Analyzing The Ring of Gyges | Philosophy from Plato’s Republic for Middle & HS

Caught you! Are people only good because they fear punishment and hope for a reward? I teach Glaucon’s retelling of the Ring of Gyges from Book 2 of Plato’s Republic (2:359a–2:360d). The story is about a shepherd who gets hold of a magical ring that makes him invisible. What would you do with such power? Glaucon tells the story to refute Socrates’s notion that justice is a worthy pursuit. Would you use it for good, or would you use it for ill? I developed a lesson plan to get students thinking about both sides of the argument. Note: The resource is equipped with PDF and Google Workspace files (Docs, Forms).

This resource includes the following features:

Teaching Philosophy with Young People – Lesson on the use and misuses of justice

Essential Question: Am I a good person only when I think others are looking?

• Pre-Reading Worksheet
• The text of the story is included in this resource for educational purposes
• Visual Representation of Gyges Finding the Ring
• 15 Reading Comprehension Questions + 1 Prediction Question
• 10 Discussion Questions
• 5 Custom-made scenarios to use for Group Work
• An answer key for both comprehension and discussion questions
• Suggested Lesson Plan (with ideas and instructions on how to use this resource)
• Standards Alignment Chart
• Bibliography

Suggested Uses:

1. Humanities Course on Ancient Greece
2. World History Course on the History of Ideas
3. Civics and U.S. Government
4. Literature Course
5. Introduction to Ethics Course
6. Introduction to Philosophy Course
7. Ancient Greek History
8. Middle and High School Social Studies

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