TED Talks · Level C2 Mixing

Plato’s infamous Ship of State thought experiment

Imagine a ship struggling in an endless storm. Its captain, though strong and commanding, is a terrible navigator.

Level: C2 · 61 sentences

Transcript

  1. Imagine a ship struggling in an endless storm.
  2. Its captain, though strong and commanding, is a terrible navigator.
  3. Neither he nor his crew have been trained to sail,
  4. yet they relentlessly vie for control through bribery, flattery, and even mutiny.
  5. In the crow's nest sits a true navigator.
  6. But her knowledge of the stars, winds, and seasons is dismissed by the crew below.
  7. This dysfunctional vessel is the Ship of State -
  8. a thought experiment devised by Plato to illustrate his frustration with democracy.
  9. Specifically, the kind of democracy practiced in Athens from the 5th to 4th centuries BCE.
  10. Unlike the forms of representative democracy practiced today,
  11. where voters elect representatives to enact legislation on their behalf,
  12. Athenians used a type of direct democracy.
  13. While Athenian jurors and most officials were selected by lottery rather than election,
  14. every law was voted on directly by the citizens of Athens.
  15. Specifically, free men born to Athenian parents -
  16. women, foreigners, and enslaved individuals had no voting power.
  17. Plato thought this system was destined for ruin.
  18. And despite the many differences between Athens' government and modern representative democracies,
  19. many of his fears still ring true today.
  20. One of Plato's two major concerns with direct democracy was its vulnerability to charismatic public speakers.
  21. Since laws were voted on in the Assembly, confident orators could sway public opinion for their own benefit.
  22. In fact, this kind of speech was considered so powerful
  23. a class of paid tutors called sophists emerged to educate wealthy families in the art of persuasion.
  24. As a result, Plato felt democracy rewarded the strongest speakers,
  25. not those with true political expertise aimed at public welfare.
  26. His second concern was democracy's obsession with freedom.
  27. In the "Republic," he outlined how the "license to do whatever one wants" would lead people to prioritize their own desires over the common good.
  28. In the short term, Plato believed this would weaken societal cohesion and erode respect for the rule of law.
  29. But in the long term, he worried this ever-increasing chaos would lead to a backlash -
  30. a yearning for order that would make people vulnerable to a charismatic leader promising stability at the cost of liberty.
  31. In Plato's opinion, all democratic systems were doomed to eventually elect a silver-tongued tyrant
  32. who exploits the very freedoms that made democracy possible.
  33. Plato's early solutions to these problems, including handing power to elite philosopher kings, leave much to be desired.
  34. But in his final work, "The Laws,"
  35. Plato combined democracy and monarchy into a new system he hoped would be stable and enduring.
  36. To explain his idea, Plato docked his unruly Ship of State
  37. and created a new model: the city of Magnesia.
  38. In this imaginary land, everything is designed to counteract the issues of direct democracy,
  39. while empowering citizens to be morally and politically engaged.
  40. Instead of leaving citizens vulnerable to smooth talkers, Magnesia weaves persuasion directly into its laws.
  41. Each law is paired with a "prelude" that outlines the logic behind the law
  42. and connects it to shared societal values.
  43. For example, Plato feared that false beliefs about the gods would undermine justice.
  44. So in Magnesia, atheism and impiety are illegal.
  45. But rather than relying solely on the fear of punishment to prevent these crimes,
  46. the laws against them contain philosophical arguments
  47. designed to convince citizens to adhere to Magnesia's official religion.
  48. Moral education is everywhere in Magnesia,
  49. and it's designed to instill shared responsibility.
  50. This way, citizens can retain the individual freedom they value under democracy,
  51. but their personal goals are more likely to align with the common good.
  52. Even so, Plato still recommends safeguards against corruption.
  53. Many of Magnesia's most powerful positions are held collectively rather than individually.
  54. And strict regulations on buying and selling land prevent wealth from pooling in the pockets of an elite minority.
  55. Obviously, Magnesia is far from perfect.
  56. Plato's educational regime is borderline cultish,
  57. and its constitution requires extremely time-consuming civic engagement from every citizen.
  58. Then again, creating an ideal society probably would take time, attention, and education.
  59. Your perfect world might not look like Plato's,
  60. but it will likely require a serious commitment from its citizens
  61. to guide their Ship of State to a brighter horizon.