Greek Philosophy

1
Greek Philosophy

• Socrates, Plato, Aristotle
• some ideas taken from Lori Caldwell at VCC

2
Socrates

• Wrote nothing down. Plato recorded his ideas.
• Inspired much of Western philosophy.
• Called himself a midwife to ideas.
• Concerned with the fate of the individual and
  questioned traditional values.
• Taught by Socratic Method questioning and
  following the argument wherever it led.
• Executed for corrupting the youth of Athens.

3
Plato

• Invented Socrates?
• Early writings probably Socrates ideas later
  writings probably Platos original ideas written
  in the voice of Socrates.
• Founded the Academy, first permanent institution
  of higher learning early university
• Work deals with construction of an ideal society.
• Theory of Forms.
• Teacher of Aristotle.

4
Platos Republic

• Utopian society
• Guardians
• Warriors
• Artisans
• Theory of Forms
• Forms
• Number
• Mathematics
• Music
• Ideal educational system

5
The Allegory

• Prisoners are chained in a cave
• Face the back wall
• Cannot see themselves or each other
• There is a path where people travel
• Fire behind the road creates shadows
• Prisoners only see shadows on the wall

6
Allegory of the Cave

• Allegory a figurative story of a meaning
  metaphorically implied, but not expressly stated
• Plato has Socrates conceive the idea

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Allegory of the Cave photo
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The Truth

• A prisoner is forced to look at the true source
  of the shadows.
• He is pained and blinded by the light
• He prefers the deception of the shadows.

9
Other allegories

• The prisoner is forced up the ascent to the
  outside toward the blinding light
• Allegory of education
• The light blinds him, so he must first look at
  shadows, then through trees. Finally he is able
  to see the sun
• Allegory of enlightenment

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Platos Theory of Forms
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Beauty The Form of Beauty

• 
  
• The concept
  of Beauty
  
• 
  An individual
  beautiful entity
• Imitation of a beautiful
  entity

Beauty
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Platos Forms

• Form of the Good
• Casts light over all the other Forms
• The Forms are the essences of things
• Plato does not trust empiricism or observation
• Without the Forms, we are limited to opinion
• Senses are not reliable to give true knowledge
• Knowledge comes from an examination of the Forms

13
Philosophy of The Republic

• Based on two presumptions
• Forms exist beyond the realm of the sensible
• They exist above such things
• Plato offers only common-sense arguments for
  their existience
• We have to believe the human mind is capable of
  understanding the Forms
• Platos view of the soul becomes important
  because it supports this idea.

14
Platos philosophical Assumptions

• The world revealed by our senses is not the real
  world
• The real world can only be apprehended
  intellectually.
• Education consists in directing toward what is
  real and allowing one to apprehend it.
• The universe is ultimately good.
• Enlightened individuals have an obligation to the
  rest of society.

15
Aristotle

• Broke away from Platos teachings and founded the
  Lyceum, another school to compete with the
  Academy.
• Known as the great systematizer he classified
  and wrote about all important topics of the day,
  like Rhetoric , Logic, Poetics and Physics.
• Science and philosophy must balance, not simply
  choose between, the claims of empiricism(observati
  on and sense experience) and formalism (rational
  deduction).
• Disputed Platos Theory of Forms in his book
  Metaphysics.
• Defined the nature of God as thought thinking of
  itself and the Unmoved Mover.
• Tutored Alexander the Great.
• Influenced the Roman orator Cicero and Catholic
  theology of
• St. Thomas Aquinas.