Twenty-first century people often assume it is obvious that democracy based on universal suffrage is the most just political system--and that the least just political system is the absolute rule of a single individual. Any debate about the means of achieving greater social and political justice is predicated on this assumption. In a sense, they assume that justice equals equality. This is not, however, an assumption that has been shared by all people at all times. Indeed, the most common assumption throughout the majority of European history was that each person has a proper role to play in a just society. Debate about the perfection of society, therefore, often centered on defining and assigning social roles.

Keep this in mind as you review the boxed features on page 97 (Plato on Equality for Women) and page 550 (The Putney Debates) of your textbook. When you're finished reviewing, take a look at a complete transcription of the Putney Debates and the document entitled "The Agreement of the People" that was at the center of the debates. Then examine an online edition of Plato's Republic to get a greater sense of the context for Plato's arguments about the equality of men and women. When you're done, consider the questions below.

1. What did Plato believe must happen before women could take an active role in Greek public life? What obstacles did he imagine stood in the way of the acceptance of women in public life?

2. Compare and contrast Rainsborough and Ireton's basic assumptions about what made an individual fit for political participation. What sort of society did each imagine emerging after the Civil War? What effect, if any, did the Civil War have on social and political equality in Britain?