Fear and Death in Plato

Plato argues that a perfectly virtuous individual will not fear her own death, nor will she fear or grieve the death of a loved one. In Plato's ideal society, citizens are taught not to fear death and are prohibited from public manifestations of grief. It is by no means self-evident, however, that ridding oneself of the fear of death, even if possible, is ethically or psychologically beneficial. This dissertation examines why Plato thinks that the fear of death is morally inappropriate, why he believes it is nevertheless difficult to overcome, and why he thinks acquiring and sustaining the appropriate attitudes towards death depends on favorable political circumstances. I address each of these questions within the individual context of three dialogues--the <italic>Apology, Phaedo,</italic>, and <italic>Republic.</italic>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Philosophy

Year dc:date.available

2009

Author dc:creator

• Austin, Emily

Contributors dc:contributor

• Eric Brown

• Philosophy
• Death
• Desires
• Fear
• Plato
• Security

Language dc:language

English (en)

DOI

https://doi.org/10.7936/K7QJ7FDP

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:openscholarship.wustl.edu:etd-1026