The City in Speech: Origins

To answer Glaucon's challenge, Socrates proposes a method: look at justice "writ large" in the city before examining it in the individual soul. Just as large letters are easier to read than small ones, justice in the state may be easier to see than justice in a person. He begins building a city "in speech" from first principles. Why do humans form cities? Because no one is self-sufficient - we need farmers for food, builders for shelter, weavers for clothing. The principle of specialization emerges: each person does what they do best, and trades with others. The city grows from the necessary (food, shelter) to the refined (music, art, luxury). But luxury creates conflict: the city needs more land, which means war, which means a warrior class - the guardians. Who should rule this city?