Platos beliefs

• Was Plato empiricist or rationalist?


  Rationalist
• What is the theory of The World Forms?

  A different reality/ world that contains the perfect version of everything, nothing changes, a place where we gain true knowledge and understanding
• Everything in this world changes and is therefore unreliable
• Everything we experience in this world is a vague shadow of the true thing, everything is an imitation and copy of the forms
• Nature of the forms

  • all types of beauty in this world but they must conform or match to the idea of the form of beauty- shows us shadows of true forms
  • Plato says that particulars (something or someone who is particularly beautiful) are imperfect copies of the Forms
  • Form never changes, what we experience does
• Form

  • perfect expression of something that never changes
• World of Forms= Noeton
• Physical world = Horaton
• Sense experience creates illusions
• Humans believe these illusions = are ignorant (Eikasia)
• Episteme

  Achieved true knowledge of the Forms
• World of appearances

  Our physical world
• Ultimate form

  • must be a form of the forms because there are so many forms
  • Supreme form= form of the good
• Form of The Good

  • Form of all other forms because everything has goodness in it
  • Source/ reason for other forms
  • All perfection comes from the Form of The Good
  • Gives light to the real world like the sun in the cave analogy
  • illuminates the other forms
  • ultimate end itself- knowledge of everything
• Hierarchy of Forms

  1. Form of Good
  2. Universal Qualities (essence that makes up forms)
  3. Concepts and Ideals (Forms)
  4. Physical living objects
  5. Physical inanimate objects
• Understanding of reality

  • only a [philosopher can escape the world of appearances
  • They are the true leaders of society
  • Sees the senses as clouding our judgement
• How do we gain knowledge of the Forms through reason and not senses?
• • we are born with a dim recollection of the forms
  • Our immortal soul experiences them when in the WOF before reincarnated (metempsychosis)
  • Ruled by senses in physical world
  • Because people know the basis of justice, beauty etc. without being taught then this is the soul's recollection of the truth using reason
  • We do not learn new things, education only helps us recall things in the WOF
  • Anamnesis- the soul remembering the Forms
• Critic: " I see particular horses, but not horseness"

  Plato: " That is because you have eyes but no intelligence"