Plato and the Force of Circumstances

As individuals, we must deal with the force of circumstances constantly. In both our private and public lives, we are bombarded with everyday circumstances that pressure us. How we respond to these pressures determines whether our actions are just and unjust. The force of circumstances can include many things such as money, personal relationships, family, and work environment. These pressures can be very trying and cause an individual to falter if they do not have the knowledge and power to overcome the force of circumstances. Throughout Plato's writings, Socrates shows that the just individual is more superior to the unjust individual because of the way he or she reacts to the force of circumstances. In this paper, I will explore the sorts of powers that the just individual possesses that help them to withstand the force of circumstances much more effectively than the unjust individual. I will use the Socrates of the Apology and Crito as a model for these powers of the just individual. In the second half of this paper, I will use real life examples on how the just and unjust react to circumstances.

Socrates claims that the just individual is more superior to the unjust individual through wisdom and knowledge. He claims that one should always search for truth and understanding (Apology, 15-16). The just individual strives for truth and understanding through reason. In the Protagoras, Socrates states that no man voluntarily pursues evil. Evil is chosen through ignorance (Protagoras, p. 112). Therefore, the just individual is wise enough to be able to not choose evil and not let the force of circumstances get the best of him or her. Socrates also claims that the unjust individual is ignorant compared to the just individual. In the Apology, Socrates states that the unjust individuals go after worldly possessions and power and do not go after truth and understanding (Apology, 15-16). This interest in only worldly possessions and power causes men to not be able to reason between good and evil. Also, as stated in the Protagoras, the unjust individual chooses the evil act out of his or her own ignorance (Protagoras, pg.112). Therefore, the unjust individual commits actions out of his or her own ignorance and is unable to reason to overcome the force of circumstances in his or her life.

The just individual possesses powers that the unjust individual lacks, such as honesty, fearlessness of other's actions or opinions, and the ability not to get concerned with worldly affairs. The just individual can be associated with goodness and wisdom, and the unjust individual can be associated with evil and ignorance (The Republic I, pg. 316). This ability to have wisdom and truth helps the just individual gain the knowledge to be able to become wise. There are many examples of these specific powers of the just individual in both the Apology and the Crito.

The Apology shows many examples of the powers of the just. In the Apology, Socrates claims that no matter what circumstances, even death, that he would not stop practicing philosophy and questioning others toward goodness (Apology, pg. 15). This action shows that the just individual has the power not to fear the negative circumstances of being just. Later in the Apology, Socrates claims that he never cared about the worldly things that most people cared about, such as having a lavish home, making large amounts of money, and belonging to elite social circles. Instead, he cared about spreading truth and morality to everyone he met (Apology, pg. 21). This shows that the just individual has the power to only focus on the good and the just and not worldly distractions. In the last few paragraphs of the Apology, Socrates explains to the people to justly scold their children if they are putting money or worldly things before goodness (Apology, pg. 26). This statement shows that the just individual has the power of pointing out other's faults to better both themselves and others.

The Crito also shows examples of the power of the just. In the Crito, Socrates's friend, Crito, is bargaining with Socrates to escape from jail to avoid being persecuted. He also claims that others may gossip about him if he does not help his friend escape. However, Socrates claims that Crito should not care what others thought. He also told Crito to do the just thing, which is to allow the execution to proceed (Crito, pg. 29). Later in the Crito, Socrates states that they should not worry what people think, but to worry if they stand with truth (Crito, pg. 33). These excepts show, as also shown in the Apology, that the just individual has the power of doing the just action without fear of the actions or the opinions of others.

Someone who is just will find a way to overcome the force of circumstances by wisdom and understanding than doing the unjust action. For example, a college student is taking a full load of college classes and working in a laboratory doing research. The burden of all of her responsibilities really begins to take a toll on her. She is unable to keep up with her studies and begins to feel the urge to cheat off her friend on a test to pass the class. However, she knows that cheating is wrong and unjust to the rest of her classmates, who also work very hard at their studies. Therefore, she overcomes the force of circumstances by talking to her professor about her stress and learning more efficient ways of studying. The wisdom she had helped her make the proper decision on how to handle the situation. She got a good grade on the test and did not have to cheat to accomplish that goal. This example ties into Socrates's teaching about being wise. As stated before, in the Apology, Socrates claims one should seek truth and understanding. As in the example, the woman sought wisdom to how to better deal with the situation, thus gaining the knowledge to make the right decision.

