However, he says that though the two sexes share identical pursuits, comparatively, males quantitatively surpass females in these pursuits nearly always. From the sexes, Socrates wades into deeper waters, the waters of family and community. The auditors immediately reject the possibility of such a system, but Socrates first wishes to explain its utility. What follows is the notorious discourse on marriage, population control, and the proper breeding of citizens. Intercourse to produce progeny will take place on the date of certain festivals, which seem akin to periodic mating seasons.
Abortion is legal and at the discretion of the guardians.
An elucidation of the reward of just behavior, of abjuring the capability to possess more than one's share for the sake of the community, begins Part Two of the fifth book. Socrates demonstrates how the brave men who comports himself nobly in war enjoys more pleasure than the coward. He describes the honoring of dead heroes, the rules of warfare, and the distinction between war and discord. His question goes unanswered, except for his declaring that the highest possibility for the realization of such a state lies in philosophers becoming kings or kings becoming philosophers. Both terms, philosopher and king, need clarification.