Introduction to the Excerpts
This document contains four different excerpts from Plato's Republic. Each of them deals with the role and lifestyle of the Guardians in the Ideal city. Education the Guardians (pp. 13) (376c (381e) You will find the line numbers on the left side of the left page and right side of the right page. They indicate where the reading starts and ends. This section concerns the education of the Guardians. They are to be given a very specific form of education. The Emergence of the Rulers (pp.46) (412b 417b) From the class of Guardians a new ruler class emerges. This section also discusses the division of the citizens into four general classes according to their abilities. Wealth and Poverty (p. 7) (421d 421e) Socrates recommends that extremes of wealth and poverty must be eliminated from the society. The Guardians and Sex Relations (pp. 812) (454d 462c) Socrates argues for holding wives in common, major changes in child rearing, eugenics and other radical reforms.