miller final exam study guide

8/8/2019 Miller Final Exam Study Guide

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Plato's RepublicExam StudyGuideThe examwill be two hoursand thirty minutes.The first thirty minutes will be devoted oGreekphilosophical terms; the next two hourswill be devoted o two essayquestions(onehourper essay).

I. ProvisionalList of GreekTermsSix Greekphilosophicalterms----or etsof terms-will appearon the exaln. You will beasked o defineeachone:providea rangeof English ranslationshat approximatePlato'susageof the term, discuss he context n which Platouses t, and its philosophicalsignificance or him.ndA6, IoArcelav6p,og,dngDix,r1,)mia, )marcaiv,r1rAeove(iaotoT,E,r6Aep,ogauTaQxesrip'qiqyov, riAogd,peri1,axo,fi*emSeisT.tuotx,i1,orfiary,p,p,,r1nga,Qpovtq,Ed,gtrtaxov(ytvvaorv) tltetDogiarqdg, DmaorilEfuy'fi, dptaravroDard,

A6yog, oyop,6g,ttAoyotxivfup6s, l Sug,oetllEinSug, a, r) irn Sup,,r1n6vd,xqaolaDt aroalvq, aurppoa,jv,rl,d,vDqeia,oglahtar'fip,q, D6(aDdvap,6d,A'fi9erurptA6roqog,pA6)o{05il iiv, ri p,,i1ivefDos,Dia.yivenEl{aigv,ttgeixaala (eixdy), rio-ng,,, ltd,vom, o,r1oryaro7r0s

II. ProvisionalEssayQuestions

xa))ino),ry, d,gmr6g,d,Enoxgaria

np,aqyia, np,oxgarla,np,oxpatxigiAtyapyla, LAryappxiEoi rcMoi, oi iAiTotDrlp,oxpara, D,rltroxpanx6g,Dfit srugavvg, rugavvm,6g,ipavvoge?u99rA6oo9o9,tAorlp,oE,grAoyq,fip,aroEd,vaTxaiE rnSup,laeAeuSepia,ouAeiad,vd,7xr1d,Savadap,i9oEnoAJrponoE

Two essayquestionswill appearon the exam.You will be asked o answereachone withan essayof approximately nhour's length.1. In Book I of Republic,Socrates onsiders nd hencriticizes hedefinitionsofjustice profferedby threesuccessiventerlocutors:Cephalus,Polemarchus, nd

Thrasymachus.Beginning with Cephalus,what is his definition, what seems omotivate it, and how doesSocrates efute it? Moving next to Polemarchus,what ishis definition ofjustice, how is it an heir to his father's,and whatare wo of theargumentsSocrates ses o reject it? How soundare hesearguments?What aretheir flaws?Finishingwith Thrasymachus, hat s his definition ofjustice, whatis its broadermeaning,and what are hreeargumentsSocratesuses o reject it?Again, how sound arethesearguments?f they have flaws, are they related othoseof Socrates'earliercritique of Polemarchus?Surveying his whole


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conversationof Book 1, what patternsof thought standout to the eyesof a criticalreader?With thesepatterns n mind, what might be the deeper essonsof Book 1,especially or epistemology nd ethics? In your answer o this question, oushould ind especiallyuseful he following articles:Barneyand Weiss.)

