Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Introduction

The theory of forms of Plato portrays to us that abstract non-material forms have the highest kind of fundamental reality as compared to this material world that is known well to us by sensation. The authors show Plato speaking about these entities through Socrates, he sometimes suggests the use of these forms. To him, these are the true and only study objects capable of providing genuine knowledge (Wright, 1966).

Theory of Forms

In the metaphysics of Plato, there exists a timeless essence; forms or as otherwise called entities, of being in a level. This metaphysics asserts the existence of a plane transcending beyond the ordinary general perception employed by us to things. Thus the name transcendental is used (Guthrie, 1986).

Plato wanted to provide an explanation that was rational through the forms of theory on how knowledge becomes possible e.g. physics, chemistry. He was also to identify the knowledge’s objects (Nails, 2002). He was also to provide a way of knowing if something is true knowledge or just an opinion i.e. identify the wise from the unwise. He does say in Timaeus that something that is gotten through reasoning is in that same state always while one by opinion never is and is ever in the becoming process (Cadame, 1999). This relationship is illustrated through Plato’s use of the dive line concept in which there are awareness levels from the level of imagination moving to the perception level, level of reasoning to the final level of understanding. A person can thus move through from imagination level to the level of understanding if he were to apply a hierarchical form way of thinking (Kahn, 2004).

Form of Good

Residing at the top is the holistic “Form of Forms” which is only known through thoughts that are pure hence it is good. To Plato, it is compared to the sun (Soccio, 2007). Therefore, just as vision is enabled by the sun, intelligence and a sense of understanding are enabled by being good.

In the cave, the divide line idea is illustrated. A prisoner breaks from the shackles realizing that it is only perceptible objects producing these images (Bakalis, 2005). However, when someone leaves the cave, an illustration of reasoning is portrayed. The person is said to have realized that the cave that they thought was real was a sense limitation. This person is who makes it out is wise and should be the ruler.

Given an example of a table, it could be said to be not real but rather just variations of the truth table. Therefore representations like shape or color just portray variation of the truth table. To Plato, these physical things were not true. He, therefore, theorizes that we live in a corrupt imperfect world and there exists an illusion free spiritual life of which the earth is just a representation it (Haymond, 2005)

Conclusion

The utopia that Plato fantasies i.e. when philosophers are to rule like kings is possible but inevitably hard to come by. Ideally, this utopia could be a wonderful thing as from Plato’s description there would be rest from evil if there is a coinciding of philosophy and politics. On the theory of forms, there are many abstract things that Plato talks about that seem to be endless. So could it be possible that according to Plato placing importance on objects that existence which of subjective nature is of less importance? Therefore do we conclude that elements such as hunger or itches are of less importance or do we all together ignore this theory of forms?

References

Bakalis, N. (2005). Handbook of Greek Philosophy: From Thales to the Stoics Analysis and Fragments. Trafford Publishing.

Cadame, C. (1999). Indigenous and Modern Perspectives on Tribal Initiation Rites: Education According to Plato. Padilla : Bucknell University Press.

Guthrie, W. (1986). A History of Greek Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Haymond, B. (2005). A Modern Worldview from Plato’s Cave. Brigham: Brigham Young University.

Kahn, C. H. (2004). “The Framework”. Plato and the Socratic Dialogue: The Philosophical Use of a Literary Form. Cambridge University.

Nails, D. (2002). “Ariston/Perictione”. The People of Plato: A Prosopography of Plato and Other Socratics. Hackett Publishing.

Soccio, D. J. (2007). Archetypes of Wisdom : An Introduction to Philosophy. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.

Wright, J.H. (1966). Harvard Studies in Classical Philology. Harvard: JSTOR.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2022, January 3). Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave. https://ivypanda.com/essays/plates-forms-and-its-association-to-platos-cave/

Work Cited

"Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave." IvyPanda, 3 Jan. 2022, ivypanda.com/essays/plates-forms-and-its-association-to-platos-cave/.

References

IvyPanda. (2022) 'Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave'. 3 January.

References

IvyPanda. 2022. "Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave." January 3, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/plates-forms-and-its-association-to-platos-cave/.

1. IvyPanda. "Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave." January 3, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/plates-forms-and-its-association-to-platos-cave/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Plates Forms and Its Association to Plato’s Cave." January 3, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/plates-forms-and-its-association-to-platos-cave/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1