Something that struck me as interesting is the way that virtue is relative from person to person. Meno says that the virtue of a woman is different than that of a man, and that the virtue of a slave is different from the virtue of a free man. Socrates responds that all these examples of virtue must share something universally. I think virtue that everyone should have is honesty and kindness, though this idea does make some sense, it is quite outdated.

Meno then says that virtue is the ability to rule men. He is defining virtue as the ability to fulfill one’s purpose (a slave to work, a soldier to kill in battle etc.) He says the ultimate virtue of men is happiness and the satisfaction of desires, which are mostly made up of being powerful. Socrates responds by saying being powerful can only be virtuous if it is just, which I completely agree with, as virtue is good and moral qualities in a person.

Meno’s third reason is that virtue is the ability to desire and acquire nice things. Socrates says that everyone desires what they think is good or beautiful, it matters in how they acquire such goods. Meno then agrees that it is only a virtue if the good is acquired in the good way. I can agree with this since people have desires, as I do, but it all comes down to how you acquire it.

I would like you to have another go at the question, “Is art subjective?” But this time I want you to

• choose a specific art form to analyze
• consider all the different ways in which that art form is experienced by creators, performers, critics, readers and audiences, etc., and be clear about which of these you are talking about
• consider the possibility that this art form may be both objective in some respects and subjective in other respects, and try to explain these distinctions as clearly and specifically as possible.

Please give your new blog post a title that is specific to your response. For example, if you choose to focus on music, use the word ‘music’ in your title, not ‘art’; and instead of simply using the question as your title, make a title that refers to how you have answered the question.

“We all want justice,” Alan Price sang in the film ‘O Lucky Man!’, “but you’ve got to have the money to buy it.”

A very different view of justice emerges from the traditional practices of Native American, First Nation, and other indigenous peoples of North America, in which the goals are healing and reconciliation, not ‘victory’ for one side or the other.

If this topic interests you, there may be a TOK oral presentation in it somewhere. To start, have a look at these three articles:

Restorative Justice Practices of Native American, First Nation and Other Indigenous People of North America: Part One

Restorative Justice Practices of Native American, First Nation and Other Indigenous People of North America: Part Two

COMMUNITY HOLISTIC CIRCLE HEALING: A COMMUNITY APPROACH

—etm