Plato Biography
Plato was an Athenian philosopher of the 5th century BC, a disciple of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle . He founded the Academy, where he taught until the end of his life. The death sentence of his teacher Socrates greatly influenced his life and works. All his work is written in the form of dialogues, and some of the most important are: Apology of Socrates, Republic, Symposium, Phaedrus, Timaeus, Critias, and others. In these works, in addition to dialogue, he also used myths and allegories as literary devices. Plato is one of the fundamental pillars of the history of Western thought, and his ideas greatly influenced rationalist thinkers.
The theory of ideas
We can say that all of Plato's thought revolves around the Theory of Forms . Plato divides reality into two: the sensible world and the intelligible world. The sensible world is made up of material things, of what we can perceive with our senses. On the other hand, the intelligible world is an immaterial world, in which the essence of all things, the Forms, reside. These are eternal and immutable. The most important Form is the Form of the Good. The sensible or material world is a copy of the intelligible world. The demiurge, a creator being, transforms matter, taking the world of Forms as a model, to form the different objects that surround us. In the intelligible world, there is the Form of the horse, and in the sensible world, there are all the concrete horses that exist. The sensible world is a false world, nothing more than a copy of the true world, the intelligible world, also called the hyperuranium.
- INTELLIGIBLE WORLD – IDEAS, FORMS, ARCHETYPES, ESSENCES.
- SENSITIVE WORLD – PHYSICAL, MATERIAL.
Ideas are eternal, fixed, immutable. Material things are variable, corruptible, ephemeral, mutable, temporary.
The soul for Plato
For Plato, the soul will be conceived as a principle of knowledge, that is, thanks to it the truth can be known. The Athenian, just as he understands reality in a dual way, will also affirm that man has a dual nature. In this way, the human being would be composed of body and soul. While the body is a mortal entity, the soul is immortal and precedes and survives the body. When an individual is born, the soul falls from the intelligible world and is trapped in the physical body, being its prey (allegory of the winged chariot). The soul can be divided into three parts: rational, irascible and concupiscible.
- The rational part. It will be the most important. It is the part of the soul that can know the true reality and is also responsible for governing the other two parts. In a later review Plato will say that this part is the only one that is a soul properly speaking. The rational part is located in the head.
- The irascible part. It is located in the chest and is the origin of the noblest passions of the soul such as bravery or courage. It is subject to the rational part.
- The concupiscible part. It is located in the lower abdomen and is the source of the lowest or least noble passions of the soul. It is not always governed by the rational part.
The myth of the cave
We already mentioned previously that Plato divides reality into two, a material side and an immaterial side. And that the true one is the immaterial or intelligible world, the world of ideas. We saw that the soul, before incarnating into a physical body, is in the world of ideas and it is here where it knows and contemplates the truth. Well, when the soul incarnates, it forgets all previous knowledge (allegory of the winged chariot).
To explain the question of knowledge, Plato proposes in Book VII the famous myth or allegory of the cave . Through this myth or allegory, he intends to show us that there are several levels of knowledge and that human beings have a tendency to know reality, but we cannot truly know it, since what we see are the deceptive images provided by our senses, like the shadows projected on the wall of the cave.
Plato introduces the concept of anamnesis , which is the way in which the soul knows. We can translate or interpret it as recollection; therefore, to know is to remember. In this way, the soul knows to the extent that it recalls what it already knew in the world of ideas before being incarnated in a physical body.
It will also introduce the concepts of doxa or episteme.
Doxa , which can be translated as "opinion," is the only knowledge that observation of the sensible world can provide. Therefore, it is a very limited, inferior knowledge due to the very changing nature of the material world. On the other hand, episteme is true knowledge, and it is only accessible through dialectic. Dialectic consists of the art of dialogue through which the soul gradually sheds appearances and false sensory knowledge, and, thanks to anamnesis, approaches the true knowledge of essences or ideas. The supreme idea that the soul can know is the idea of the Good. Because of the importance of dialectic for accessing knowledge, Plato's works are written in the form of dialogues.
