Ancient Philosophers on Authority: Plato, Aristotle, Cicero & Socrates

Introduction

Some of the most influential philosophers of the ancient world — Plato, Socrates, Cicero, and Aristotle — made a remarkable range of observations about everyday life and governance. Among their most significant contributions were their views on authority: who should hold it, how it should be exercised, and what obligations citizens owe to the state. Despite sharing the same intellectual tradition, their positions on these questions differed considerably.

Socrates on Political and Intellectual Authority

Socrates believed that both political and intellectual authority should be used in the service of everyone. He argued that disobeying the state is wrong, drawing a comparison between the state and a parent. Just as it is wrong for a child to disobey his or her parent, so too is it wrong for a citizen to disobey the state. The state, in his view, occupies a parental role, and everyone is obliged to follow its rules.

Modern critics, however, question the validity of this analogy. They point out that a child's obligation to obey a parent is temporary — it ends once the child matures and becomes capable of making independent decisions. Socrates, by contrast, held that obedience to the state is a lifelong requirement. Critics argue these two situations are not genuinely comparable.

Socrates also maintained that it is morally wrong to break an agreement, regarding such a breach as fundamentally unethical. In his view, citizens who live in a state do so voluntarily, and that voluntary residence constitutes an implicit agreement to obey its laws. His critics counter that living within a state does not require entering into any such contract with the government. Citizens should live within their boundaries, they argue, but that does not mean they are bound to a formal agreement. Citizens ought to retain control over their own lives rather than surrendering it to the state.

Socrates further believed that one should never take a wrongful action, even if the state itself is committing an evil. He held that the state's authority extended over everyone without exception. It is notable, then — even ironic — that Socrates himself showed little deference to the very state he had once fought for. Yet when the state handed down his death sentence, he did not disobey it.

Plato's View: Freedom and Philosopher-Rule

Plato held views that stood in sharp contrast to those of Socrates. He observed that the state tended to separate people with power from those without it, which he regarded as an unfair form of elitism. Plato believed strongly in freedom for citizens and argued that the state should not exercise excessive authority over people's lives. He envisioned a society in which people could freely express their views without being subjected to coercion or pressure.

In Plato's assessment, the democracy of his time was illegitimate because it did not genuinely reflect the will of the people — citizens had no real power while the state controlled their lives. Rather than reform democracy, Plato argued against it altogether. He believed people should exercise authority if they were capable of handling it, or voluntarily submit to authority if they were not. He went so far as to suggest that individuals should have the right to refuse participation in a war if one were declared, or conversely, to choose to wage war even in peacetime. These ideas bear a resemblance to the principles of modern-day anarchism.

Plato did, however, believe that authority in both politics and religion should be entrusted only to those who were responsible and knowledgeable enough to wield it wisely. He specifically advocated handing authority to philosophers, whom he regarded as uniquely experienced and learned. On the question of gender, Plato did not believe in the equality of men and women, holding that women were inferior to men in every respect.

Conclusion: Common Ground Among the Philosophers

Cicero argued that people should not be divided by class but should work together across social distinctions for the benefit of their society. He believed in the assimilation of people toward a common future, and held that individuals should be regarded as universal rather than as members of any particular social group. In practical terms, Cicero favored a republic modeled on Rome over a democracy. Such a republic, he argued, should have a senate, a ruler, and an assembly capable of making and carrying out decisions. The executive, aristocratic, and popular bodies would function together as authoritative figures, each checking and balancing the others. Cicero believed that equality — including equality between the genders — was a foundational principle, and he was a firm advocate of gender equality.

All four philosophers shared the belief that it is important for citizens to obey the authorities of their society. They agreed that authorities exist to set the rules by which everyone lives and that, in some sense, they know what is best for the people. This represents their most significant common ground, even as their views diverge on virtually every other point.

Socrates believed in a controlled society governed by unconditional obedience to the state. Plato believed that people should be free to act as they choose without being pressured by authorities. Aristotle favored despotic rule under a single powerful figure, while Cicero envisioned a system in which everyone participated in governance but was limited in power so that the various bodies could check one another. Despite these differences, all four ultimately agreed that achieving the right balance of authority requires both civilian support and administrative governance. Even under the most despotic arrangements, a society still needs some form of participation from its people.