Harold Ziegler
Filbert
Knowledge, Reality, and Self
September 17, 2014
The Ring of Gyges is a magical artifact that would grant its owner the power to become invisible at will. What this is basically a metaphor is the question of whether or not people would still be moral if there was no fear of being caught or punished. This is related to The Corporation in that, at least in my opinion, giant corporations would not be moral or follow the rules if there was no fear of punishment because they all have their own 'corporate agendas' and, typically, are so driven to be successful and make money at any cost.
When Thrasymachus claims that "justice is the advantage of the stronger" and, in conjunction, that "injustice, if it is on a large enough scale, is stronger, freer, and more masterly than justice." Essentially, he is saying that one can have very large advantages when they act unjustly.
Also, he claims that a "just man always gets less than an unjust man." This essentially means that people who don't follow all of the rules can get the upper hand in business and other aspects of life. In terms of the documentary, this relates to a corporation's morals and ethics. If a corporation goes under the table and disobeys certain rules, that can give them an advantage and help them maximize profits, albeit illegally and immorally.
'When the law is not to my advantage I ought not to obey it if I am too powerful to be stopped or too clever to be caught.' This quote, in relation to large corporations, is basically describing the thought that leads to corporations being corrupt. Corporations that think they are too powerful or smart to get caught in corrupt, yet advantageous, actions will, naturally, act...