ABSTRACT
Plato's views on ethics, politics, and the soul are not three separate topics grouped simply for convenience. Ethics and politics are two aspects of one subject, proper human behavior, including virtuous behavior for the state and individual. The soul was an important part of Plato's ethics; he held that the purpose of life is tending the soul, and he understood justice to be a healthy condition of the soul. Plato's views on love are an important part of his ethics. Platonic love leads to a life of intellectual growth. This is, of course, a much stronger concept than the common notion of 'platonic love'; it involves much more than abstinence from sex. Homosexual love was common in the upper classes of Athens. This fact was probably related to the status of women, who were seldom educated or knowledgeable about literary and intellectual matters. Late in his life Plato wrote two dialogues on political economy.
