1. Ethical rationalism Lecture 1: Introduction to Plato's Republic “Sincerity – if you can fake that, you’ve got it made.” --Advice given to Daniel Schorr about TV journalism

2. Some central characters Socrates Glaucon Adeimantus Thrasymachus

3. Historical background Cultural pluralism in the Mediterranean Questioning of traditional Greek practices Emergence of moral relativism

4. Relativism defined There is no set of basic moral standards that are applicable to all people. Rather, different people are subject to different basic moral demands, depending on the social customs, practices, conventions, values and principles that they accept.

5. Relativism vs. absolutism Absolutism: Right and wrong are basically the same for everyone. Relativism: Basic moral standards can vary from group to group, society to society, epoch to epoch, etc.

6. Sophists’ case for relativism Nature is the same for everyone But morality is not fixed in the nature of things; it is conventional. Conventions vary from society to society.

7. 2 versions of sophist relativism Moderate: A society’s moral conventions apply to everyone in that society (Protagoras). Extreme: You have no good reason to follow your society’s morality when it conflicts with your own interests (Thrasymachus).

8. Thrasymachus in Book I “Justice [morality] is nothing other than the advantage of the stronger” (338c-339a; xiv).

9. Example Our society’s moral code contains: – a strong requirement not to harm others – a much weaker requirement to help others These work to the advantage of the wealthy and more powerful

10. Challenge to Socrates Morality seems to be good only for its consequences Often a moral reputation will do just as well Can S show that the moral person with an immoral reputation is better off than the immoral person with a moral reputation?

11. Socrates’s strategy Connect morality to the realization of human nature and thus to our good. Show that these are intrinsic connections. Show that moral values belong to an independent reality that we can all come to know.

12. Human nature The human psyche contains three parts: rational, spirited, appetitive Healthy development requires harmonious cooperation of these three parts under the direction of the rational part (psychic harmony).

13. Evidence for 3-part psyche Appetite different from reason: case of being thirsty but refusing to drink because you know the drink is bad for you. Appetite vs. passion: wanting to look at a corpse but at the same time feeling disgust. Passion vs. reason: children, animals, cases of speaking sternly to one’s heart.

14. Two claims: Full happiness = psychic harmony Psychic harmony = justice in the individual

15. Analogy with justice in the city Correspondences – reason-- wise rulers – spirit-- military class – appetite-- commercial class Justice in the city = social harmony = each class performing its proper function

16. Next time: Plato as a rationalist