Between352a8and 354c3, at the end of Book I of Republic, Soqates advanceswhat has since becomeknown as "the function argument."(Aristotle adoptsandrevises t in the first book of his NicomacheanEthics, making it foundational forhis ethical thought,and thereby he ethical thought of many subsequentphilosophers.)First, rehearsehis argument,schematizingit as succinctly andaccuratelyaspossible.Second,evaluate t. How soundan argument s it? What, ifany, are ts flaws? Third, whether or not this argument s sound,what does trevealaboutPlato's(not to mentionAristotle's) world-view? Finally, make hecase hat this quick argument----occupyingust a few pages,and apparentlyabandoned y Socrates s he rises o the renewed hallengeo ustice posedbyGlaucon- forecasts the centralpoint of his full reply to this challenge. In youranswer o this question, ou should ind especiallyuseful he following articleswe have read: Barney and Santas.)What is Glaucon'schallenge o Socrates t the beginningof Book 2 of Republic?Crudelyput, he wantshim to defendustice,but, more inely, as f inspiredbyThrasymachus's arlierchallenge,Glauconwants Socrateso defendustice in aparticularway. With what distinction doeshe thereforebegin his challenge?Whattwo demandsdoes he then make of Socrates?Finally, in what three stagesdoes hethen articulatehis challenge?Socrateseelsoverwhelmed s t is, but Adeimantussupplements is brother'schallengewith two additionalconsiderations.What arethey, andhow do they make Socrates' ask ougher han t alreadyseemed?n theface of sucha dauntingchallenge,what s Socrates' nswer? n effect, his answeris the rest of Republic,so you mustdistill its most mportantparts,providingonlyan outline of the answer'sconclusion.But with that imit in mind. assess hetheror not Plato'sSocrates nswers he challenge ut to him by Plato'sbrothers. Inyour own answer o this question, ou should ind especially seful he followingarticleswe have ead:Rowe, Weiss,Singpurwalla,Kamtekar AZ).)What is theprincipleof political philosophy?What explains he constitutionofour polities?Whencearosepoliticalsociety?Whatmotivatesus, most deeply, oobey the restrictionsof political life? Three very different speakersn the first twoBooksof Republic,using hreevery differentphilosophicalmethods,offer threevery different answers o these elatedquestions:Thrasymachus,Glaucon, andSocrates. resentn successionhesealternatives, ayingequalattentionboth tothe content of their answersand the method of their arguments.As you do so,evaluate he advantages nd disadvantages f eachmethod,so that by the end ofyour presentationyou may makean informed comparisonof their answers.Ofthese hreeapproacheso political philosophy,which one comesclosest o theprincipleof politics? (In your answer o this question, ou should ind especiallyuseful the following articles we have read:Santasand Weiss.)

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5. At the end of Book 2 Socratesargues hat godsnever ie. What is this argument?Is it sound?Whether or not it is, Socrates ses t-and otherconclusionsaboutboth godsand heroes n Book 3 as well-to bowdlerizesomeof the mostimportant andpoignantpassages f Greek epic poetry. This is part of hiscampaignagainst he poets,whom he criticizes here and elsewheren Republicfor theirdeceptions.Why doesPlato consider hem deceivers? ereyou shouldaddress he three argumentsof Book 10.How sound are hesearguments?Andwhat abouthis "noble lie"? Is this not a hypocriticalact of deceptionon Plato'sown part?Doesthis apparenthypocrisyunderminePlato's campaignagainst hepoets, et alone his highestphilosophicalaspiration-namely, to know thetruth?If not, why doesSocrateshink this lie ustified? What might be said n his favor?Can herebe a noble ie? (In your answer o this question, ou should indespeciallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:McPherran, ear,Schofield,Moss,andHalliwell.)What is Plato'spsychology?Beginningwith the argument n Book 4, showhowSocrates ivides he soul nto threeparts.How sound s this argument?Whatobjections might be raisedagainst t? Can they be met? One objection many haveposed s that the distinctions are not clear between he desiresof eachpart. Onepopular eply to this objection s that rationaldesires ependexclusivelyon thegood,appetitivedesires ependnot at all on the good,and spiriteddesires ependto someextent thoughtnot exclusively)on the good.What evidencedoesRepublicoffer for thesecriteria of desire?How good s this evidence?WhatevidencedoesRepublic offer against hesecriteria?How good s thiscountervailingevidence?Are all desires, ccording o Plato n Republic, or thegood?Why does t matter? In your answer o this question, ou should indespeciallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:Moss(AZ), Miller (AZ)Anagnostopoulos,Lorenz, and Ferrari.)What is Socrates' efinition ofjustice at the endof Book4 of Republic?Howdoes his definition not only answer hequestion-What is ustice?-with whichthe dialoguebegan n Book 1, but also answerGlaucon'schallenge-Show thatperfect ustice s preferableo perfect njustice-with which the dialogue esumedin Book 2? Is eitheranswersuccessful?f not, what are heir shortcomings? oware heseshortcomings emediedby the subsequent iscussions f the dialogue?Do these emedieswork? Why or why not? Whetheror not they do, how does hisdefinition ofjustice sublimateboth the conclusionof the function argument nBook I and he principleof specializationn Book 2? How, moreover,does hisdefinition sublimate he variousdefinitionsproferredbut rejected n Book l? Areany of these sublimationscircular arguments? f not, what is the value ofsublimation as a philosophicaltechnique? In your answer o this question,youshouldfind especially useful the following articles we haveread: Barney, Santas,and Kosman.)

