Good Man vs. Good Citizen - Plato essays

Good Man vs. Good Citizen - Plato essays Good Man v. Good Citizen: Platos View When Plato writes about the struggle between the good person and the good citizen in The Last Days of Socrates, there seems to be an overlapping of the two because they are so closely related. Socrates says that [A man] has only one thing to consider in performing any action; that is whether he is acting justly or unjustly, like a good man or a bad one (Apology, 28 b-c). It seems that, even when considering whether or not to be a good citizen and follow orders and laws without exception, one must decide whether or not his actions will be just. This is refuted, however, when Socrates says in Apology, 28d When a man has once taken up his stand, either because it seems best to him or in obedience to his orders, there I believe he is bound to remain and face the danger, taking account of death or anything else before dishonour and in Apology, 29b that to disobey my superior, whether god or man, is bad and dishonourable. By this reasoning, being a good man would require following the orders, not only of the gods, but of earthly superiors and, therefore, being a good citizen. The idea of dishonour seems to be a significant downfall of a good person in Platos writing and, therefore, must have been a major part of Athenian life. Socrates argument with Crito support these ideas of dishonour and justice with regard to being Plato argues that a man must follow the laws of his State because if the legal judgment which are pronounced in [a State] have no force but are nullified and destroyed by private persons the State and its laws are all also threatened with destruction (Crito, 50b). Platos reasoning in Crito then follows that threatening to destroy the State and its laws (Socrates escaping) in retaliation of an unjust action of ...