The Life Of Plato s Republic, Glaucon And Adeimantus

In Book II of Plato’s Republic, Glaucon and Adeimantus present a challenge to Socrates’ view of justice. Previously, in Book I of the Republic, Socrates presents several counterarguments to Thrasymachus’ belief that it is to your own advantage to practice injustice rather than to follow laws, if you can get away with it (Babcock). Glaucon and Adeimantus sought to present a stronger defense to Thrasymachus’ view. The main viewpoint they try to establish is that it is to our advantage to practice injustice rather than justice and that the good life is the life of injustice (Babcock). Several arguments are used to reinforce the central view through use of the Ring of Gyges story, an account of the origin of justice, a classification of†¦show more content†¦Mixed goods are the second class of goods. They are desirable for their own sake, and the sake of their consequences. Lastly, instrumental goods are goods that are not desirable for their own sake, but only desirable for the consequences they bring. Glaucon believes that justice is an instrumental good, and presents several persuasive arguments on exactly why he believes this. If justice is considered to be an instrumental good, this would mean that justice is only practiced for the consequences it brings. The rewards of this virtue could provide you with enhanced reputation, political or social status, and praises. In that sense, justice is rendered meaningless if not recognized by others. If no one knows you’re being just, no beneficial consequences can come from it through other people. Therefore Glaucon thinks that you might as well practice injustice while still maintaining a false reputation for justice (Babcock). By simply maintaining the false persona of a just person, you could reap the rewards of the virtue without having to practice it. Meanwhile, you could practice injustice, which is much more beneficial than solely being just and reap the rewards of both . In addition to this, Adeimantus further supports Glaucon’s arguments by pointing out that justice is only ever praised by people for the good consequences it brings us, while injustice is only ever censored by people due to the bad