The Open Society and Its Enemies

In “Plato’s Political Program,” Popper offers a detailed examination of the central aspects of Plato’s politics. Popper’s assessment of Plato’s political program includes the following categories: the central ideas of Plato’s political program, the question of justice, collectivism and individualism, education as the function of the state, the philosopher-king as an ideal leader, and finally, the question of state propaganda. The Greek philosopher’s ideology may be summarized through the following slogans: “Arrest all political change!” and “Back to nature!” (81). Popper locates historicism at the root of these slogans (81). In fact, historicist sociology is responsible for Plato’s totalitarian program. Popper equates Plato’s totalitarianism with the 20th-century counterpart on the basic level but differentiates between the two when it comes to their specific aspects. For instance, Popper finds the concern for the well-being of all citizens along with the focus on justice in Plato’s vision (84). The author, however, does not explore this comparison further, for instance to the mass-scale expression of totalitarianism in the 20th century. One of the ways in which Plato promotes his politics is by using the character of Socrates in his dialogues as “the embodiment of an unmitigated authoritarianism” (124).