Plato's political philosophy

1. Plato of Athens
Truth
Goodness
Beauty

2. 429-347 B.C., Athens

3. • Plato was Socrates’
disciple
• Founded the Academy in
Athens, that lasted until
the 6th c. A. D.
• Was Aristotle’s teacher
• Plato’s most important
writings are called
Dialogues
• Socrates is the protagonist
in most Dialogues
• How much content in any
given Dialogue is Socrate’s
point of view or how much is
Plato’s?
Plato and his disciple Aristotle, from The School
of Athens by Raphael Sanzio, painted in 1510.

5. Myth and Dialogue
In his Dialogues, Plato used myths to
argue his points of view

6. Platonic Myths
Distribution of talents
Love
Love
Protagoras, 320 -322d
Symposium, 189d-193 a
Symposium, 203a-204a
Prometeo
The Androgyne
Eros’ birth
Human condition
The judgement of the
souls
Punishments and
rewards
The choosing of a
destiny
Gorgias, 523a - 524a
Phaedo, 113d -114c
Republic, X 617d-621b
The final sentence
Punishments
distribution
Er, the Armenian
The destiny of the souls
Knowledge as memory
The ascension to the
truth
The ascension to the
beautiful
Meno, 81a - e
Phaedro, 246a - 249a
Republic, VII, 514d - 517a
Symposium, 210a - 212c
The reminiscence
The Cave
The mystery of love
Liberation and spiritual
ascension
SUBJECT
DIALOGUE
MYTH
TOPIC

7. Plato’s Intellectual Background
• Socrates’ ethical teachings
• “Know thyself”
• Wisdom is virtue (areté)
• If one knows what the good is, one will
always do it
• Virtue leads to the happy life
• Intellectualistic approach to ethics
• Since everyone wants to be happy above
everything else, no one who knows what
the good is will not chose to do it.
• It is better to suffer injustice than to do it.
Socrates of Athens, 469-399 B.C.

8. Socrates’ Death
• In his Apology, Plato provided a thorough account
of Socrates’ trial and death
• Socrates was charged with
• Impiety: introducing new gods in Athens
• Corrupting the youth
• Sophist: making the weakest argument stronger
• Other Socratic doctrines
• An unexamined (critically) life is not worth living
• To acknowledge one’s own ignorance is to begin to be
wise

9. ‘The Death of Socrates’ by Jacques Louis David, 1787

10. Plato’s Intellectual Background
• Sophists (men of wisdom)
• Gorgias of Leontini Protagoras
• Prodicus of Ceos Democritus
• Hipias of Elis Lysias
• Antiphon
• Thrasymachus of Chalcedon
• Critias of Athens
• Alcidamas of Elaeae
• Itinerant professors of higher education
• Taught rhetoric and composition
• Moral relativists
• Claimed that their science of language could lead
to the knowledge of truth and virtue

11. Plato’s Idealism
• The doctrine of a permanent realm
of eternal Forms that shape our
mutable material world.

12. Plato’s Theory of Forms (Ideas)
• The Forms actually exist and are
the reality (Being) of which the
observed and material world
(Becoming) is simply a shadowy
copy.

13. Plato’s Metaphysical Dualism
• Plato divided the universe into two different
realms
• 1. The intelligible world of Ideas or Forms
(Being)
• 2. The perceptual world we see around us
(Becoming)

14. Platonic Ideas or Forms
• The perceptual world, and all things in it, are
imperfect copies of the intelligible Forms or Ideas
that exist in an ideal (spiritual) world.
• The Forms or Ideas are unchangeable and
perfect, and are only known by the use of the
intellect (not sense-perception or imagination).

15. The Highest Form
The Form of the Good (often interpreted as
Plato's God), is the ultimate object of
knowledge and it sheds light on all other
forms.
Plato compares The Form of the Good to the
sun, which sheds its light on things in the
perceptual world and makes them visible.

16. Modes of Being Modes of Knowing
(metaphysics) (epistemology)
Higher Forms
Mathematical Forms
Understanding
Reason
Sensible
World
Intelligible
world
sensible things
images of things
(paintings, sculpture)
perception
imagination
Opinion
True
Plato’s Analogy of the Dividing Line

17. Table, Justice, Beauty, Circle, Woman
a table, a just action, a beautiful sunrise, a
circle, Britney Spears
objective (exists independently of my mind)
subjective (dependent upon my perception)
known by intellect/reason
perceived by senses
one essence (archetype)
many instances (copies; imitation)
absolute and perfect
particular and imperfect
being (eternal and unchanging)
becoming (ever changing)
transcendent (beyond space and time)
immanent (within space and time)
reality (is real)
appearance (seems real)
World of the Forms
Sensible World

18. Allegory of the Cave
In the perceptual world, the objects we see
around us bear only a dim resemblance to the
ultimately real forms of Plato's intelligible
world.
It is as if we are seeing shadows of cut-out
shapes on the walls of a cave—mere
representations of the reality outside the cave,
illuminated by the sun.

20. Plato’s Legacy
Plato’s metaphysics, particularly the dualism
between the intelligible and the perceptual
influenced later Neoplatonic thinkers such as
Plotinus and religious theologians such as
Saint Paul and Saint Augustine.
Jewish-Christian-Islamic doctrine agrees with
Plato’s metaphysics: Spirit is absolutely
distinct and infinitely superior to the
physical world of “flesh.”

21. Plato’s The Republic
Dialogue which outlines the ideal society based
on justice and reason
The Ideal state is authoritarian and aristocratic
Divided into three classes:
artisans (labor and produce)
soldiers (physical power)
philosopher-kings (wisdom)
Women are educated with men
Allegory of the cave (Book 7)
Theory of perfect state (Book 10)
1763 Plato Republic This edition was the first to be published in English, and was
translated by Harry Spens, DD. (1713-87).

22. Glossary
• Forms (or Ideas): The world of Forms is the real
world of perfect entities: the world of appearance
which most of us occupy most of the time consists
of imperfect copies of the Forms.
• Mimesis: imitation. Plato uses this word to
describe what the takes to be the essence of artistic
endeavour: mirroring nature.
• Oligarchy: a state ruled by a wealthy elite.

23. Glossary
• Philosopher-King: the Rulers in Plato’s ideal
society. Philosophers were to be given this role
because of their ability to perceive the Forms.
• Utopian: presenting a vision of an ideal society.
• Dikaiosune: usually translated as ‘justice’, this has
the sense of doing what is morally right.
• Democracy: a state ruled by the people.

24. Glossary
• Auxiliaries: Guardians who help the Rulers and
provide defense from outside threats.
• Guardians: the class of citizens who protect and
rule the state. They consist of Rulers and
Auxiliaries.
• Totalitarian state: a state in which everything is
controlled and there is little or no scope for
individual freedom.
• Tyranny: a state ruled by a powerful leader.