Ring of Gyges
Abstract
The ring of Gyges is a tale belonging to Glaucon, and it is about a magical ring. In the mythical story, Glaucon is attempting to obtain a better definition of justice from the Socrates. The Ring of Gyges is demonstrating that human beings only show justice because they are weak, and those who have power are not likely to show justice. This work highlights the mythical tale of the Ring of Gyges and gives my reflection of the same.
Body
The “Ring of Gyges” is a magical ring as presented by the great philosopher Plato in his Republic book II. This is displayed to be a source of power that can make whoever owns it to be invincible. In the Republic Book II, Glaucon tells the tale of a shepherd in service of the ruler of Lydia named Gyges. In the aftermath of an earthquake, the shepherd enters a cave and is lucky enough to pick the magical ring of Gyges from one of the corpses. Having realized his ability to become invincible, Gyges takes advantage of those powers to seduce the queen, kills the king, and takes his position (Lee, 2019).
The mythical tale of Gyges illustrates the nature of human behavior, and it argues that any man having the same powers as Gyges is likely to behave the same way. This tale stresses that an individual is only just because he/she does not possess such powers. The story implies that justice is not the fundamental interest of human beings but rather a result of the fear of getting away with injustice.
In my opinion, I believe that it doesn’t take any power to be unjust or just. Power can only be used as a tool for injustice. I don’t think that the only reason we act morally is that we have no alternatives and that morality is not our nature. According to me, our individual decisions cannot be used to represent the entire population and that the decisions taken by Gyges are not the decision all the other people will make when in power. I desire to be moral and just, and thus having the Ring of Gyges would not change me.
References
Lee, D.-H. (2019). The Ring of Gyges and Moral Education. Journal of the New Korean Philosophical Association, 213-238.