The political and paideutic function of pleasure in Plato's philosophy

Abstract

In this paper, I explore the educational and political dimensions of pleasure in Plato's philosophy. The main texts analysed are the Republic and the Laws. Plato shows clearly the significant role that pleasure plays both in individual human lives (from birth to death) and in society. Importantly, this makes it possible to judge the moral condition of both the individual and the state, and to philosophically justify this judgement.