Ethics
The ultimate goal of all Platonic thought is to establish an ethical and a political theory. Ethics would be a science concerned with finding individual happiness, while politics would have the mission of finding collective happiness. To be happy individually, we must find a balance between moderate pleasures (friendship, relationships) and intellectual pursuits (mathematics, astronomy), but above all, we must act justly. To achieve justice, each of the three parts of the soul (rational, spirited, and appetitive) must act according to its purpose and not interfere with the others. To achieve this, wisdom is needed to maintain a perfect balance among the different parts of the soul. For Plato, virtue can be taught; therefore, if it is teachable, it is knowledge. The fundamental virtues for the Athenian are four: wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice. The most important of these is justice, which participates in the supreme idea of the Good. Justice, here, is understood as the balance we saw earlier between the parts in their relation to the whole. If everyone does what they have to do according to their condition (parts of the soul, polis), then a balance will be produced which is a necessary condition for justice.
- Ethics – Individual happiness
- Politics – Collective happiness.
Politics
Just as in Ethics we say that one must act justly, and that to achieve this, the different parts of the soul must act according to their function and not interfere with the actions of others, the same must happen in the polis (city-state) to achieve collective happiness. Like the soul, the polis is divided into different parts or classes (rulers, artisans, merchants, etc.), and to achieve justice, each class must know its functions and perform them in the best possible way, without harming or interfering with the functions of the other classes. Only by acting in this way and working justly can collective happiness be achieved. Plato analyzes different forms of government in search of the best. He asserts that the ideal government will occur when philosophers, philosopher-kings, rule, considering them the most prepared since they have dedicated most of their lives to study and therefore know the polis best and could bring about the good. Furthermore, he says that these rulers should not have property or families so that they can dedicate themselves exclusively to political activities.
Influences
Plato, along with Socrates and Aristotle, is considered one of the cornerstones of the history of thought, of philosophy. His writings have been translated into numerous languages and studied in different places and times throughout history. Many philosophers have been influenced by his work; some, like Saint Augustine of Hippo, have been more aligned with his ideas, while others, like Nietzsche, have been harsh critics. We will see Plato's influence on later topics, but in some way, Greek thinkers will always be present in the history of philosophy. Therefore, it is essential to know them and become familiar with their ideas and concepts.
Commentary on Plato's text (Selectivity level)
SOCRATES.- But isn't learning about oneself the science of remembering? MENO.- Of course.
SOC.- The science that he has now, isn't it true that he either acquired it once or always had it?
MEN.-Yes.
SOC.- Now, if he has always had it, he has also always been wise: and if he has ever acquired it, it will certainly not be in the current life where he has acquired it. Has anyone taught you geometry? Because this will do the same with all geometry and with all other branches of knowledge. So is there someone who has taught you everything? You, of course, should know, especially since he was born and raised in your house.
MEN.-And I know very well that no one has ever taught him.
SOC.- But do you have those ideas, or not?
MENU -Necessarily, Socrates, it is evident.
SOC. But if he has not acquired them in his current life, is it not already clear that at some other time he had them and had learned them?
MEN.- Obviously.
SOC.- And isn't this the time when he was not a man?
MENU - Yeah.
SOC. - Yeah. Well, during the time in which he is a man and during the time in which he is not, there are true ideas in him, which, when awakened by questions, become knowledge, will his soul not have them acquired at all times? For it is clear that at all times either he is a man or he is not.
MENU – Obviously.
SOC.- And is it not true that if we always have the truth of things in the soul, the soul will be immortal, so it is necessary that what you do not know now, that is, what you do not remember, you confidently try to investigate and remember it?
MENU -It seems to me that you are right, Socrates, I don't know why.
SOC.- It seems that way to me too, Menón. And, of course, in other aspects I would not hold this doctrine very strongly; But if we see that we must investigate what we do not know, we will be better, more manly and less useless than if we believe that what we do not know nor is possible to discover, we do not have to investigate, for this I am willing to fight, if I am capable, both in word and deed.
MEN.- Also in this it seems to me that you are right, Socrates.
Menon. Plato.
