Justice Opinion 1

Who are Cephalus and Polemarchus?
Cephalus is an old man, he is the father of Polemarchus. Cephalus at the start talks about old age, how he perceives his age and how other people think of their age. Polemarchus is as I said Cephalus son, at the start he doesn’t talk to much, but at the end Cephalus leaves so I am guess that Polemarchus is going to talk soon.

What is the profession of Cephalus?
I am not to sure if he has a job, he never really talked about it. He just talked about the money he inherited.

What was Cephalus doing right before the discussion that took place?
He was sacrificing something. There was a festival and he was sacrificing something for a goddess. One of the events was a relay race on horses.

According to Cephalus, what are the virtues of old age?
I think he was saying because he is old, there is nothing else for him to do. Unlike when he was young, all he has to do now is think about everything.

What are Cephalus’ view of justice?
He thinks to tell the truth and repay all of your debts.

What is Socrates response?
He says that sometimes it is better to tweak the truth. That sometimes telling the truth can lead to bad things. He also thinks that sometimes it is not best to return something.

I agree with both of them, I think that it is right to tell the truth, and right to repay people. But, not all the times would I give something up right away and always tell the truth. Sometimes I would tweak the truth to make somebody happier, and as Socrates said about borrowing “For instance, if one borrowed a weapon from a friend who subsequently went out of his mind and then ask for it back, surely it would be generally agreed that one ought not to return it,…”I would have to agree with that, if I asked to borrow somebody’s paper and wrote on it, I would not give the paper back, if I gave it back it would not make sense. I would have to agree with parts of both sides.

Cephalus represents kindness and honesty. His opinion is the best choice that would be best for everything. What he says is morally right, his opinion is what most people would choose, but could never live by.