Abstract

Historically, as a philosopher, Plato might have been the happiest. Well known as he was, Socrates was his teacher and the very paragon of wisdom and virtue all the while. Accordingly, in the earlier period of his life, Plato had been busy with reviving his teacher’s philosophical activities through those Socratic dialogues; meanwhile, in the later one of that, he could develop his own philosophy in the form of their extension. Plato’s astonishingly hopeful argument of the rule of philosopher-kings, which might bring the end of evils to countries and the human race, entirely relies on the moral character of wise Socrates. His mentor's beliefs and personality were revealed in his own apologia in court and in his strict adherence to principles against Crito’s fervent inducement to escaping from the prison. Of course, the stages of the man revealed in the testimonies of Alcibiades' experiences in the Symposium (215a~222b) were difficult for ordinary minds to reach both physically and mentally. Even so, since there was such a real figure of Socrates as a wise and moral representative at the time, for Plato who conceived a fundamental political reform it would not have been unreasonable to demand thus: for a statesman to have philosophical wisdom with nous and honorable character and for ordinary citizens to have their own proper morality. The Gorgias is a dialogue that looks like his proclamation in which he unhesitatingly expressed such thoughts. In this dialogue, Socrates degraded the prominent politicians of the time, even such as Themistocles and Pericles, so that they were only regarded to have raised Athens to an empire but failed to reach the level of such a honorable statesman, and accordingly, declared that Socrates himself was the only person of that era to meet that standard. Now as for the rule of ‘philosopher-kings’, Plato referred to them as ‘to philosophon genos’ in the Republic (501e), which means the philosophic group or clan. In the paragraph 540a~b of it, their ruling in due order are also mentioned because of their reluctance to that role instead of enjoying those continuous philosophical activities. In a loose sense, it is formally similar to the political system of ho archōn or hoi archontes in Athens. Also it runs in 445d: “If one outstanding person arises among the rulers, it would be called a kingship (basileia), if more, an aristocratia (the rule of the best)”, which denotes plural members (hoi aristoi) or a ‘genos’ (445d). Again, in the seventh letter (326b) we find this phrase: 'the group of those who love wisdom rightly and truly'. Of course the rulers should possess the expertise knowledge, namely the statecraft (politikē) or kingly art (basilikē) which “ought not itself do practical tasks, but rule over those arts which can perform them, knowing the right or wrong time for the initiation and onrush of the most important things in the poleis, and others should perform orders given to them.” (the Statesman 305d). Meanwhile, in the Laws (701d) concerning the legislation for the new colony Magnesia are clarified the lawgiver’s three aims: the polis should have freedom, amity with itself and nous. And in the last part of it (951d~965a) it is found that those members of the Nocturnal Council (ho nykterinos syllogos) might be a realistic replica of such a group in a sense. Every elder member of it should bring a young man of his own choice aged between thirty and forty, and the observers of foreign customs must attend this council as soon as he gets back: All of them might be collaborators. Those young men are chosen for their natural gifts and the acuteness of their senses: their keen senses of what they have heard or seen in the town and the wise judgments of the elders are expected to harmonize to ensure the betterment of people or the solution of their problems. And those observers might contribute in their own way during every meeting, for it is a council gathering to amend their laws, and to get new informations from the outside world. It should be a meeting to keep the intelligence and senses awake at all times. Accordingly it is argued: “If one were to lower this council as a sort of ‘anchor’ for the whole state, then provided conditions were suitable, it would keep safe everything we wanted it to.” (Saunder’s tr.)