Greek Ideal
Philosophy has always been central to the Greek culture. “The Love of Wisdom”, as translated from Greek, the art and the science of philosophy was born in ancient Greece and since then has found its way to Western and other civilizations. In a process of a never-ending inquiry into the subjects of science and humanities, philosophers were affecting multiple aspects of every day life. Their urge to obtain answers to questions that were central to human existence has influenced perceptions of arts, politics, ethics, as well as many other disciplines. Theories that were obtained from such wisdom-full investigative process were subjected to the critique of others and at the end idealized as widely accepted standards. Greek ideal, combination of idealized ancient Greek philosophies, has thus been formed. People united theories to apply them when deciding whether a particular society fits the Greek ideal. Some of the most prominent philosophers, who have contributed to defining the Greek ideal were Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Central to their schools of thought was concern with an ideal State. Concerned with the same goal, all three philosophers are arriving to similar definitions of ideal.
Aristotle, who believed that the State was substantial, did not create a blueprint of the ideal State like Plato did. Plato who thought out an ideal State and created rules and regulations was more rational in his political views than Socrates and Aristotle. Even though all three philosophers were similar in their political beliefs about man not being self-sufficient and that man would be most happy in a State. Plato's ideal State made his political view easily understandable and more rational than Socrates who left behind no notes and Aristotle who did not create a blueprint for an ideal State. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle all believed that man needs to be part of a State in order to live a truly good life. For Plato, who concerned himself with the truly good life for man, it was imperative to determine the true function of the State. He believed that the State was crucial in order for man to live a good life. Plato wrote that "a proper government would lead to a peaceful, ordered society in which all humans needs are met" (Copleston, 223). Meeting the needs of the people was very important within the State, and to help meet the needs of the people Plato thought that the relationship between the individual and the State would be similar to the relationship between parents and their children. This meant that the government would have power over the people but the people would be considered in the decision making. Aristotle viewed the State as "The agency for enabling people to achieve their ultimate goals as human beings" (Stumphf, 103). He thought that within the State you were free and able to obtain your needs or 'goals' in life. Aristotle also made the point that "the State exists for the sake of everyone's moral and intellectual fulfillment" (Stumphf, 105). Aristotle wrote that while both work and leisure were necessary in the good life, the more important was leisure. He concluded that since leisure is necessary both for the development of excellence and
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Approximate Word count = 1340
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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