How to read and understand Plato's Republic?

Question:

How to read and understand Plato's Republic?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: The main idea behind the Republic is that there is a direct link between man's political nature and his education. One can imagine a young man to be like a city; like a city, he would have many conflicting interests. A good education would then be like a good political system and would ordain different motivations in a way that is harmonious.
Plato introduces in the Republic the idea of the philosopher king. The philosopher is looking for wisdom. Thus, he should rule the city. In a person, this corresponds with being ruled by your head.
Other parts of the body include the arms, the legs, stomach, etc... To Plato, those also correspond to kinds of people. While the head is the philosopher, the arms would be soldier and the stomach represents the mass of the people - not particularly educated, not particularly profound they nonetheless feed the body.
In Plato's views, societies become disorganized when a part rises above its proper place in society. Thus, in a society ruled by the stomach, people become obsessed with consuming and the head is used only to find ways to consume more. Societies ruled by the arms are overly martial, etc...
Balance comes from having everything in its place. What works in politics, for Plato, should also work in education.