Plato's theory of forms promotes the belief that two objects can never be equal, regardless of their apparent similarity. Concepts cannot be defined by their appearance, as they actually need to be defined by their nature. People thus come to define objects by trying to associate them with the closest ideas that they can think of and that is similar to these respective objects. The Ancient Greek philosopher practically wanted people to understand that form was a very complex concepts and that it would be wrong for someone to attempt to define an object simply by looking at its appearance. While a table might be defined by someone as being an idea that cannot be discussed as a result of the rigidity of the concept's form, matters can actually be more complex than someone might be inclined to believe. For example,...
As a consequence, form is much more than appearance, as it actually relates to functionality and to an object's probability to be used in a series of ways in spite of the fact that its initial design did not necessarily have something to do with these respective ways.
Plato and Death One of the most influential minds in western philosophy describing this search for meaning was Plato. Plato lived from 422-347 B.C, and was born into an aristocratic family in the city of Athens where he became a student of Socrates, and eventually a teacher of Aristotle. As a student of Socrates, Plato followed the structure of philosophical agreement to ensure a just society - no laws are to
It is very dark in the cave, and everything, including the face of the person next to them, is in deep shadows. It is never mentioned whether the people are happy or sad, or whether they speak to each other. It is assumed that they speak at least enough to put names to the shadows they see on the far wall. According to some, the chains that bind the
Plato on Justice The Greek word which Plato uses to mean "justice" -- dike or dikaios -- is also synonymous with law and can also mean "the just"; as Allan Bloom (1991) notes, Plato uses a more specific term -- dikaiosyne -- in the Republic, which means something more like "justice, the virtue" (p. 442). Gregory Vlastos (1981) goes even further to note that, with Plato's very vocabulary for these concepts
To paraphrase Marx several centuries later, this can most easily be summed up as "from each according to his ability to each according to his needs," or, for Plato, "if each person does one thing for which he is naturally suited, and does it at the opportune moment" (48). Here, Plato is acknowledging that not every individual is equal, nor has the same abilities as everyone else. This, in
Plato and Machiavelli, and how their ideas on leadership compare and contrast with each other. To do this, their respective works the Republic and the Prince will be used. In addition to the works by the two main authors considered, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy will provide important insight on Machiavelli and his work. Indeed, the piece authored by Nederman (2009) contains a section that specifically considers The Prince and
Science, Religion, And the Making of the Modern Mind: Plato and Aristotle The question of whether or not knowledge is identical to mere true belief goes as far back as Plato, as he argued that correct judgment, though a necessity for knowledge, is not sufficient for it. To reinforce his argument, Plato explains the nature and structure of human knowledge using a set of relevant theories and dialogues. Aristotle, a student
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