Plato Class

Plato class structure of a perfect society is on the accustomed ideas of equality and social mobility because Plato is not a defender of a strict division of classes that is the rulers (guardians), soldiers (military), and the people (working class). There is less similarity between Plato’s point of view of the society and the traditional American one. Plato uses the myth of gold, silver, iron, and brass in fixing the need of class division in the awareness of the Athens society hence this was a method of social control within the society. Creation of the human race is of God and when he created us, he mixed metals in our souls. As Plato said, “When the god was forming you, he mixed gold into those who are capable of ruling, which is why they are the most honorable; silver into the auxiliaries; and iron and bronze into farmers and other craftsmen.”

Being aware of the down and out of the proletariats through experience, Plato was trying to prevent the iron and bronze group from wealth by saying “Do you think that a potter who has become wealthy will still be willing to devote himself to his craft?”… “It seems, then, that we have found other things that our guardians must prevent in every way from slipping into the city undetected.” (Plato, Republic 2011, p131). This means that the working class had to remain poor in order for them to keep providing the necessary work force in the production of goods and services within the society. Plato, therefore, regards the workers as essentially a vision to his ideal state by providing material needs for the higher ranks that are the rulers and the military hence they should be driven by their interests and should never have the capability to rise above the basic labor