ThePhilosophyCenter: Metaphysics, Epistemology: Platonism

 Hello!

Another important early greek philosophy was Platonism, established by the philosopher Plato (originally Aristocles). Here's a short introduction on the man first.

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CHARACTER PROFILE: PLATO

Born: 428-423 BC. Athens.

Died: 348 BC. Athens. 

Works: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Phaedo, Meno, Protagoras, Gorgias, Symposium, Phaedrus, Parmenides, Theaetetus, Republic, Timaeus, Laws. 

Ideas: Theory of forms

Text Intro: Plato, born  circa 428 BC, is an influential philosopher who has contributed much to philosophy. Born Aristocles, he was destined to a life in politics but later decided to become a philosopher. He wss a student of Socrates and died 348 AD in Athens, after establishing the Academy, a school of thought there.

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Platonism's central belief surrounds his big theory: the Theory of Forms. Plato thinks that the material world is but a copy - a duplicate of a better, real world. According to the theory, there are two kinds of things: the material world and world of Forms. The "forms" represent types of things such as properties. For example, "Tableness" is a form of tables. Plato believed this world of forms was divine and perfect and nonspatiotemporal - meaning time and space, the two main dimensions of the physical world, do not affect it or come into play. ("spatio" refers to space and "temporal" to time)

Plato also has interesting beliefs regarding the afterlife. He believes in reincarnation and believes that we know things before our birth and the acquirement of knowledge is only a recollection of knowledge. His view on epistemology is also intriguing, believing that, innately and automatically, we have knowledge of the Platonic ideas/forms. 

His student and equally as prominent philosopher Aristotle differs in his philosophy and we might cover him next after this week.  

Let's compare Platonism with Christian philosophy. There is certainly a religious taste in platonism. Did you see it? It surrounds the theory of forms and ideas. The idea of a perfect, divine, nonspatiotemporal form sounds similar to the realm of God, also perfect, divine, and transcendent of space and time. 

That's all for today!

Next Week topic: Aristotelianism

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