Tending the flock or fleecing the sheep : debating the ideal leader in Plato's Republic / Daniel Silvermintz.
This case examines the philosophical dispute found in Plato's Republic about the ideal leader. Plato challenges his readers to think through the logic of two rival positions represented by the philosopher Socrates and the rhetorician Thrasymachus. Affirming a relativistic conception of ethics,...
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| Format: | Ebook |
| Language: | English |
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London :
SAGE Publications: SAGE Business Cases Originals,
2022.
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| Series: | SAGE Business cases
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | SAGE |
| Summary: | This case examines the philosophical dispute found in Plato's Republic about the ideal leader. Plato challenges his readers to think through the logic of two rival positions represented by the philosopher Socrates and the rhetorician Thrasymachus. Affirming a relativistic conception of ethics, Thrasymachus contends that leaders always enact policies to serve their own interests. Rather than condemning self-serving leaders, Thrasymachus counsels his students to realize their own interests by assuming ruling positions in order to be beyond the law. Socrates vehemently opposes Thrasymachus' relativism with the contentions that justice has a transcendent existence and that equitable actions ensure the health of both individuals and states. After weighing the merits of both positions, readers of the case must decide for themselves whether to act for the greater good or to advance their own self-interest. |
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| Physical Description: | 1 online resource. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN: | 9781529605068 1529605067 |