ASR100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: The Just City, The Perfect Human, Al-Farabi
Deakin University ASR100 Trimester Two 2017
Week Eleven: Islam II - The Perfect City and Sufism
Influences: Plato
• Plato, Greek philosopher, c427 BCE – 348/347 BCE (The Republic)
• Kallipolis = eautiful it. Cosides diffeet odels fo the ideal it-state
• Tripartite structure of the soul provides the model for the tripartite structure of the ideal city:
• Rational part; reason à rulers
• Spirited part; will or volition à guardians
• Appetitive part; desires à labourers
• The perfect city would have a philosopher for its king (the
• philosophe-kig
• Only a philosopher can see Truth, and Truth is necessarily connected to Virtue
• This virtuous philosopher-king will wisely govern the city in the best way, for the
• good (rather than for his own advantage or enjoyment)
• Aristocracy, rule of the best; aristos = best, kratia = power
• Another important influence: Neoplatonism
Influences: Aristotle
• Aristotle, Greek Philosopher, 384–322 BCE (Nicomachean Ethics)
• Happiness (eudaimonia) is human flourishing or living well
• This is the highest end for all human beings – the highest good
• The function of a human being consists in the activity of the rational part of the soul in
accordance with virtue
• Virtue ethics
• Reason is unique to humans – so our highest goal must relate to this
• which is distinctively and uniquely human
• The good life is one in which we use reason to follow virtue, and do it
• well over the course of an entire lifetime
Al-Farabi
• Al-Farabi (c872-950/951 CE), philosopher, jurist, scientist, mathematician
• Ko as the seod aste afte Aistotle
• Wrote in many areas of philosophy, including ethics and politics, which he took to be both a
theoretical and practical discipline
The Just City
A just ity should faou justie ad the just, hate tyay ad ijustie, ad gie the
oth thei just desets – Al-Farabi
The pefet hua eig al-insan al-kamil), thought al-Farabi, is the one who has
obtained theoretical virtue—thus completing his intellectual knowledge—and has
acquired practical moral virtues—thus becoming perfect in his moral behaviour. Then,
crowning these theoretical and moral virtues with effective power, they are anchored in
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Deakin University ASR100 Trimester Two 2017
the souls of individual members of the community when they assume the responsibility
of politial leadeship, thus eoig ole odels fo othe people – Ammar Al-Talbi
The Human Being
A human being has four parts:
1. the atioal pat, hih is the fault of itellet/easo
2. the sesitie part, which perceives objects via the senses
3. the iagiatie pat, hih a etai the iages of ojets afte the hae ee peeied
and can then separate and combine these impressions for a number of ends (and which can
imagine or represent objects that are not present)
4. the appetitie pat, hih desies o feels aesio to a sese ojet
• Happiness is necessarily bound up with the perfection of rationality
• Our rational capacities connect us to a higher realm, so human perfection is to be understood
in terms of perfection of the intellect or contemplation
• The goal for a human is the good: a virtuous, orderly and thoughtful existence
The Perfect City
• The perfect city should reflect the goal of the perfected human life
• Cf. Platos isoophi aout of city and soul
• Those fit to ule ae those ho dot euie guidae fo othes i this: the ae those ith
special intellectual abilities, whose souls are in union with the Active Intellect
The supee ule…is he ho does ot eed ayoe to ule him in anything whatever,
ut has atually auied the siees ad eey kid of koledge… He is ale to
comprehend well each one of the particular things that he ought to do. He is able to
guide ell all othes to eeythig i hih he istuts the… this is found only in the
one who possesses great and superior natural dispositions, when his soul is in union with
the Atie Itellet The Politial Regie, p.36
• The prophet-ia f. Platos philosophe-king)
• They will rule by making policy, directing affairs and improving the situation of the citizens by
education (a moral education)
• The ruler will continuously guide and encourage the citizens towards the good, so they will
become more virtuous living in this kind of city under this kind of ruler
Sick Cities and Weeds
Sick Cities:
• There are 3 kinds of sick cities: ignorant cities, immoral cities and erring cities
• What they have in common is that they ignore, deny or have incorrect ideas on the fact that
happiness is the highest human good and that this is what a ruler should be focused upon (as
opposed to simply providing the bare necessities and administration, or creating opportunities
for trade, pleasure, honour, or domination)
Weeds in the perfect city
• Even in the virtuous city, not all citizes ae upoleati… thee ae eeds
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Document Summary
Week eleven: islam ii - the perfect city and sufism. Influences: plato: plato, greek philosopher, c427 bce 348/347 bce (the republic, kallipolis = (cid:862)(cid:271)eautiful (cid:272)it(cid:455)(cid:863). Co(cid:374)side(cid:396)s diffe(cid:396)e(cid:374)t (cid:373)odels fo(cid:396) the ideal (cid:272)it(cid:455)-state: tripartite structure of the soul provides the model for the tripartite structure of the ideal city, rational part; reason rulers. Al-farabi: al-farabi (c872-950/951 ce), philosopher, jurist, scientist, mathematician, k(cid:374)o(cid:449)(cid:374) as (cid:862)the se(cid:272)o(cid:374)d (cid:373)aste(cid:396)(cid:863) (cid:894)afte(cid:396) a(cid:396)istotle(cid:895, wrote in many areas of philosophy, including ethics and politics, which he took to be both a theoretical and practical discipline. Then, crowning these theoretical and moral virtues with effective power, they are anchored in. Trimester two 2017 the souls of individual members of the community when they assume the responsibility of politi(cid:272)al leade(cid:396)ship, thus (cid:271)e(cid:272)o(cid:373)i(cid:374)g (cid:396)ole (cid:373)odels fo(cid:396) othe(cid:396) people (cid:863) ammar al-talbi. The perfect city: the perfect city should reflect the goal of the perfected human life, cf.
