Abstract

“Could we contrive one noble lie?” implies there is one noble lie. The Autochthony Claim and the Hierarchical Claim follow. The article argues the former is the “one” noble lie. It argues the claims are both normative and descriptive propositions; both descriptively true about worldly polities in Plato’s day and historically. While the Hierarchical Claim is normatively true of the Best City, the Autochthony Claim is normatively false. The article offers a tentative explanation why jointly they comprise a foundational myth of political life.