Character Clues

Character Analysis

Speech and Dialogue

Characterization is a tricky thing in Plato's Republic. Our protagonist Socrates is such a larger-than-life figure that his quirks and personality often completely dominate the scene. We just don't get a lot of info about the other characters. Even in the course of this very long discussion—the main thing we have to go on—we don't hear many personal details about the characters or see much emotion from them.

But we do get a little. In this exchange between Socrates and Thrasymachus, for instance, the tone and nature of their speech definitely distinguishes them as characters:

"Rather," says Socrates, "as I suppose, [Glaucon and I] are not competent. So it's surely more fitting for us to be pitied by you clever men than to be treated harshly." [Thrasymachus] listened, burst out laughing very scornfully, and said "Heracles! Here is that habitual irony of Socrates" (336e-337a).

Sure enough, we the readers are given one of many examples of Socrates's "false modesty" contrasted with Thrasymachus's frustration and emotion; Socrates remains kind of detached and above it all, while Thrasymachus gets all heated. This doesn't necessarily mean that Socrates and Thrasymachus are full-fledged, three-dimensional characters, but it does help us differentiate between the various viewpoints expressed in the dialogue.

Action

Although there isn't a whole lot of action in the Republic, what little there is can be revealing. Let's take Polemarchus as an example. His opening attempts to convince Socrates to come back to his house tell us some crucial bits of information about him. When Socrates admits that he and Glaucon were doing their best to leave quickly, Polemarchus says: "[Either] prove stronger than these men or stay here" (327c). Since Polemarchus refuses to take no for an answer, we learn that he's competitive and somewhat domineering. We also learn that he and Socrates are old friends, since they are clearly engaging in some playful banter.

Thoughts and Opinions

There's a lot of thinking in the Republic, but it doesn't necessarily tell us as much about our characters as you might expect. In fact, because the topic is so abstract for so much of the dialogue, much of the thinking that goes on here could be characterized as a thought experiment rather than a reflection of what these characters actually feel or believe. Logic and reasoning are supposed to exist independently of a character's feelings and emotions, after all.

Actually, once you get Socrates going, the other characters don't end up saying a whole lot. That said, we do get a little bit of info, for example, about Cephalus, Polemarchus's father, when he first starts chatting with Socrates. Because of his surprisingly positive take on old age—"old age brings great peace and freedom"—we learn that Cephalus is the kind of person who questions the common assumptions of most people. Remind you of anyone? Yep, Cephalus reveals himself to be a Socratic kind of guy.