Plato (427-347 BC) was born into a prominent Athenian family and was very close to his teacher Socrates who was democratically condemned to death -this can partly explain Plato's anger against this form of government. In the Republic he describes his ideal human society ruled by philosophers. I will focus firstly on his conception of a well-ruled state then on the existence of a ruling skill and finally on the philosophers' virtues that make them …showed first 75 words of 1328 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1328 total…A. (2003). "Plato" article in Oxford Concise Dictionary of Politics, 2nd edition (2003), p. 405. Oxford: Oxford University Press * Nettleship, R. (1951). Lectures on Plato's Republic. London: Macmillan * Plato, (1998). The Republic. Oxford: Oxford world's classic * Roberts, P. and Sutch, P. (2004). An Introduction to Political Thought: A Conceptual Toolkit. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press * Stevenson, L. and Haberman, D (1998). Ten Theories of Human Nature, 3rd edition (1998). Oxford: Oxford University Press * Wolff, J. (1996). An introduction to Political Philosophy. Oxford: Oxford University Press