Happiness within the State Essays - Emotions,

Happiness within the State With Adeimantuss idea aimed towards Socrates that the people of the city are not happy Socrates reminds Adeimantus of how the goal of the State is to establish a perfect city based on justice, not happiness or pleasure. The idea that the State, as a whole, will be happy based on the system of justice the two have created for the city. The question of justice could be an opinion in and of itself. The goal (as Socrates states) is for the city to be happy as a whole. If happiness for the whole is negligent of happiness for a select few then where is the justice. Essentially the State would have to exist as utopian idea of perfect morality. By the creation of the guardians as the declassified rulers possibly this State they have created is exact to the relation of the gods and mortals. Furthering back to Euthyphro, are not the gods examples of guardians in correlation of piety? With this in mind the argument against Socrates resolve that the happiness of the State as a whole might not be the result of justice. If the State is happy as a whole would there not be any need for justice within the State? If, in accordance with the State created, all classes commit to their duties then is that being just or simply finding contentment within their life. If an individual is born to a contractor and as the State dictates the importance of full commitment to his duty then he will be a contractor as well. So the individual grows and is trained to be a contractor. He works and receives food and shelter to live and the tools/materials needed to due his job. His contribution to the State adds to the happiness as a whole. But is he happy because of what he does or simply that what he does contributes to the happiness of the State. If the latter of the two is correct and is how justice within the State is to defined then where do all the contributions go? Who is happy as a result of the contributions? Going back to the guardians, are they to be presumably the happiest of the State? Possibly the happiness of the State as a whole is a result of the duty of its citizens in accordance with justice. Well if guardians live by justice than how can they dutifully be the leaders of a State in which each class only lives and dies within its own specific duty which is goal for the State to be happy as a whole?