Ring of Gyges: Difference between revisions
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{{short description|Mythical magical artifact in Plato's Republic}} | {{short description|Mythical magical artifact in Plato's Republic}} | ||
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[[File: | [[File:Gyges vindt de ring in een bronzen paard, RP-P-1874-11-138-1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|Depiction of Gyges discovering the ring, after [[Hans Weiditz]], 16th century]] | ||
{{Platonism}} | {{Platonism}} | ||
The '''Ring of Gyges''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|dʒ|aɪ|ˌ|dʒ|iː|z}} ({{langx|grc|Γύγου Δακτύλιος}}, ''Gúgou Daktúlios'', {{IPA|grc-x-attic|ˈɡyːˌɡoː dakˈtylios|link=yes}}) is a hypothetical [[magic ring]] mentioned by the [[philosophy|philosopher]] [[Plato]] in Book 2 of his ''[[Republic (Plato)|Republic]]'' (2:359a–2:360d).<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.2307/631825| jstor = 631825| title = Ringing the Changes on Gyges: Philosophy and the Formation of Fiction in Plato's Republic| journal = [[Journal of Hellenic Studies]]| volume = 121| pages = 12–29| year = 2001| last1 = Laird | first1 = A.| s2cid = 170951759}}</ref> It grants its owner the power to become [[invisibility|invisible]] at will. Using the ring as an example, this section of the ''Republic'' considers whether a rational, intelligent person who has no need to fear negative consequences for committing an injustice would nevertheless act justly. | The '''Ring of Gyges''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|dʒ|aɪ|ˌ|dʒ|iː|z}} ({{langx|grc|Γύγου Δακτύλιος}}, ''Gúgou Daktúlios'', {{IPA|grc-x-attic|ˈɡyːˌɡoː dakˈtylios|link=yes}}) is a hypothetical [[magic ring]] mentioned by the [[philosophy|philosopher]] [[Plato]] in Book 2 of his ''[[Republic (Plato)|Republic]]'' (2:359a–2:360d).<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.2307/631825| jstor = 631825| title = Ringing the Changes on Gyges: Philosophy and the Formation of Fiction in Plato's Republic| journal = [[Journal of Hellenic Studies]]| volume = 121| pages = 12–29| year = 2001| last1 = Laird | first1 = A.| s2cid = 170951759}}</ref> It grants its owner the power to become [[invisibility|invisible]] at will. Using the ring as an example, this section of the ''Republic'' considers whether a rational, intelligent person who has no need to fear negative consequences for committing an injustice would nevertheless act justly. | ||
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==Cultural influences<!--linked from 'Cultural influence of Plato's Republic'-->== | ==Cultural influences<!--linked from 'Cultural influence of Plato's Republic'-->== | ||
* Cicero retells the story of Gyges in ''[[De Officiis]]'' to illustrate his thesis that a wise or good individual bases decisions on a fear of moral degradation as opposed to punishment or negative consequences. Cicero follows with a discussion of the role of [[thought experiment]]s in philosophy. The hypothetical situation in question is complete immunity from punishment of the kind afforded to Gyges by his ring.<ref>''[[De Officiis]]'' 3.38–39</ref> | * Cicero retells the story of Gyges in ''[[De Officiis]]'' to illustrate his thesis that a wise or good individual bases decisions on a fear of moral degradation as opposed to punishment or negative consequences. Cicero follows with a discussion of the role of [[thought experiment]]s in philosophy. The hypothetical situation in question is complete immunity from punishment of the kind afforded to Gyges by his ring.<ref>''[[De Officiis]]'' 3.38–39</ref> | ||
*[[J.R.R. Tolkien]] was familiar with Plato's myth<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wood |first=Ralph C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vA-MDa3UyScC |title=The Gospel According to Tolkien |date=2003 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-664-23466-9 |pages=68 |language=en |author-link=Ralph C. Wood}}</ref> and had possibly read part of the story's original text in [[Ancient Greek]];<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nagy |first=Gergely |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B0loOBA3ejIC |title=J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment |date=2007 |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |isbn=978-0-415-96942-0 |editor-last=Drout |editor-first=Michael D. C. |pages=513 |language=en |author-link=Gergely Nagy (scholar)}}</ref> the fable influenced his writing | *[[J.R.R. Tolkien]] was familiar with Plato's myth<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wood |first=Ralph C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vA-MDa3UyScC |title=The Gospel According to Tolkien |date=2003 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-664-23466-9 |pages=68 |language=en |author-link=Ralph C. Wood}}</ref> and had possibly read part of the story's original text in [[Ancient Greek]];<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nagy |first=Gergely |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B0loOBA3ejIC |title=J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment |date=2007 |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |isbn=978-0-415-96942-0 |editor-last=Drout |editor-first=Michael D. C. |pages=513 |language=en |author-link=Gergely Nagy (scholar)}}</ref> the fable influenced his own writing on ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref>{{cite book |last=West |first=Richard C. |chapter=Real-world myth in a secondary world: mythological aspects in the story of Beren and Lúthien |date=2003-08-27 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6TX3hJckf3YC |title=Tolkien the Medievalist |pages=263–264 |editor-last=Chance |editor-first=Jane |access-date=2024-01-11 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-134-43971-3 |quote="The situation is full of resonances from other traditional tales: [...] the Ring of Gyges in Plato's ''Republic''" |author-link=Richard C. West}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Kreeft |first=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cjJ0DgAAQBAJ |title=The Philosophy of Tolkien: The Worldview Behind The Lord of the Rings |date=2009-09-03 |publisher=Ignatius Press |isbn=978-1-68149-531-6 |pages=183 |language=en |quote=As Plato used the Ring to contrast Gyges with Socrates, Tolkien uses the same Ring to contrast Gollum with Frodo [...] |author-link=Peter Kreeft}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Korpua |first=Jyrki |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1rkxEAAAQBAJ |title=The Mythopoeic Code of Tolkien: A Christian Platonic Reading of the Legendarium |date=2021-05-10 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company|McFarland]] |isbn=978-1-4766-7288-5 |pages=159 |language=en |quote=[...] Tolkien's ring myth is the Platonic myth of Gyges from the Republic, [...]