to create a better world for every like-minded fellow creature (one who wants to seek a good life). In this way, we can form alliances to hunt down criminals who object to universal moral facts (e.g., Hitler), while sharing with each other our points of view on how we should

    Read More

  • Is Justice Profitable?

    938 Words  | 2 Pages

    Glaucon attempted to prove that injustice is preferable to justice. At first, Glacon agreed with Socrates that justice is a good thing, but implored on the nature of its goodness? He listed three types of “good”; that which is good for its own sake (such as playing games), that which is good is good in itself and has useful consequences (such as reading), and that which is painful but has good consequences (such as surgery). Socrates replied that justice "belongs in the fairest class, that which a man who is to be happy must love both for its own sake and for the results." (45d) Glaucon then reaffirmed Thrasymachus’s position that unjust people lead a better life than just people. He started that being just is simply a formality for maintaining a good reputation and for achieving one’s goals. He claimed that the only reason why a person would choose to be unjust rather than just due to the fear of punishment. This is supported by the story of the shepherd who became corrupted as a result of finding a ring which made him invisible. He took over the kingdom through murder and intrigue since he knew there could be no repercussions for his unjust actions. In addition, Adiamantus stated that unjust people did not need to fear divine punishment since appeals could be made to Gods’ egos via sacrifices. Finally, Glaucon gave an example of the extreme unjust person who has accumulated great wealth and power which he juxtaposed with an extreme moral man who is being punished unjustly for his crimes. Clearly, injustice is preferable to justice since it provides for a more fruitful life.

    Read More

  • The Ring Of Gyges And The Allegory Of The Cave Essay

    1717 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the Ring of Gyges, Plato helps readers understand the true nature of justice. Glaucon and Socrates have conflicting views on justice and injustice and the reader decides which philosopher they agree with. At the beginning of Book 2, Plato states that Glaucon “was dissatisfied at

    Read More

  • Philosophy: Ethics and Morality

    2484 Words  | 5 Pages

    To act morally means one must think and act in such a way that always considers, supports, and attempts to improve general welfare; furthermore, such thoughts and actions must occur because of moral intentions, not just because one has to. Also, pre-defined rules exist for the common good and these rules help with moral judgment. Such rules would include “no killing”, “no stealing”, and “no lying”. These don’t exist to provide an advantage or cause disadvantage—they exist simply for the good of every individual. To have morality means one must always adhere to these rules no matter the consequences, who is affected, or how it happens, because they only ensure the most good for everyone. However, one’s own standards for morality must also remain considerate of that of others’.

    Read More

  • The Ring Of Gyges Analysis

    1620 Words  | 4 Pages

    While Glaucon’s story may seem reminiscent of The Lord of the Rings, Plato is really exploring human nature when it comes to acting justly. That is, he is trying to identify what motivates us to act in a just manner. Do we only act this way to avoid consequences, and if so, what if we knew there would be no negative implications, would we still act this way? Plato’s “The Ring of Gyges” serves to prove that being a moral person is something intrinsically good, not just good because it brings about pleasant results (Melchert

    Read More

  • Hg Wells The Invisible Man Analysis

    726 Words  | 2 Pages

    H.G. Wells in “The Invisible Man” uses morality and power to show how things can turn to the worst. He demonstrates man’s tendency to become moral with absolute power. As the invisible man gains interest in science and his ability to become invisible, he has great power. From this he can steal, kill, and abuse anybody without a hint of fear of being caught, as described, “It’s useful in getting away, it’s useful in approaching. It’s particularly useful, therefore, in killing” (page 292). Griffin starts to use his power to excess, he realizes that with too much power it can start to control you.

    Read More

More about Glaucon Being Unjust Analysis

Open Document