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INTRODUCTION
GENERAL OUTLINE
DETAILED OUTLINE
KEY TERMS
ANSWERS TO “QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION AND REVIEW”
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
ESSAY QUESTIONS
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS
ONLINE SELF-ASSESSMENT TOOL
SUGGESTED READING
Introduction
This chapter examines thoughts on leadership from a historical context, beginning
with the views of the Greeks and continuing through a discussion of the views of Thomas
Hobbes and John Locke. Why are the views of pre-industrial theorists important? As we
progress on our journey to form our own conception of leadership, we can learn from the
ideas of philosophers throughout the ages, whose thoughts on leadership continue to
shape the modern debate.
General Outline
Detailed Outline
Homer's The Iliad, written during the time of the Trojan War, examines leadership
through the depiction and analysis of a warrior. The warrior is distinguished from the
farmer by virtue of his serving a different function. Different characters in this text
represent different components of the ideal warrior. Writes Werner Jaeger, "the ideal of
decisive action and physical prowess belongs to Ajax, cunning and warrior's guile to
Odysseus, the unity of both of these qualities, as well as the possession of many other
attributes belonging to the ideal warrior, are found in Achilles."
Plato’s Republic – Ideal Leader in the Ideal City
Plato's views were unlike earlier approaches in that they were not driven by wars
or other external threats. His focus was on morality and politics. In describing the
political status quo, Plato's fundamental premise was that it is human nature to be self-
interested. Citizens can be divided into those who are strong and those who are weak.
Those who are strong take advantage of opportunities and obey the law only when they
fear the consequences of being caught. Leaders are the people who possess strength,
cunning, and the ability to cultivate a believable facade that they are looking out for the
interests of others. The public is thus duped into trusting the leader and believing that the
leader is looking out for them, but ultimately the leader is only looking out for himself.
Plato's ideal leader is thus one who is able to rise above these tendencies and act for the
benefit of the whole.
While Plato tended to see leadership qualities as innate, Socrates was more of the
view that, through the proper education, one can gain the wisdom needed to become a
leader. This wisdom was not the sort of wisdom used in day-to-day decisions, but rather
was the wisdom "about the city as a whole and the betterment of its relations with itself
and other states."
The other primary distinction between Socrates and Plato concerns the role of the
leader. To Socrates, the leader most closely resembled a physician, in that the leader
possesses special knowledge or skills from which the populace can benefit. Plato views
the ideal leader as a person with rare intellectual qualities who is able to act as a
harmonizer and as an improver of those whom he or she leads.
St. Thomas Aquinas lived in the thirteenth century, an era dominated by the
Church. Accordingly, leadership theory at that time was linked to the notion of a
hierarchical structure, with God resting at the top. This view was developed and
articulated by early Christian authors such as Augustine, Anselm, and Bonaventure.
Aquinas's primary contribution was to integrate these ideas with the newly-recovered
works of Aristotle. His "ideal monarch" was a person who best represented the virtues of
the divine: namely, a concern for the quality of life and the virtue of one's subjects. The
"ideal monarch" is the embodiment of the highest standards and serves to inspire those
subjects who are loyal to him to reach a higher level of happiness and being.
Thomas Hobbes and John Locke lived during an era of great political upheaval in
England, both domestically and abroad. Accordingly, their views on leadership were
shaped by an emphasis on legitimate and effective political leadership.
Thomas Hobbes
In Leviathan Hobbes described the natural human condition as being in a state c: war.
Drawing on the works of Galileo and Descartes, he envisioned humans as being in
constant motion in the political world, frequently clashing in an attempt to obtain power
Civil war is seen as the inevitable consequence when a leader is not in control.
Hobbes' solution is found in his Laws of Nature. These laws are based on a
contractual agreement made between members of a society to put aside self-interest in
order to create a peaceful society. The effective leader is thus one who is able to instill
sufficient fear in the populace so that they will resist their self-interested tendencies and
obey the contract.
John Locke
While Hobbes's Laws of Nature are based on reason and rationality, Locke points
out that people are not always reasonable or rational. Locke promotes a system of
government where the executive is subordinate to the legislature. The ideal leader is seen
as one who is able to facilitate participation in major decisions and as one who can
implement decisions made by the legislature. The leader is thus a moderator, £ protector
of rights.
Leadership Profiles
Gandhi was, and still is, respected as one of the greatest leaders of his time. His
ideas have influenced several other leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr. The people
of India called him Mahatma (great soul) and Bapu (Father). He was willing to stand by
his beliefs in withstanding severe criticism, jail time, even physical illness, and was ready
to face death rather than give up his ideals. He was truly the father of Indian
independence.
Key Terms
Ideal leader: The definition of the ideal leader has prompted much thought and debate
throughout history. All of the theorists mentioned in this chapter have weighed in on this
issue, drawing their inspiration from war, politics, philosophy, religion, and capitalism,
among others. This topic is still hotly debated today, with every person having his own
conception of an "ideal leader."
Socrates: Socrates was Plato's mentor and contemporary. Socrates believed that the truly
wise leader was most interested in cultivating the potential of his followers. He used the
metaphor of a physician tending to the sick. The physician possesses special knowledge
and talents and then uses this knowledge to benefit the rest of the society.
