Category: Writers Block
In the dialogue of Gorgia, Socrates Challenges Polus a student of oratory who studies under gorgia whether tyrants have most or least powers. Furthermore, he challenges him on whether polus thinks they do what they do based on what they want or what they see fit. Socrates believes that because men who rule or practice ruling spend so much time doing what is fit or rather what needs to be done at the time, he does not keep consistent what he wishes or achieves anything he wants at all. Thus, he has no power. Socrates summarizes his arguments by saying “SO, what I was saying is true, when I said that it is possible for a man who does in his city what he sees fit not to have great power, nor to be doing what he wants.” (226).. he reasons this point, starting on page 223 with polus and he talks about power first.
He reasons, since a tyrant must keep order and reign over his people as in killing certain people or executes them for being unlawful citizens or take land from others or exile others. A tyrant is constantly doing what actions is appropriate at the time, so as Socrates states the tyrants , “do just about nothing they want to, though they certainly do whatever they see most fit
to do.” (223). Most people do not want these things they merely do it to try to get to the result they want, such as consuming medications in order to restore health or in a rulers case such as execute those who are unjust and causes harm to others. Neither medicines nor execution is what anyone would say they wanted. So he poses the question to Polus in this context and asks him, “Do you think that when people do something, they want the thing they're doing at the time, or the thing for the sake of which they do what they're doing?” (224). However some tyrants are unintelligent and so to do what is fit is what they probably want, such as seizing land, exiling people, and killing unjustly. Thus in this context Socrates proposes the question to Polus for his response by inquiring, “Do you think it's good, then, if a person does whatever he sees
most fit to do when he lacks intelligence? Do you call this "having great
power” (223). To have Polus realize what was the difference between what was appropriate to do at the time and what someone wants a result to be Socrates makes a variety of analogys such as the intermediate step would be to recover by consuming medications for good health and to have financial management to not be impoverished. So in this context Socrates asks Polus this: “Now whenever people do things, do they do these intermediate things for the sake of good ones, or the good things for the sake of the intermediate ones?” (225). He goes on to prove that we do these things for the good and the results they want and not the other way around because in that case it wouldn’t make any sense and Polus agrees with Socrates. He follows up with “Hence, it's for the sake of what's good that those who do all these things do them” (225). Then he goes on to reason that good and just things are the only ones which are correct and right, because doing harm to people is not correct and will not make you happy, and Polus agrees with him. “we want to do these things if they are beneficial, but if they're harmful we don't. For we want the things that are good, as you agree, and we don't want those that are neither good nor bad, nor those that are bad” (225). Socrates then goes on to say if he’s not doing good things only good according to him and harms others and it is only short term good, to make him happy at the moment it is not good at all in fact. He reasons withPolus, “he supposes that doing so is better for himself when actually it's worse, this person, I take it, is doing what he sees fit, isn't he?” (225). Socrates then continues to reason that because this is all but bad and not very just, that he is not any power at the least and in fact the weakest man in the city. He concludes this conversation before he summarizes it and they move on in terms of topic by inquiring, “Can such a man possibly have great power in that city, if in fact having great power is, as you agree, something good?” (225)