Isn’t sacrificing personal happiness for a just city injustice in itself? -Plato’s Republic

Which form of governance is the best in our day and age? Socrates’ stages of political degeneration can broadly be classified into three groups: the power of few (oligarchy and timocracy), power of many (democracy), and power of one (tyranny). The purpose of this essay is to use real-world examples to see which form of government is the most common and to see if it follows these stages of degeneration. 

Socrates' first stage of degeneration and most similar to Socrates’ just city is the power of few. Power is centralized and decision making is quick and efficient as it doesn’t involve the populous. It allows people to participate in their own activities and their career. The rulers will also want to maintain power hence won’t make any radical changes that steer society into risky ventures. That said, the ruling class ends up with more wealth than the rest of society and it is tough for people to enter the ruling class. When they realize this, it can cause a war, as seen in the South African Apartheid. It also limits the diversity of perspectives and has low citizen representation. As argued in Book IV, when a ruler makes a constitutional compromise to pursue their own needs, such as acquiring private property and wealth, it goes against Socrates’ definition of a just city. Socrates argues that the rulers can’t own land or handle gold or silver as they will be tempted to pursue their own interests leading to an oligarchy.

Socrates' next stage of degeneration falls under my classification of power of many. In 507 B.C., Athens introduced a system of ruling known as democracy. With a decentralized governmental power, this form of ruling promotes equality and encourages partisan involvement. Constitutional checks and balances allow for stronger law enforcement, limiting corruption. It also has higher diversity representation, as needed in countries with higher levels of diversity like India or the United Kingdom. That said, it requires high candidate knowledge and a high voter initiative. It is costly as decision making is not time efficient. In Book VIII, Socrates argues that a large socio-economic divide will lead to upheaval and reformation in the state of ruling to a democracy.

The final stage of degeneration is a tyrannical state. With one person in power, decision making is a swift process and for them to exercise control, they often create harsh punishments and consequences, leading to a large drop in crime rates, as seen in North Korea. This form of government is not at all representative hence will rarely meet the needs of all. It is also a position of power that is often and can easily be exploited. In Book IX, Socrates argues that freedom will be such an important thing to the citizens of that city that they will neglect the up keeping of the city. Drones, or those with lawless desires, will instigate tension between the classes of the society causing the democratic state of ruling to be overthrown. With one leader ruling based on their desires, the city will fall into a tyrannical state.

A simple Google search and the first Wikipedia link will give you a list of 60+ countries that transitioned from a dictatorship, often a monarchy, to a democracy (like Egypt, England, and Indonesia), disproving Socrates’ argument that democracy leads to a tyrannical state. A world-famous example of this would be Adolf Hitler's regime. After coming into power with promises of socio-economic growth, the mass genocide of Jews leading to World War II led Germany and other involved States to convert to a democratic form of leadership.

With almost 85% of countries under this political system, a democracy most commonly perceived as the best and most ethical form of ruling. Is this the final stage? The People’s Republic of China started off following Mao’s New Democracy, before converting to an oligarchy. China has one of the highest growing GDP’s and is the highest exporter of all the nations. With the highest population and its strong power relation with other countries, it would be ignorant to say that China won’t be a big influencer in future decisions and that their political system doesn’t play a role in their position as a UN Super Power. Several scholars argue that the overlap between the wealthy and the politically powerful renders the United States of America an oligarchy as well (or at least heading towards it). If that’s the case, this disproves Socrates’ theory of the stages of degeneration and the relation between indulgence in luxuries leading to each respective stage.

A common criticism of Plato’s Republic is that Socrates doesn’t take into account individual happiness, he simply lays out the criteria for a just city; every individual must stick to the appropriate roles assigned to them. Most of us believe that individual happiness is at its peak in a democracy because of the choice and opportunity the law gives us to get what we want. The happiest country in the world is Bhutan, one with an oligarchic system of governance, possibly proving that democracy can lead to an oligarchy and that an oligarchy may be the best form of governance.