Laws (Book VI) by Plato
This post is part of my journey through the classic texts of Western civilization.
"if a well-ordered city superadd to good laws unsuitable offices, not only will there be no use in having the good laws,—not only will they be ridiculous and useless, but the greatest political injury and evil will accrue from them."
In this book, the Stranger discusses the various offices and the electoral processes to determine those who will occupy them. The procedures are somewhat complicated and not worth spending too much time discussing.
The Stranger makes an interesting observation of equality. He says that there are two types of equality. One equality is the one that is easy for people to accept, and that essentially posits the equal treatment of all. The other type of equality is "a better and higher kind, which is not so easily recognized." This is essentially treating each man according to his character. To the greater, more is given; to the lesser, less is given. Each man is given what he is due, and the key here is to recognize some men are due more according to their virtue. Plato links this type of equality to justice, which hearkens back to his discussion on justice in Republic, where he views the just city as that in which men do that to which their respective natures are fitted.
The Stranger having already demonstrated the importance of choosing good civil rulers now stresses the importance of having a suitable body of law. No matter how good and fitting a body of law may be initially, though, The Stranger recognizes the need to modify the law. Circumstances change, new factors get introduced, certain laws may fail to prove themselves good against the test of time and real experience. For this reason, it is important that the civil rulers not merely have the ability to uphold and guard the law but also to legislate well.
Eventually, the discussion shifts to that concerning marriage and childrearing. The Stranger expounds on various laws concerning who citizens should marry, at what age, etc. After one such assertion on how people should not marry those who are similar to them, The Stranger makes a point on how such a law prohibiting certain marriages "may awaken anger as well as laughter in the minds of many," and so there ought to be no law on this but rather the art of persuasion should be used. I find it interesting to see Plato's concern for the practical and prudential arise here once more as it did at the end of the last book; there The Stranger recognized an ideal state might not be possible, and thus a legislator ought to use prudence to implement laws that will not draw too much ire from citizens.
"Let this then be our exhortation concerning marriage, and let us remember what was said before—that a man should cling to immortality, and leave behind him children's children to be the servants of God in his place for ever."