Conflict and the Ways of it Resolution in the Ancient Philosophy: Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero

The article examines the problem of conflict in ancient philosophy. The subject of consideration is the socio-political works of Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero. The author justifies the relevance of the subject of the study and shows the need to analyze ancient ideas both for a more complete reconstruction of the formation of conflict science, and for a better understanding of the essence of the conflict and its causes. The article uses the method of textual analysis of the ancient thinkers’ works and comparative analysis of their ideas. The analysis of Plato's ideas about the conflict shows that he emphasizes the ethical moment of social relations and sees the cause of the conflict in the imperfection and dualism of human nature itself. Aristotle has an institutional approach to the analysis of political life. As a result of that approach he sees the origins of the conflict in the imperfection of the form of government and the activities of the ruler. Cicero, largely combining a number of ideas of Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics with Roman political practice, sees the source of the conflict in the imperfection of the form of government and the decline of morals. In the light of
modern scientific and practical interest in the study of conflict, the ideas of ancient thinkers about the important role of education in reducing conflict are of particular importance.