What is Plato's theory of communism?

Answer 1

Plato had no theory for Communism and the very ideas of Communism would have made no sense for Plato. Communism requires industrialism and concentrated capital to make any sense, which existed in the 1800s (when Karl Marx invented Communism).

If we take Plato's theories on government and apply them in the modern-age (as Neo-Platonists do), we would quickly see that Plato would be opposed to Communism in the sense that Marx espoused it and the way it has developed as a political system in the real world. Plato believed that governments were necessary and that the well-ordered society has people who are self-disciplined and disciplined by the governmental authorities. However, the government officials are required to adhere to the same self-discipline as the citizens or would be subject to removal from the government. This system runs directly counter to Communism's Dictatorship of the Proletariat or the eventual non-governmental system.

Answer 2

The idea of communism was set forth by plato in the Republic in the 300's B.C.

Answer 3

One of Plato's ethical theories was that what was best for the most amount of people was the most ethical. This can relate to communism in which everyone is equal.