The Importance Of Duty In The United States

2. Synthesize Information What does Pericles say it takes for a person to be a good citizen? He says to be a good citizen participates in public life and attends his own affairs without neglecting or judging those of the city.

The Republic by Plato examines many aspects of the human condition. In this piece of writing Plato reveals the sentiments of Socrates as they define how humans function and interact with one another. He even more closely Socrates looks at morality and the values individuals hold most important. One value looked at by Socrates and his colleagues is the principle of justice. Multiple definitions of justice are given and Socrates analyzes the merit of each. As the group defines justice they show how self-interest shapes the progression of their arguments and contributes to the definition of justice.

The United States of America has seen great change throughout its history. While a considerable amount of time has matured the nation, the core spirit of the American people remains unaffected. In spite of all the wars fought and problems that arose, the

In his farewell address to the American people, President Dwight David Eisenhower enumerated his fears for the country. More than this, he told the American people that it was their responsibility to be vigilant, to ensure that the government acted for the betterment of the American people and not for the politicians who held office. During this address, President Eisenhower gave a warning to both the citizens of the United States and to the leaders of the nation. It is all too easy to fall into patterns and to allow for others to acquire power beyond the parameters of what is either fair or just. The only means of fighting the potential challengers of freedom and justice both within and without the United States is vigilance and dedication to independence and personal freedoms.

At this point in history the nation must face a massive reworking of government and redefining of society. It was "to this grand work of national regeneration and entire purification Congress must… address Itself, with full purpose".

from Plato’s Crito, written over two thousand years ago, Socrates, a citizen of Athens, explains his view that citizens are forever indebted to their nation. Speaking on behalf of the Athenian

In the Republic of Plato, the philosopher Socrates lays out his notion of the good, and draws the conclusion that virtue must be attained before one can be good. For Socrates there are two kinds of virtue; collective and individual. Collective virtue is virtue as whole, or the virtues of the city. Individual virtue pertains to the individual himself, and concerns the acts that the individual does, and concerns the individual’s soul. For Socrates, the relationship between individual and collective virtue is that they are the same, as the virtues of the collective parallel those of the Individual. This conclusion can be reached as both the city and the soul deal with the four main virtues of wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice.

The notion that civic virtue is teachable therefore lies at the foundation of the Greek social order, in the institutional form of the principle that citizens can be changed for the better.

Socrates claims to be a selfless benefactor of the polis in that he had exhausted his private resources in the pursuit of the public good (23b-c, 30a, 31a-c). Because he does what is good for his fellow citizens for whom he feels regard despite the danger to which this exposes him, Socrates claims to be a benefactor of the Athenians. He refers with pride to his record of military service and underlines that it was service to the democracy: “When the commanders that you elected to command me stationed me at Potidaea and Amphipolis and Delion, I remained there like anyone else, and ran the risk of death” (28e). He is an honorable citizen who disregards death and preaches that “The difficulty, my friends, is not to avoid death, but to avoid unrighteousness; for that runs faster than death.” He has demonstrated that he is, by his own right, a patriotic citizen who cares deeply about the good of his polis and one who consistently acts in what he sees as his city’s best interests; but he has also shown also that, in light of his own definition of patriotism, Socrates must be regarded as a uniquely patriotic Athenian.

As a citizen, it is our obligation to serve the government and to follow the laws but to also throw off such government when it is being wrong and unjust. Plato’s dialogue in the Crito shows Socrates’ views on his obligations to the government and in Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” we see a different set of obligations depicted by King. Socrates strongly believed that his life was to be dedicated to the government under no other circumstances but on the other hand, Martin Luther King respected his obligations as a citizen but did not hesitate to react when the system was unfair and corrupt.

In response to Thrasymachus, Glaucon, and Adeimantus, Socrates seeks to show that it is always in an individual’s interest to be just, rather than unjust. Thus, one of the most critical problems regarding the Republic is whether Socrates defends justice successfully or not. Socrates offers three arguments in favor of the just life over the unjust life: first, the just man is wise and good, and the unjust man is ignorant and bad; second, injustice produces internal disharmony which prevents effective actions; and lastly, virtue is excellence at a thing’s function and the just person lives a happier life than the unjust person, since he performs the various functions of the human soul well. Socrates is displeased with the argument because a sufficient explanation of justice is essential before reaching a conclusion as to whether or not the just life is better than the unjust life. He is asked to support justice for itself, not for the status that follows. He propositions to look for justice in the city first and then to continue by analogy to discover justice in the individual. This approach will allow for a distinct judgment on the question of whether the just person is happier than the unjust person. Socrates commences by exploring the roots of political life and constructs a hypothetical just city that gratifies only fundamental human necessities. Socrates argues

As one reads though the translations of Aristotle’s thoughts, you begin to realize the complexity, yet the common sense of his work. Modern day people have a goal in life, to achieve a certain amount of success and to live life relatively happy. Most agree that to get to that goal, the populous must conform and participate

Greek philosopher, Plato, is considered to be one of the most influential people in Western Philosophy. The fact that he was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle leaves no questions about his competence. One of his fundamental works is the “Republic”. Even though it was written in 380 BC, Plato’s and Socrates’s thoughts are still relevant in twenty first century. This paper will evaluate the quote from the “Republic” and provide a summary of a quote; provide a context from the text for the quote; and finally, it will include my own thoughts on the quote and the Socrates’s argument as a whole.

In his most well known work, The Republic, Plato states that in his view, only in a good society can the good life be achieved. The Republic outlines Plato’s idea of a perfect or utopian society. He also identifies the four cardinal virtues that are required for a good society. These cardinal virtues are temperance or self-control, courage, wisdom, and justice. Without these virtues he believed that the good life could not be obtained. In The Republic Plato also discusses two different forms of

productivity of the citizens where Socrates is more focused on fostering a state that encourages