PLATO

1
PLATOS CRITICISM OF DEMOCRACY
February 25, 2003
2
KINGS ARGUMENT

• Democratic Politicians Spend Too Much Time
  Campaigning
• Cant Make Difficult Decisions
• Focus On Symbolic Issues

3
PLATOS ARGUMENT

• Democracy Rejects Expertise
• Rewards Style
• Permits Too Much Freedom
• Leads To Tyranny

4
REJECTS EXPERTISE

• Analogy of the Ship

5
REWARDS STYLE

• If a pastry baker and a doctor had to compete in
  front of children--or in front of men just as
  foolish as children--to determine which of them
  had expert knowledge of good food and bad, the
  doctor would die of starvation.

6
TOO MUCH FREEDOM
7
LEADS TO TYRANNY

• Excess Freedom Can Mean Reluctance To Control
  Dangerous Individuals
• First Act Of Tyrant Kill An Opponent
• Execution Of Socrates

8
TOO MUCH DEMOCRACY?

• Rule Of The People Or Rule Of The Rich?