Do you agree with Plato’s understanding of the circle that forms of government make? Why or why not? As you explain your reasons, offer examples of this movement from one form of government to another in history. Should the decline of forms of government concern us today? What excesses of democracy might lead to tyranny?

Question

anonymous · Answer

I do agree. A circle shows birth, growth, peak, decline, and finally death. Take the Imperial Roman Empire. At its' birth it was a small city-state, and as its' influence grew, so did it. The same with the Song Empire in China. It began with relatively few lands and grew with the influence. They peaked, and then lost money from relying on nomadic peoples. Both of these forms of government lasted an extraordinarily long time. Both collapsed to the same reason: the people had no say, and the rulers grew extremely pig-headed about money. This concerns us today because democracy too will experience this decline. Democracy may grow and grow until one ruler decides to take over, and thus a dictatorship is born, much like in ancient Athens.