Someone who is unjust does not have the knowledge and wisdom to overcome the force of circumstances, thus they choose the unjust act. For example, a man works in a store handling money. He has two children and an ill wife at home, and he is having problems keeping up with the children's expenses and her medical bills. He is desperate to work more hours, but, because of the economy, he is unable to work extra hours. He has no idea what to do, and he has nowhere to turn. Therefore, he begins to steal money at his job to help pay for the expenses at home. This begins to hurt the company and co-works who work with him. Eventually, he gets caught by his superior, and he loses his job. This example shows how the force of circumstances overcame an ignorant man. The man felt he had no choice but to cheat his company to support his wife and children. He was ignorant of other options that could have assisted him, such as programs to assist with medication expenses or a free school lunch program. Instead, unknowingly, he chose the evil act and allowed the force of circumstances to overcome him. This example ties into Socrates's teaching about the unjust and ignorant. In the Protagoras, Socrates claims that "no man voluntarily pursues evil, or that which he thinks to be evil. To prefer evil to good is not in human nature; and when a man is compelled to choose one of two evils, no one will choose the greater when he may have the less" (Protagoras, pg. 112). The unjust individual is ignorant, like the man in the example, and does not know to make the just decision.

The just individual is able to be fearless of other's actions or opinions to overcome the force of circumstances. For example, a calculus student is aware of a classmate that is constantly cheating on an exam. During the professor's office hours, the student visits the professor and tells the professor about the student's cheating. The cheating student is caught cheating on the next exam and receives a failing grade in the class. The cheating student and his friends call the student who told on the cheating student horrible names and starts rumors about the student. However, the student feels that he made the right decision on telling on the cheating student and does not regret his decision. The student overcame the force of circumstances by doing the truthful and just action and by not worrying what other people thought. This example can be related to Socrates in the Crito. As mentioned before, Socrates told his friend not to worry about what others thought and to make the just decision. The unjust individual worries about other's opinion and may not be truthful to please others, but the just individual does the truthful and just act and does not care about the opinion of others.

The just individual has the power of honesty to overcome the force of circumstances. For example, a woman had a friend who was going to make a big investment error and lose thousands of dollars. However, the friend was very excited about the opportunity and did not see the investment is a scam. Even though the friend is excited about the investment and thought that this opportunity was going to make her rich, the woman took her aside and told her that the investment was a scam and not to invest in it. This disappointed the friend, but caused her friend to see that the investment was bogus. Both the woman and the friend were better off in the long run. This example can be related to Socrates in the Apology. As mentioned before, Socrates told the people to scold their children if they let worldly influences overcome goodness. As shown in the example, the just individual overcomes the force of circumstances of the possibly of making her friend mad by being truthful to her friend. The unjust individual in this situation would not be able to be honest with her friend, thus hurting both the unjust individual and the friend.

The just individual has the ability to not get involved in worldly affairs. For example, an employee in a large company cheats and takes advantage of others to get to the top of his career. He only cares about how much money he makes and how many possessions he acquires throughout his lifetime. This example can be related to Socrates in the Apology. As stated before, Socrates did not care about acquiring worldly possessions, but only cared about being just be practicing philosophy. As shown in the example, the unjust individual was unable to overcome the force of circumstances because he cared more about world possessions than he did about being just to his company and co-workers. The just individual in this situation would not care about money and worldly possessions and would work their way to the top honestly.

In conclusion, Socrates proves that the just individual reacts to the force of circumstances better than the unjust individual. The force of circumstances is a range of many issues that everyone deals with throughout daily life. The just individual uses wisdom and knowledge to make the proper decision and does not allow the force of circumstances to overpower him or her. However, the unjust individual is ignorant and, therefore, does not have the power to make the proper decision, thus causing the force of circumstances to overpower him or her. The just individual is also honest, fearless of other's actions or opinions, and has the ability not to get concerned with worldly affairs to help them fight the force of circumstances. These characteristics of the just individual helps the individual overcome the force of circumstances, both in Socrates's time and in modern society.

The matters that are discussed in this paper are important because they can be applied to everyday life. Every day in the world, people are either resisting the force of circumstances or giving into the force of circumstances. The characteristics discussed in this paper help distinguish what exactly causes someone to resist or give into the force of circumstances. Understanding the characteristics of the just individual can help an individual improve his or her reactions to the force of circumstances, thus making the individual a better person.

Resources

Plato, and Benjamin Jowett. The Portable Plato. New York: Penguin, 1979. Print.