2008-2-PHI130.Week03: Difference between revisions
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Plato's doctrine of forms, or doctrine of ideas, asks a metaphysical question about what is real and how we can know it. He endeavours to answer this by trying to look beyond what is available to the senses to find the ultimate level of reality. Once defined he then seeks to determine how we can know about this ultimate level of reality. | Plato's doctrine of '''forms''', or doctrine of '''ideas''', asks a metaphysical question about what is real and how we can know it. He endeavours to answer this by trying to look beyond what is available to the senses to find the ultimate level of reality. Once defined he then seeks to determine how we can know about this ultimate level of reality. | ||
Book X (Ten) of Plato's famous book The Republic is where we learn of his theory of forms. The Republic is his longest book, and it's a book of political philosophy that deals with what is a just city. In order to know what a good city is we need to know what reality is and how we can know about it. That is, we must answer the fundamental questions in order to know what a just city is. | Book X (Ten) of Plato's famous book The Republic is where we learn of his theory of forms. The Republic is his longest book, and it's a book of political philosophy that deals with what is a just city. In order to know what a good city is we need to know what reality is and how we can know about it. That is, we must answer the fundamental questions in order to know what a just city is. | ||
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Two equivalent Greek words: eidos or idea = Form or Idea. | Two equivalent Greek words: eidos or idea = Form or Idea. | ||
The thought is that we use the same name for different things. | The thought is that we use the '''same name for different things'''. E.g. "chairs", even though they are all different in some respect. | ||
What is beauty? Things, persons, emotions. We use it with the same meaning in all these contexts. How do we know the meaning of the adjective remains the same? | |||
The concept that Plato draws out is that there are two levels of reality at the very least. There's the physical level in the material world, and above that the notions or concepts of these things. | |||
Aristotle criticised Plato for his ideas (we get to that later). | |||
Plato held the ideal world out as being more 'perfect' than the physical world. This is very similar to Pythagoras' idea that the material world is a world of corruption where the world of ideas is a world of perfection. | |||
Revision as of 13:09, 27 July 2008
Week 3: Plato's Doctrine of Forms
Readings
Plato, Republic
Plato, Republic, Section VII, 514-521, p.376-383; Section X, 596-598, p.468-471. In The dialogues of Plato, vol.II, trans. by B. Jowett (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1964).
Plato, Timaeus
Plato, Timaeus, trans. D. Lee (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1977), p.72-79
The many faces of science
L. Stevenson and H. Byerly, The many faces of science (Westview Press, 1995), p.52-63.
Ideal cities
R. Eaton, Ideal cities (London: Thames and Hudson, 2001), p.196-204.
Lecture Notes
Book X: The three beds
While Socrates put philosophy on its way, Plato is the first real philosopher in the sense that he endeavours a systematic coverage of all aspects of reality. He offers and explanation for all the different spheres of reality with political, moral, scientific, and aesthetic implications.
We will look at two of the most famous aspects of his thinking:
- His theory of ideas
- His theory of love
Plato's doctrine of forms, or doctrine of ideas, asks a metaphysical question about what is real and how we can know it. He endeavours to answer this by trying to look beyond what is available to the senses to find the ultimate level of reality. Once defined he then seeks to determine how we can know about this ultimate level of reality.
Book X (Ten) of Plato's famous book The Republic is where we learn of his theory of forms. The Republic is his longest book, and it's a book of political philosophy that deals with what is a just city. In order to know what a good city is we need to know what reality is and how we can know about it. That is, we must answer the fundamental questions in order to know what a just city is.
In The Republic Plato speaks through Socrates, but we understand that these are likely Plato's ideas and not those of Socrates.
Two equivalent Greek words: eidos or idea = Form or Idea.
The thought is that we use the same name for different things. E.g. "chairs", even though they are all different in some respect.
What is beauty? Things, persons, emotions. We use it with the same meaning in all these contexts. How do we know the meaning of the adjective remains the same?
The concept that Plato draws out is that there are two levels of reality at the very least. There's the physical level in the material world, and above that the notions or concepts of these things.
Aristotle criticised Plato for his ideas (we get to that later).
Plato held the ideal world out as being more 'perfect' than the physical world. This is very similar to Pythagoras' idea that the material world is a world of corruption where the world of ideas is a world of perfection.