He is committed to the adjudication of his guilt or innocence exclusively through rational arguments grounded in truth and the logical validity of the arguments themselves. Plato's Republic: Epistemologically, Socrates believed that all of us are Continue Reading...
Plato's Philosopher King Plato and the Philosopher-King With the Allegory of the Cave, Plato expresses the notion that the best thing a philosopher can do is lead the people and that, in turn, a leader (king) must be a philosopher. Plato emphasizes Continue Reading...
In his model, Plato is therefore unjust. Just as his social and political arrangement of a city is inappropriate for humans, so too is his argument for the humans in that political and social arrangement. Most of his arguments for the individuals i Continue Reading...
One of the points clarified in this way is then, as mentioned above, Socrates' apparent stubborn foolhardiness in refusing to refute the court's decision. Xenophon notes that Socrates found death desirable over life. This is a point that Socrates h Continue Reading...
To wit, in Socrates' day, there were no official government prosecutors (commonly referred to in modern America as "District Attorneys"); in effect, any citizen could bring an indictment against any other citizen, and call for a trial. And that's ba Continue Reading...
Plato's Republic And Justice Justice is ultimately an unknowable concept, if we accept Plato's ideas of 'form' or the essential nature of concepts. In the Republic, Plato presents several intelligent and well-thought-out discussions about the nature Continue Reading...
Plato Cave The Sociological Implications of Plato's Allegory of the Cave Social enlightenment is an abstract concept indeed, and one that is tied closely to collective ways of understanding and perceiving complex cultural dimensions such are hierar Continue Reading...
Just as their problems are caused by humans, their problems can also be solved by humans. This fact is exemplified by the existence of politics, where people learn to befriend and utilize people who would otherwise do them harm. Skill at politics, Continue Reading...
Plato's Censorship Although Book III in Plato's The Republic is titled 'The Arts in Education', it has come to be known as the author's censorship treatise. In order to provide an 'ideal' education for the state's guardians, or rulers, and to ensure Continue Reading...
The image is quite close to a contemporary understanding, for it carries a Christian connotation, which is an element of importance in the present democratic values.("Virtue is free, and as a man honours or dishonours her he will have more or less o Continue Reading...
Plato's Republic and George Orwell's 1984 Philosophy could be defined as the highest level of true clarity and understanding human thought can aspire to. It would thus seem strange to compare the ideal philosophical kingdom of Plato's Republic with Continue Reading...
Plato It is possible to read Plato's Apology as the best extant textual representation of the legacy of Athens in the fifth century BCE in law and politics. The fact is that the Athenians, although they voted to put Socrates to death, might very wel Continue Reading...
Plato's Republic There is some truth to the idea that certain appetites are difficult to control. As animals, we seek things like food and sex, as these are among our most basest needs. As humans, we may seek some of these things to excess, and indu Continue Reading...
Plato and McLuhan: Truth and the Medium In Understanding Media, McLuhan makes the case that the medium contains as much meaning as the content which the medium conveys. In a sense, McLuhan breaks deconstructs the process of communication to show tha Continue Reading...
However, many times, viewing an object in relation to other objects does indeed transcend the permanence of the meaning and create new meaning. Therefore, our knowledge of what we are convinced is real can change, which highlights the question of wh Continue Reading...
Socrates' speech in Plato's Apology. It is this author's opinion that Socrates' position that the unexamined life is not worth living has validity. We will see that this is the case as we examine Socrates' spontaneous oration regarding virtue and ho Continue Reading...
It is noted that students be chosen at an early age and that only those students with a true love of learning and never ending quest for knowledge will become true philosophers. The student of philosophy must possess the virtues of courage, magnif Continue Reading...
"I believe myself able to speak about Homer better than any man; and that neither Metrodorus of Lampsacus, nor Stesimbrotus of Thasos, nor Glaucon, nor any one else who ever was, had as good ideas about Homer as I have, or as many." Plato's main pu Continue Reading...
Waking Life and Plato's Republic Richard Linklater's 2001 film Waking Life explores the nature of reality and its relationship to dreaming, and in particular the way in which the worlds of dreaming and reality intersect and cloud each other. At one Continue Reading...
