Platonism

Question	Answer
Platonism	- Is the world made up of all material things? Are there material and non-material things in the world? - Plato’s beliefs —> A collection of beliefs —> Argument/Series of claims - When philosophers say ‘Platonism’ they generally mean to refers to a view of Plato’s often called his ‘theory of the forms.’ - It evolved over Plato’s life, and involves both metaphysical claims and epistemological claims. - We are looking at some arguments in an early dialogue, the Phaedo.
Platonism: Phaedo 65a-67c	1. The senses are unclear and inaccurate (and the body, generally, is a source of trouble). - Your senses mislead you (you cannot trust them) - All of the trouble we are caused is caused by our bodies (wars, murders, etc.) 2. We recognize eg absolute uprightness, (beauty, goodness, tallness, health). - The absolute most (perfect) 3. It is not through the body that we get the ‘truest’ perception of them. - There is a kind of knowledge we have, which is not provided by the senses (our senses trick us, so there is no way for us to know whether something is absolute) 4. Pure knowledge is unavailable in our lifetimes, when we are in the company of our bodies. - Our senses never fully provide truth to us, they NEVER get it right (Descartes states we are unable to know when our senses get it right, Plato states that they never do)
Platonism: Phaedo 74a-77a	1. There is such a thing as equality. - We have the idea of something being equal to something else 2. Our knowledge of it does not come from particular examples, from experience. - People can disagree on two things being equal (1). Experience will never give us two things which are truly equal (2). 3. Therefore we must have had previous knowledge of equality (and all other ‘absolutes’ eg beauty and goodness). - We must have known it before (previous life). 4. So knowledge is recollection (and our souls exist before our births). - You already know things from prior to experiencing said things, so all knowledge being acquired or just simply known is just a recollection.
Platonism: Absolutes	These absolutes, as the view develops, are called by Plato ‘forms.’ They exists at a different (higher) level of reality and things in this world ‘partake’ of them. - Forms are these ideas - The forms do not exist in space and time - Beyond the senses is a more basic, perfect world
Platonism: Epistemological Collection of Claims	1. The senses are to be distrusted. 2. True knowledge of an object comes to one who approaches it “with the unaided intellect.” 2 is a kind of “rationalism.”
Platonism: Metaphysical	1. There are abstract entities, immaterial objects. 2. There are universals. - 1 doesn’t really have a name, though it’s sometimes just called “platonism.” 2 is often called “realism” (though that has others meanings in philosophy as well). - One opposite of 1 is “materialism.” The opposite of 2 is “nominalism,” a word sometimes used to name the denial of 1 as well.

- Is the world made up of all material things? Are there material and non-material things in the world? - Plato’s beliefs —> A collection of beliefs —> Argument/Series of claims - When philosophers say ‘Platonism’ they generally mean to refers to a view of Plato’s often called his ‘theory of the forms.’ - It evolved over Plato’s life, and involves both metaphysical claims and epistemological claims. - We are looking at some arguments in an early dialogue, the Phaedo.

Platonism: Phaedo 65a-67c

1. The senses are unclear and inaccurate (and the body, generally, is a source of trouble). - Your senses mislead you (you cannot trust them) - All of the trouble we are caused is caused by our bodies (wars, murders, etc.) 2. We recognize eg absolute uprightness, (beauty, goodness, tallness, health). - The absolute most (perfect) 3. It is not through the body that we get the ‘truest’ perception of them. - There is a kind of knowledge we have, which is not provided by the senses (our senses trick us, so there is no way for us to know whether something is absolute) 4. Pure knowledge is unavailable in our lifetimes, when we are in the company of our bodies. - Our senses never fully provide truth to us, they NEVER get it right (Descartes states we are unable to know when our senses get it right, Plato states that they never do)

Platonism: Phaedo 74a-77a

1. There is such a thing as equality. - We have the idea of something being equal to something else 2. Our knowledge of it does not come from particular examples, from experience. - People can disagree on two things being equal (1). Experience will never give us two things which are truly equal (2). 3. Therefore we must have had previous knowledge of equality (and all other ‘absolutes’ eg beauty and goodness). - We must have known it before (previous life). 4. So knowledge is recollection (and our souls exist before our births). - You already know things from prior to experiencing said things, so all knowledge being acquired or just simply known is just a recollection.

Platonism: Absolutes

These absolutes, as the view develops, are called by Plato ‘forms.’ They exists at a different (higher) level of reality and things in this world ‘partake’ of them. - Forms are these ideas - The forms do not exist in space and time - Beyond the senses is a more basic, perfect world

Platonism: Epistemological Collection of Claims

1. The senses are to be distrusted. 2. True knowledge of an object comes to one who approaches it “with the unaided intellect.” 2 is a kind of “rationalism.”

Platonism: Metaphysical

1. There are abstract entities, immaterial objects. 2. There are universals. - 1 doesn’t really have a name, though it’s sometimes just called “platonism.” 2 is often called “realism” (though that has others meanings in philosophy as well). - One opposite of 1 is “materialism.” The opposite of 2 is “nominalism,” a word sometimes used to name the denial of 1 as well.

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	Created by Nic Dane over 7 years ago