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8. Describe he utopia Socratespresentsn Book 5 of Republic. What are he threewavesof criticism he anticipateshispresentation il l meet?What arehis reasonsfor advancing hesecontroversialpolitical innovations, and what argumentsdoeshe use o resist hese waves'? How sinceredo you think Socratess in thispresentationand argumentation?What reasonsmight be adduced o argue hat heis being ronic?What reasonsmight be adduced o resist hat argument?On thissamequestion-utopia and rony-what role does he so-calledcity of pigs' playin the dialogue?After all, some hink it is Socrates' incere topia,whereasheutopia of Book 5 is only his second-best ffer. What are hearguments or andagainst his thought,andhow, assessingheir relativemerits,do you standon thisquestion?n your assessment,e surenot to neglect he role of the philosopher.How do Plato and his character,Socrates,understand he relationship betweenphilosophyandpolitics?(In your answer o this question, ou should indespeciallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:Ludwig, Saxonhouse,Franks, Morri son,S ngpurwalla (AZ), and Straus .One of the most mportantand memorable octrinesof Republic s that of theForms.They assume centerstage n Republiconly in the ast hird of Book 5,but there receivea subtle argument n their defense,one we might characterizeas'epistemological'since t beginswith an epistemicdistinction.What is thisdistinction,and how sound s the argument hat Socrates evelops rom it? Onceyou haveassessedhe argumenton its own terms,discusswhy Socratesintroduces t and he the doctrineof Forms t defends t thisprecisepoint in thedialogue.Onceyou have assessedhe argumentand discussedts immediatecontext,show how it and he doctrineof Formsnot only look forward o theepistemological nd ontological magesof Books 6 and7,but also backward othepsychologyof Book 4. (ln your answer o this question, ou should indespeciallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:Sedley,Penner,Miller(^z).)

10.Plato's Republic s full of images,many of themquitedetailedand vivid. Amongthe most vivd and detailedare he three at the heartof the work-the Sun, heLine, and he Cave-which illustrate he centralontologicaland epistemologicaldistinctionsof the dialogue.Recount hese mages n order,payingspecialattention o the following threequestions. irst, since magesand maginationareat the bottomof the Line, what might Platobe sayingabout he credibility of theseimages hemselves? econd,n whatways does he Cavesynthesizehe twoearlier mages?And third, what are he political elements f the Cave,and howdoes his imagebring the ontologyandepistemology f Republic o bearon thepolitical and ethical nvestigation fjustice with which the dialoguebeganand owhich it returnsshortly afterwards? In your answer o this question,you shouldfind especiallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:Sedley,Denyer,Miller,Reeve AZ),Lear (AZ), Ferejohn.)

