Political Thought Changes
The study of western political thought has endured a drastic change
throughout
the centuries. This shift occurred through the queries of ancient
philosophical
minds such as Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and St. Augustine.
Two examples of
great importance are the inequality of gender and the role of
power distributed
and issued within the state. Plato believed all people, men
and women alike are
created equal; this notion runs parallel to our modern
day Constitution. He
states "if we are to set women to the same tasks as men,
we must teach them
the same things," they must endure "training for the mind
and body and also
be taught the art of war" (149). Plato developed a role
known as a guardian or
a soldier to protect over the people. He relates this
to the fact that if
watchdogs can be both male and female why can’t
guardians. Aristotle is known
as Plato’s greatest pupil. He was strongly
influenced by the teachings of
Plato but was also known for ridiculing
some of his ways. His view of women is
drastically different from those of
Plato. By nature, he says, women are to be
dominated by men. Aristotle refers
to women as imperfect men. He acknowledges
that women can possess reason, but
can not obtain the same stature as men.
Aristotle believes the only
purpose that women serve is to provide matter for
the child and the men
provide the form. His ideas of form and matter are very
different from that
of Plato, since his beliefs are void of matter holding only
form as the
essence behind life. The beginning of Stoic philosophy formed a
totally
different view on the idea of equality. Equality was no longer devised
with
respects to a community in the whole, but rather as individuals. The
Stoics
developed a system consisting of three classes. Everyone within each
particular
class was considered equals. They were strong followers of the
concept of
natural law, which meant both men and women can reason. Their
reasoning was
treated in the same respects no matter what gender; this
statement is very
different from that of Aristotle. Zeno, the founder of the
Stoics, believed in
the notion of brotherhood among all, men and women alike.
St. Augustine took the
Stoics ideas of equality one step further. His
views pertain to that of the
Christian approach. Augustine believed that
people were all equals within the
City of God. Spiritually women were
identical to men, but physically they shared
many differences. This idea of
equality holds true even to present day. These
paragraphs demonstrate a
tremendous change in the equality of women within
society. Another example
that was greatly impacted by these time periods was the
change in the role of
power distributed and issued within the state. Plato held
the belief of the
philosopher king. He believed to ensure the ideal state"either philosophers
(were to) become kings in their countries or those who
are now called kings
and rulers come to be sufficiently inspired with a desire
for wisdom" (179).
Plato believed only the wise could execute proper justice.
A just city is
an ideal city for Plato, one in which the philosopher was in
total control.
Aristotle’s views greatly differ from Plato’s. Aristotle
believed that each
individual in their self made the polis. He compares having
only one person
as a "hand" (112) without a body, put that hand with the
rest of the body and
it can work to its fullest potential. This describes
individuals working as a
whole to better the polis. By including all citizens
Aristotle believed
he had created the ideal city. During the time of the Stoics,
many important
philosophers gave their opinions about the issues of authority
within the
state. As stated previously, Zeno was a strong believer of the
brotherhood
among all. The Stoics notion of natural law granted all people
within the
state, of any class, to be offered the ability to share their opinion
of
government. Another philosopher, Polibius, agreed with Aristotle’s concept
of
mixed constitution. Government was gradually moving away from the days
of
Plato. Augustine defined the Christian rule of the Church over state.
In order
to have the ideal government, Augustine believed law should
co-relate to that of
the Church. He believed firstly that the state should
promote peace and
prosperity among the people. Secondly, that it should
reflect only true
religion. Lastly, the government should work to establish
commonly accepted
rules for acquiring the necessities of life. God has
doctrine over man,
therefore; he has doctrine over state. After much reading
for this report, I
realized the major impact these philosophers have had both
in equality and state
over the nations of today. This shows that at one time
certain governments or
rights were at there prime, but as time progresses
things change. One thing will
always remain and that is the impact of
religion over society.