Status Updates From The Republic

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Book VIII: This one might be my favorite so far. Just based on a bit of recency bias. This one goes over concepts of government transition, Oligarchy to Democracy to Tyranny. While the positioning of it is definitely an older framing, a lot of the broader concepts and even some of the more intricate ones are remarkably applicable to events of today as well.

It took me an hour to get through 26 pages because I’m trying to read this as carefully as possible. I’ll see you guys when I’m 37.

“and then Socrates will do as he always does — refuse to answer himself, but take and pull to pieces the answer of someone else.” I behave so much like Socrates but not maliciously or pretentiously. I also go around asking questions and not providing an answer because I do not know. If I knew, I wouldn’t be asking. But I’m not lying, is the difference.

“And so, you and Homer and Simonides are agreed that justice is an art of theft; to be practised however “for the good of friends and for the harm of enemies,” — that was what you were saying?” I think I agree with this, that justice is an art of theft. When justice is served, the punished have essentially been stripped of the freedom of choice — they’re jailed, forced to pay or return a debt, etc.

kinda in a reading slump because of exams but i’ll read more after this week