Banausos

You may wonder about why we have a class system based on whether or not a man or woman gets dirty at work, or whether a man or woman works with skilled hands rather than with head alone. A friend noted that those who work sitting down get paid more than those who work standing up, and another noted that those who shower in the morning get better pay and higher status than those who shower at night. While the ancient Greeks were not the origin of class discrimination, Plato and Socrates did their best to sustain it through their concept Banausos. They used the term banausic for the low-cast, cringing souls involved in the making of things. In the Laws, the term ‘banausia’ is used to describe the depraved state of a man who makes money by means other than the hereditary possession of land.

It is way past time for all that to stop. There is no better way to develop honor, and moral integrity serving true democracy than by encouraging the growth of skilled craftsmanship and society-wide respect for it.