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Day |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i_qZEAAAQBAJ |title=An Encyclopedia of Tolkien: The History and Mythology That Inspired Tolkien's World |date=2019-10-08 |publisher=[[Simon and Schuster]] |isbn=978-1-64517-009-9 |pages=302, 180–181 |language=en |quote="Plato was extremely influential in Tolkien's mythopoetic approach to literature […]" (p. 302), "[...] as in the case of Gyges [...]" (p. 181) |author-link=David Day (Canadian author)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Comstock |first=Gary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QQchAwAAQBAJ |title=Research Ethics: A Philosophical Guide to the Responsible Conduct of Research |date=2013-01-03 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-1-139-61884-7 |pages=62 |language=en |quote="[...] the mythical golden ring of Gyges. [...] Yes, it's the same ring we see in Tolkien's ''Lord of the Rings'' [...]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Rogers |first1=Brett M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yhqhDQAAQBAJ |title=Classical Traditions in Modern Fantasy |last2=Stevens |first2=Benjamin Eldon |date=2017 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-061006-7 |pages=129 |language=en |quote="The Ring has been compared to Gyges [...]'"}}</ref> | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Latest revision as of 11:12, 24 June 2025
Template:Short description Template:CS1 config
Script error: No such module "sidebar". The Ring of Gyges Template:IPAc-en (Template:Langx, Gúgou Daktúlios, Script error: No such module "IPA".) is a hypothetical magic ring mentioned by the philosopher Plato in Book 2 of his Republic (2:359a–2:360d).[1] It grants its owner the power to become invisible at will. Using the ring as an example, this section of the Republic considers whether a rational, intelligent person who has no need to fear negative consequences for committing an injustice would nevertheless act justly.
The legends
Gyges of Lydia was a historical king, the founder of the Mermnad dynasty of Lydian kings. Various ancient works—the most well-known being The Histories of Herodotus[2]—gave different accounts of the circumstances of his acquisition of power.[3] All, however, agree in asserting that he was originally a subordinate of King Candaules of Lydia, that he killed Candaules and seized the throne, and that he had either seduced Candaules' Queen before killing him, married her afterwards, or both.
In the recounting of the myth by Glaucon (Plato's older brother, as a character of the Republic), an unnamed ancestor of Gyges[4][5] was a shepherd in the service of the king of Lydia. After an earthquake, a chasm was revealed in a mountainside where he was feeding his flock. Entering the chasm, he discovered that it was in fact a tomb with a bronze horse containing a corpse, larger than that of a man, who wore a golden ring, which he then pocketed. He discovered that by adjusting the ring, he gained the power of invisibility. He then arranged to become one of the king's messengers as to the status of the flocks. Arriving at the palace, he used his new power of invisibility to seduce the queen, and with her help, murder the king, and become king of Lydia himself.
The role of the legend in Plato's Republic
In the Republic, the tale of the ring of Gyges is described by the character of Glaucon, the brother of Plato. Glaucon asks whether any man could be so virtuous that he may resist the temptation of killing, robbing, raping, or generally doing injustice to whomever he pleased if he could do so remaining undetected. Glaucon wants Socrates to argue that it is beneficial for us to be just, independent of any consideration for our reputation.
Glaucon posits:
Though his answer to Glaucon's challenge is delayed, Socrates argues ultimately that justice does not derive from this social construct: the man who abused the power of the Ring of Gyges has in fact enslaved himself to his appetites, while the man who chose not to use it remains rationally in control of himself and is therefore happy (Republic 10:612b).
Cultural influences
- Cicero retells the story of Gyges in De Officiis to illustrate his thesis that a wise or good individual bases decisions on a fear of moral degradation as opposed to punishment or negative consequences. Cicero follows with a discussion of the role of thought experiments in philosophy. The hypothetical situation in question is complete immunity from punishment of the kind afforded to Gyges by his ring.[6]
- J.R.R. Tolkien was familiar with Plato's myth[7] and had possibly read part of the story's original text in Ancient Greek;[8] the fable influenced his own writing on The Lord of the Rings.[9][10][11][12][13][14]
See also
References
External links
- Plato, Republic Book 2, translated by Benjamin Jowett (1892).
- The Ring of Gyges Analysis by Bernard Suzanne (1996).
Template:Plato navbox Template:Greek religion
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- ↑ Herodotus 1.7–13
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Socrates refers to the ring as "the ring of Gyges" (Script error: No such module "Lang".). For this reason, the story is simply called "The Ring of Gyges".
- ↑ De Officiis 3.38–39
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