Plato conceived that there were two great causes of human corruption, viz., bad or ill-directed education, and the corrupt influence of the body on the soul. His ethical discussions, therefore, have for their object, the limiting of the desires, an Continue Reading...
Self-Reflection and the Philosophical Mirror In Plato's Socratic dialogue in Apology, Socrates makes the bold declaration that "the unexamined life is not worth living" (Apology 38a). Since I am a great believer in the value of self-examination, thi Continue Reading...
The discrepancy between the ideal and the real and the difficulty of arriving at the truth through deduction and induction is something that everyone must grapple with who deals with the ethics of a profession, like accounting. "Prisoners may learn Continue Reading...
Still, the central message of the book was peace within the self and towards others, although it does also advocate self-defense. The Koran for example states "Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah Continue Reading...
Socrates The main themes of Plato's Apology are the great irony of many of Socrates' claims, his use of the Socratic method of teaching, and his surprising strategy of questioning the fundamental validity of his trial itself, rather than putting on Continue Reading...
Philosophy In Book I of Plato's Republic, Thrasymachus, Glaucon, and Adeimantus provide intellectual foils for Socrates's ethical philosophy. Socrates responds to Thrasymachus's stance, which is essentially that, "the life of an unjust person is bet Continue Reading...
Plato and Socrates -- Human Soul There are a number of philosophical tenets that have been the subject of intense scrutiny since humans coalesced into formal societies. Who are we as a species? Where do we fit in with the universe? What is morality? Continue Reading...
Plato and Aristotle Both Plato and Aristotle attempted to philosophically construct the ideal society and the most suitable form of government. Two of the main areas on which the two philosophers disagree are the importance of private property and o Continue Reading...
Philosophers are those most endowed to comprehend reality, therefore they ought to be granted state leadership. At the same time, people ought to realize their potential, an action which implied not only virtuosity, but also the achievement of happi Continue Reading...
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 m Continue Reading...
This is Aristotle's launching pad for his discussion of politics. To him, ethics and politics are matters of rational judgment, stemming from the natural inclinations of individual humans. This notion is reflected in Aristotle's analysis of the con Continue Reading...
" (Kundera: 60) at this point, a strong connection between body and soul is forged. Her mother is unwell, and Tereza wants to visit her. However, Tomas opposes this trip so she does not go. Tereza falls in the street hours later and injures herself. Continue Reading...
Plato and Descartes Plato concept of innate goodness and Descartes descriptions of human reasoning for being good both provide a foundation for man's need to better understand the basic and spiritual goodness found within human nature. In Plato's Re Continue Reading...
In his second exception, Plato is only making reference to court appointed suicide, again implying an immoral character flaw resulting in an unwanted citizen. Any assistance provided in such a case would need to be represented by the court in order Continue Reading...
Philosopher-kings strive to lead individuals out of the cave, and to perceive 'the real,' the pure and ideal world of the forms rather than the shadows of ideals. This idealistic concept is one reason why Plato is so determined that every human bein Continue Reading...
His argument is that the two extreme sides are opposed by nature hence they exist in a state of "civil war." The third part of the soul is identified as the "spirited part" which is "far from being [appetitive], for in the civil war in the soul it a Continue Reading...
Plato, The Apology of Socrates The charges against Socrates, as given in Plato's Apology, are twofold. This is how Socrates himself phrases it: And now I will try to defend myself against them: these new accusers must also have their affidavit read Continue Reading...
Justice equalled virtuosity. The goal was a rather pragmatic one since what the philosopher had in mind was the ideal functioning of the city (where a happy city would mean happy people). It is important to understand the fact that a city can reach Continue Reading...
From this we need to understand that the existence of entities, beings which superior power and knowledge is accepted. People not only accept that these being actually exist, but they obey their commands. From this one can deduce that morality is c Continue Reading...
Explaining Plato’s Theory Plato’s theory of ideas was based on the concept that all knowledge was innate and was achieved by way of recollection. He thus stated that “a man must have intelligence of universals, and be able to procee Continue Reading...
Philosophy: Knowledge Is Virtue Socrates is widely acknowledged as the world's first philosopher, since he was the first to direct the attention of men from merely focusing on the study of nature to the study of human nature. Indeed, Socrates was th Continue Reading...
