This chapter addresses two related issues: whether Plato regards war as an inevitable feature of human coexistence, and whether Plato thinks the removal or avoidance of war in toto (as opposed to the avoidance of a particular threat) would in any case be desirable. It asks whether the development of civilized society in the Republic can only take place concurrently with the development of war. It examines Plato's view of the roots of aggressiveness and warmongering in the human psyche, and asks whether he believes aggressiveness itself to be innate, no matter what political and social conditions prevail, or what education and training are offered.
Keywords: Republic, war, civilized society, aggressiveness, in toto, avoidance