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11. n Books8-9 Socratesesumeswherehe eft off, attheendof Book 4, bydescribing he declineof his utopia nto four degenerateegimes: imocracy,oligarchy, democracy,and tyranny.Describe he most important featuresof eachconstitution,and why Socrateshinks eachone emerges rom its predecessor.fthis story is more lhan an amusing nanative, s therea logic of declineat work,oneor more principlesof politics that predict he trajectoryof anypoliticalsociety? f so, what are theseprinciples,and how iniegral are hey io the restofthe Socrates' iews in Republic,especially is psychology?After all, for everypolitical constitution here s a correlative haracter, psychological onstitution.Describe he most important featuresof eachof these,and whySocrates thinkseachone emerges rom its predecessor.what, if any, are the principles ofpsychological ecline?How similar are heseprinciples o thoseofpoliticaldecline,andhow are hey inter-related? inally,which story, f either, s primary:the political or thepsychological? In you unr*"r to this question, ou sirouldfind especiallyuseful he following articleswe have ead:Hitz (Az),Bliissner,Strauss, nd Parry.)

72- n Book 9 Socratesinally presents is responseo Glaucon,s hallenge, isargumenthat ustice s good or its own sake,whatever ts consequen"ces.ndeed,his arguments supposedo convinceus thatreal ustice with theappearancefinjustice and huspunishments)s preferable ven o real njusticethathasassumedhe appearanceand hus he rewards)ofjustice. of his threearguments-the comparison f thephilosopher nd he tyrant, he decisionofcompetentudges,namelyphilosophers, nd inally the purity and ruth ofphilosophicpleasure-he is mostconfident n the hi.d. Ho* does his thirdargumentwork, and is it sound?What are he objectsof pureand true pleasure,andwhat s the subjectof this pleasure?n what way do toth theseobjlcts andthis subject espect heprincipleof opposites or principleof non-coniradiction)?How, then,does he distinctionbetween ealand llurory pleasure, ot to mentionthe distinctionbetween ealand llusory ustice, n sum, he deepest f al ldistinctions n thedialogue,dependon a logicalprincipie? In ybur answer o thisquestion, ou should ind especially seful he following articleswe have ead:Penner,Kosman,Sedley,Miller ( Z))l3' In Book 70 of Republic,Socrates dvances n argument or the mmortality of thesoul' What is this argument, ndhow valid andsound s it? How might we objectto it , andhow might Socratesespondo our objections?Whetheror not he woulddefendhis argument,Socrates ould likely cling tenaciouslyo his faith in theimmortality of the soul.But what can he say, n the end,aboutthis soul that hebelieves o survivebodily death?He resorts irst to an image, hat of the sea-godGlaucus,and then to a myth, that of Er. what does he image mply aboutourimmortal selves,and what does he myth imply abouttheir eschatalogicaldestiny?Do these mplications aiseany problems oi earlierdoctrinesn Repibtrc? f so,what is happening n thesestrange inal pagesof the dialogue? (In your answer othis question'you should ind especially-usefulhe following articleswe haveread:Halliwell, Ferrari,Miller (AZ).)


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14.At the heart of Republic is a memorable-indeed, an unforgettable-story: theCave. We have considered he many ways in which this story condenseshe mostimportant essons f the dialogue, essonsn ontology,epistemology, olitics,psychology,and aesthetics. ut perhapsmost mportantof all these essonsspedagogical; he Cave llustrates he educationof thephilosopher.Lest we forget:Republic tself is a pedagogical xercise,n which Plato s teachingus,hisreaders, o becomephilosophers. n this way, the Cave story is our story as weread he dialogue tself--our painful going up and our bewildering return below.Tell these wo stories ogether, he storyof being educatedby this dialogue, fromits first Book to its last, alongside he story of the philosopherwho is educatedwithin it, in Book 7 Draw uponyour knowledgeof those doctrines mentionedabove,and, when most pertinent, he argumentsSocrates ses o develop anddefend hem. But also draw upon our considerationof this dialogueas a work ofart, as an artfully composedconversation,a special sort of conversationwhosegoal is to change he structureof your soul. (In your answer o this question,youshould ind especiallyuseful he following articleswe have read:Lear,Lear(AZ),Reeve AZ), RichardsonLear, Barney.)

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miller final exam study guide

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