Monique Divivier

4/1/2014
Plato and Aristotle
While two of the most prevalent names in the history of political theory may be
found in every aspect of our modern lives in one-way or another, their philosophies and
opinions regarding aspects such as the human way of life create major contrasts. Both
philosophers utilize the services of the world to serve their purpose. On one hand, there
is Plato the man set on the idea of a utopian society, and on the other, there is Aristotle
one who realizes the practicality of perfection accomplished by nature. It is the role of
man in achieving the ultimate good that must be accomplished in order for the most
clear comparisons and contrasts to be discovered, and it is there where the goals of Plato
and Aristotle can be achieved.
Plato, a Greek man born around 428 BC, was the student of Socrates, a major
founder of Western philosophy. In 399 BC, Socrates was sent to his death on charges of
corrupting the youth, Plato being one of the biggest names involved with the
corruption. The death of Socrates became a major turning point in his life, and from
there, Plato set off in search of a perfect world. When it comes to the body and soul of
mankind, Platos belief is that the core of the soul of a man is where the spirit lies. It is
an eternal, immaterial part of the body composed of reason, spirit, and appetite, and is
capable of reincarnation after death from one body to another. The body, therefore, is
merely a prison to the soul, filled with distractions and negative possibilities.
Then, there is Aristotle, a man born around 384 BC. He was the student of Plato
and despite the fact that his teacher was set on a utopian world, Aristotle maintained a
much more practical and scientific outlook on achieving happiness.

Where Plato

suggests that the soul is the essential being of man, Aristotle takes on a more scientific

Monique Divivier
4/1/2014
point of view.

He sees humankind as rational beings animated by dynamic

organizational principles. Rather then the soul being an eternal part of the universe, it
comes and goes as an inseparable part of the body, although the highest level of soul
(nous) is immaterial and so may allow for some kind of continued existence.
In The Republic, Plato lays out a blueprint for what he believes to be the ultimate
utopian society. The Republic is where Plato creates the plans to perfect society with no
background and no concrete issues, while Aristotle is merely the philosopher who is on
the search for a way to merely improve the society that is already there. One of the most
important aspects of Platos perfect world is the separation of humans through different
class systems. There are the non-ruling Guardians, those who are a higher level of civil
servants, and the ruling Guardians, the societys policy makers. Lastly, there are the
Workers, those who take part in labor such as farming. Each of these classes is essential
in keeping the Utopia running.
The Guardians are actually extremely important in the eyes of Plato.

They

contain all of the traits required of a good human being loyalty, wisdom, skill, and
goodness. Their spirited temperament makes them perfect for the job, and they are
knowledgeable about what is best for everybody in society. In contrast, Aristotle clearly
maintains a disagreement, especially in terms of the importance placed on the Guardians.
Suppose somebody from the working class had managed to gain more knowledge than a
ruling Guardian? The world could possibly lose out on a great mind and never even be
aware of it because of the immobility set in place by Platos hierarchical structure.
Additionally, the experience that a working class citizen has likely varies from that of the

Monique Divivier
4/1/2014
ruling Guardian, and therefore may have a different outlook on things in terms of what is
and what is not good.
Another opposition that Aristotle has to Platos utopia is that in this perfect world,
the Guardians are deprived of many emotional necessities such as love and happiness.
The strict world that these Guardians live in will inevitably be passed down through the
rules that they create, ultimately causing an unhappy life for an entire society. It is clear
that Plato has a very low opinion of what the human conscious and mind is capable of
and, therefore, sets restrictions on everybody in order to maintain a society in which there
are no hard problems such as war and genocide, but in doing so, his way would create a
mass wave of depression and hatred. With Aristotle, a human is capable of so much
more and therefore is allowed a significant amount more free will and that the people of
the society should have a say in what goes on, similar to a democracy.
Without either of these two legendary philosophers, the basis of many great minds
would be gone. Both Plato and Aristotle had set out to change the world with extremely
progressive thinking for their time. Although their minds went in different directions and
came up with very different solutions, they were on a mission to make their world and the
world of the people around them a better place. Neither of them slacked on what they
thought to be the best thing for society, and they are therefore major inspirations for
political scientists over the centuries since.

Monique Divivier
4/1/2014
Works Cited
"Comparison of Plato and Aristotle's Political Theories." Novelguide. N.p., n.d. Web. 01
Apr. 2014.
Kaushik, Nimisha. "Difference Between Aristotle and Plato." Difference Between. N.p., 3
Jan. 2012. Web. 01 Apr. 2014.
"Man Knowledge: The Greek Philosophers." The Art of Manliness. N.p., 4 Feb. 2010.
Web. 01 Apr. 2014.
"Plato and Aristotle." TABLE. N.p., 28 Oct. 2012. Web. 01 Apr. 2014.