2.6: Glaucon’s Lover

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See 368a. Not that this has a direct bearing on the argument that Socrates is about to launch into, but it may be interesting to note that Glaucon is homosexually inclined, and though now a full-grown man, he had in his youth been the beloved of an adult male lover (erastes). Passages later in the dialogue (402d-403c and 474d-475a) show how easily what we now consider the high crime of pederasty entered into conversation in Socrates’ day, and how apparently normal and harmless this sort of behavior was considered. The passage at 402d-403c recommends moderation in the relationship, but otherwise there is no indication of censure, shame, or guilt.

Is it unjust for a man to seduce and make love to a teenage boy? The answer to this question may seem obvious to you, but then again, maybe you need to know more. Do you need to know more about the nature of justice, or about the relationship between lover and beloved?
If you do consider homosexual pederasty unjust, is it something that is, has always been, and always will remain unjust, or is it something that may well have been just in Socrates’ day but happens not to be so any longer?
Some people have suggested (indeed, Thrasymachus has already insisted with respect to justice) that moral claims are true or false only in specific cultural settings – at given times, in given places. This is a position in ethics sometimes called “cultural relativism.” Suppose you were going to try to argue against cultural relativism. How would you make yourcase?