"Why does philosophy play such a large part in the conversation about justice in Plato's Republic?"

... "Why does philosophy play such a large part in the conversation about justice in Plato's Republic?" Plato, in common with thinkers both before and long after him, was a man of his times. Critiques of politics and society must be understood in relation to the context in which they were constructed, whether in support of or antagonistic to contemporary socio-political realities. Plato was born into the powerful city - state of Athens. Through her navy, the superlative sea - bound military force in the Greek world, Athens had developed a strong economy and feeling of dominance. Robert Hall notes "...the disposition of the Athenian character to pleonexia, to always getting more..." This thirst for power however, four years before Plato's birth, led to a clash with Sparta and an embarrassing Athenian defeat. This defeat Plato saw as illustrative of Athens' political shortcomings, the practical eventuality of their flawed underlying

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