Forms: These are defined by Plato as the abstract ideas which are carriers of universal
and immutable truth. According to Plato and Socrates, these ideas can only be accessed
by learned persons who possess inborn wisdom combined with education in mathematics
and philosophy.
Thomas Hobbes: Hobbes viewed humans as possessing a native desire for power and
viewed the natural human condition as one of universal war. These power drives will
doom a society to conflict and turmoil unless there is a strong government authority and
set of laws to maintain order. His solution is for citizens to form a social contract (Laws
of Nature) whereby citizens agree to seek peace and put aside their selfish concerns in
order to benefit the society as a whole. The role of the leader in this society is to
sufficient fear in the populace, so that they do not break this contract in order to power.
1. What are some of Plato's views on the nature of human beings and the characteristics
of the ideal leader?
Plato views people living in the "political status quo" as being primarily
motivated by self-interest. "Strong" individuals take advantage of situations that can
increase their status, wealth, etc., while "weak" individuals abide by the laws and do not
always look out for themselves first- In this view, the "ideal leader" would possess the
characteristics of strength, cunning, and the ability to cultivate a believable facade. In
contrast, ideal leaders in his ideal city would be persons who have a combination of
inborn leadership traits and acquired wisdom. These leaders would love unchanging truth,
hate untruth, be moderate with money, neither petty nor mean, would not fear death and
have a good memory.
3. How did Thomas Aquinas's work contribute lo our understanding of leadership? What
characteristics did he attribute to the "ideal leader"?
Perhaps Aquinas's most notable accomplishment was the integration of the ideas
of Aristotle (which had previously been suppressed) into the predominant Christian
philosophy. He wrote, "the king...is to be in the kingdom what the soul is in the body,
and what God is in the world." His "ideal leader" serves as a moral and spiritual role
model for the populace, embodying virtue and working to cultivate virtue in his subjects.
4 What are the "Laws of Nature" and how are they beneficial, according to Hobbes?
The Laws of Nature call for people to put aside their selfish interests and join in
an agreement whereby individual liberties may be restricted in order to maintain peace.
Having lived in a particularly turbulent era of England's history, Hobbes believed that it
was human nature to be driven toward power and that the best way to avoid civil war was
to enter a societal contract, enforced by a strong leader, not to pursue individual goals at
the expense of others.
5. How do Hobbes and Locke differ in terms of their views on the amount of control
people have over their lives?
Hobbes and Locke both envision leadership as involving keeping the peace
among the populace. However, Hobbes takes a more cynical view as to how much
control people have over their own lives. He sees a "natural" drive for power which is so
strong in people that the leader must resort to fear in order to keep these power drives in
check. Locke, however, believes that people are more in control of their lives and thus
leaders do not need as much direct involvement in maintaining order. The leader's role is
to ensure that people's rights are being respected. Beyond that, the leader should let
people manage their own affairs.
6. How are the views of each of the individuals presented in this chapter reflective of the
culture and historical time period in which they lived?
This question has no right or wrong answer and is also included as one of the
recommended essay questions for this chapter. Each of the theorists discussed in this
chapter was both shaped by and a changer of history. For example, would Hobbes have
viewed people's inherit tendencies to be warlike if he had not lived in an era of civic and
political turmoil in England? To what extent were Machiavelli”; views shaped by the
mercantile values of the Renaissance and vice-versa? Strong answers to this question
will attempt to place the view of each theorist in its historical context.
1. Which of the following is not a characteristic ascribed to the ideal warrior (Achilles),
as represented by Homer in The Iliad?
a. cunning
b. morality
c. decisive action
d. physical prowess
Answer: b
Answer: a
Answer: d
4. In describing a "truly wise leader," Socrates compares the role of this leader to the role
of a(n):
a. manager
b. administrator
c. physician
d. lawyer
Answer: c
5. Whose previously suppressed ideas were used by Aquinas to expand upon the
prevailing Christian Platonism?
a. Caesar
b. Socrates
c. Alexander the Great
d. Aristotle
Answer: d
Answer: b
Answer: a
8. Mary Smith is a manager who always seems able to anticipate situations and bring
them under her control. At times, her employees find her to be ruthless. At other times,
she is seen as tender. She best exemplifies the qualities of an effective leader suggested
by which of the following?
a. Aquinas
b. Conger
c. Machiavelli
d. Locke
Answer: c
9. The person who is identified with the belief that human beings are like material bodies
in motion, with a native desire for power is:
a. Machiavelli
b. Socrates
c. Hobbes
d. Plato
Answer: c
10. When the founding fathers of the United States organized a government based on the
structure of a strong legislature responsible for enacting legislation balanced by an
executive branch whose responsibility it was to enforce legislation, they were following a
tradition laid out in this textbook by:
a. Locke
b. Plato
c. Caesar
d. Hobbes
Answer: a
Essay Questions
2. How are the views of each of the individuals presented in this chapter reflective of the
culture and historical time period in which they lived?
Teaching Suggestions
How would Plato, Socrates, Hobbes, and Locke describe President Bush, or any
contemporary leader? Ask the class to debate this issue in groups of four with each
student role playing one of these philosophers.
An alternative is to ask these groups to discuss how corporate (or military or
church) leaders function in our society. They might also debate the leadership styles of
the two people profiled in the chapter. (Machiavelli, Gandhi)
Suggested Reading