Themes in Plato’s ‘Republic’
One of the most important themes that emerge in Plato’s work, ‘Republic’ specialization; in fact, he considers specialization as a principle of justice (Pappas 12). Before providing adequate proof to his audience that justice is a positive societal attribute, Plato engages his readers in the understanding of justice. In his opinion, justice exists within a structure of any community. For example, justice is available in the structure of a city or a community; besides, he recognizes that there is individual justice which is existence in the structure of an individual’s soul. In his opinion, Plato believes that, individual justice is based on specialization as key principle (Pappas 13).
His explains that every member of a society has to play a particular role within their society that meets their nature without engaging in other people’s businesses. For example, an individual whose nature allows them to firm has to engage in farming instead of building. The principle of specialization allows individuals to perform their duties effectively and in a desirable manner. Also, Plato explicates that the principle of specialization creates three distinct classes of individuals; that is, those who are considered rulers, producers and warriors (Pappas 17). Research has shown that specialization has become an imperative aspect of career development in the contemporary society. Many people specialize in particular socio-economic activities
The other theme that emerges in Plato’s work, the Republic, is politics. Plato exposes his readers to the manner in which politics is linked to justice and the principle of specialization. In his opinion, political justice exists within the structure of a society or city. He goes further and explicates how the principle of specialization has led to the emergence of law enforcement organizations such as policemen in the form of warriors and rulers. Plato is of the opinion that through specialization, not all societal members can be rulers or law enforcers.
Consequently, the theme of justice is one of the major issues covered in Plato’s work. He approaches his discussion on justice using different concepts i.e. describes how specialization is a key principle in the development of a just society. Besides, Plato believes that justice and politics are strongly inter-linked; justice exists within any political structure and plays a key role in various aspects of societal decision-making. In the current society, justice has been an imperative issue; it has raised concerns among global development agencies that require governments and policy-makers to ensure that justice is awarded the highest sense of priority.
The Relationship between Plato’s Philosophical Tools and Globalization or Technology
As mentioned earlier, specialization is one of the key themes discussed in Plato’s work, ‘the Republic’. Stakeholders in the educational sector have placed a great emphasis on the importance of specialization. Many scholars in the current generation are encouraged to ensure that they specialize in courses that suit their cognitive and physical capacities (Dustmann and Albrecht 712). For example, individuals that are interested in biological ideas are encouraged to focus on the study of health-related issues, hence play a significant role in current medical sector. Besides, others who have a passion in nutrition and diet may specialize in cookery and provision of nutritional guidelines to the current society. The theme is specialization has a strong link with current trends of technological development. In fact, it is through specialization, that the current society is able to develop technological expertise through research and innovation. Individuals interested in technological knowledge have played a vital role in the advancement of various aspects of technology, for instance, information communication technologies et cetera. Besides, specialization has also been attributed to the current high rates of globalization characterized by movement of expatriates from one region to another. Many under-developed and developed societies lack experts in certain fields of socio-economic development (Dustmann and Albrecht 712). This is the reason many international companies and government agencies rely on the services foreign experts or expatriates. That is, hiring individuals who have specialized in certain fields i.e. technological experts from foreign countries.
The concept of justice as described by Plato in his work and how politics play a significant role in the creation of justice among different global communities is also related to globalization. Research has shown that globalization has improved over the last 20 years due to the development of global policies that provide freedom for individuals to move from one region to another in search of proper job opportunities. The freedom of movement is one of the most imperative aspects of justice. In fact, many development stakeholders advocate for improved inter-border migration or movements so that individuals are provided with an opportunity for self-development. Moreover, the emergence of conducive global policies has also enhanced technological advancement. Government and other key policy-makers have created policies that enable technologists and researchers to engage in innovative practices; this scenario has been attributed to the current rapid rate of technological advancement, particularly, in the communication sector. The following graphical image represents the status of technological advancement, particularly, information technology over the 21st Century:
(Courtesy of: The "Big Five" IT Trends of the next Half Decade)
The following graphical image indicates the number of Facebook users across the United States. Facebook is one of the current aspects of information technology whose development has been possible due to favorable information technology policies:
Courtesy of: "Fascinating #SocialMedia Stats 2015: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google".
Works Cited
"Fascinating #SocialMedia Stats 2015: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google." Fascinating #SocialMedia Stats 2015: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2016. <http://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2015/02/fascinating-social-networking-stats-2015.html>
"The "Big Five" IT Trends of the next Half Decade: Mobile, Social, Cloud, Consumerization, and Big Data | ZDNet." ZDNet. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2016. <http://www.zdnet.com/article/the-big-five-it-trends-of-the-next-half-decade-mobile-social-cloud-consumerization-and-big-data/>.
Dustmann, Christian, and Albrecht Glitz. "How do industries and firms respond to changes in local labor supply?." Journal of Labor Economics 33.3 Part 1 (2015): 711-750.
Pappas, Nickolas. The Routledge Guidebook to Plato's Republic. Routledge, 2013.
