The Concept of Justice and Elite's Government in Plato's Ideal City

The basic principles of western political philosophy has been laid down by Socrates and his most prominent disciple Plato. This question has always been important for Plato: which state is better and which is more just and who has the appropriate qualification to govern the people? Today this question is urgent for the states.Plato wrote many treatises which the most important of them is “Republic”. His political philosophy has been expounded in this book. “Republic” is one of the most detailed and most exciting philosophical text that has ever been written. In his most treatises Socrates is the main spokesman. The subject of the dialogues in the book is the nature of justice. Justice in this context means goodness or moral virtues and ideal perfection of man. Plato regards the government a kind of art or technique in which like the other techniques or arts the benefit should be the main concern. Moderation and harmony are the most important thing and excess and negligence should be avoided. If someone insists on his egoistic inclinations, this brings about disorder and chaos. Plato has in mind a state which like the human body has three parts. He imagines that in this state in place of head, chest and abdomen we have governers, guardians and labourers. Just as the healthy man reacts with harmony and proportion, so the sign of a virtuous state is that every person knows his place in it.