Download - Plato the Rule of REASON
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
1/36
THE RULE OF REASON
Prepared by Mr. Roland Lorenzo M. Ruben
Philosophy section, SSD
De La Salle University-Dasmarias
(427-347 BC)
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
2/36
HISTORICAL
BACKGROUND(Greek: , Pltn, "wide, broad-shouldered")Greek philosopher bornto an aristocratic family in Athens.
Orphaned as a child, Perictione,his mother married Pyrilampes(an associate of Pericles).
A disciple of Socrates, he
witnessed the death of histeacher in 399 BC.
(428-347 BCE)
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
3/36
HISTORICAL
BACKGROUND
Left Athens and traveled to Italy,Sicily, Egypt, India.
Made two trips to Sicily: 367 &
361: to tutor Dionysius theYounger, in the art ofphilosophical rule.
In 387, Plato founded the
Academy in Athens Intended to be a training
ground for young men from allover Greece
(428-347 BCE)
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
4/36
The Academyin Athens in 387, first European university:astronomy, biology, math, political theory, philosophy.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
5/36
HISTORICAL
BACKGROUND
Concluding years spentlecturing at the Academy.
Died at 80 in Athens in 348 or347 BC.
(428-347 BCE)
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
6/36
METAPHYSICAL
BACKGROUND
According to this theory, ultimate reality is a realm of
forms (essences) not accessible to the senses but only tothe mind (intellect). He calls that level of reality the
intelligible realm (because it is accessible only to the
intellect). The perceptible world (i.e., the world we
perceive through our senses) is a reflection or copy of
that higher intelligible world.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
7/36
METAPHYSICAL
BACKGROUND
ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE
The myth of the cave describes individuals
chained deep within the recesses of a cave.Bound so that vision is restricted, theycant see one another. The only thing
visible is the wall of the cave upon whichappear shadows cast by models or statues
of animals and objects that are passedbefore a brightly burning fire.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
8/36
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
9/36
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
10/36
THEORY OF HUMAN
NATURE
Man is a reflection of the duality of thesensible and ideal worlds
Body & Soul:
Body: 4 elements: earth, water, air, fireSoul: 3 levels: Reason, Spirit, Appetite
Man is his soul: There was a timewhen the soul was not bonded to thebody, man is thought to be originallypart of the Eternal One.
But his birth into his earthly andmaterial existence tainted, and madehim forget about, his divine past.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
11/36
reason
spirit
appetite
Tripartite structure of the soul
- Reason= rational or moral
judgment
- Spirit= emotion
- Appetite= bodilydesires/physical urges
We are ineradicably social: to
live in society is natural tohuman beings.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
12/36
World of
Idea Fall
RECOLLECTIONANAMNESIS
World of the
Senses
After the fall, soul was exiled, imprisoned in the body.
Material world is only a shadowy reflection of the world of Forms;
knowledge is a recollection, reminiscenceof the Forms - s
Freedom:souls departure from the body towards the world of Forms:union with the Ideal Beauty and Good itself.
DIAGNOSIS
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
13/36
Reason, Sprit and Appetite arepresent to some degree in everyperson.
Reason ought to control both Spiritand Appetite; each has its proper roleto play, there should ideally beharmonious agreement among thethree aspects of our nature.
Depending on which element isdominant, there are three kinds ofpeople whose main desire isknowledge, reputation or material
gain.
World of the Senses
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
14/36
1. REASON (knowledge: philosophic)
Governing(Rulers or Guardians)those whoare intelligent, rational, self-controlled, in love withwisdom, well suited to make decisions for thecommunity. These correspond to the "reason" part ofthe soul and are very few.
King SolomonMahatma Gandhi
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
15/36
2. SPIRIT (reputation: victory-loving)
Protective(Warriors or Auxiliaries)those who areadventurous, strong and brave; in the armed forces. Thesecorrespond to the "spirit" part of the soul.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
16/36
Productive(Workers)the labourers, carpenters,plumbers, masons, merchants, farmers, ranchers,etc. These correspond to the "appetite" part of thesoul.
3. APPETITE (material gain: profit-loving)
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
17/36
A well-ordered, just society is one in whicheach class or person plays a distinctiverole, in harmony with other classes
The problems of human individuals areintimately related to the defects in humansocieties = interdependent
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
18/36
An imperfect society tends to produce
flawed individuals, and troubled or poorly
educated individuals contribute to social
problems.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/0,9263,7601940704,00.htmlhttp://www.time.com/time/magazine/0,9263,7601941114,00.htmlhttp://www.acclaimimages.com/usepolicy.html -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
19/36
Plato, through the words of Socrates, asserts thatsocieties have a tripartite class structure correspondingto the appetite/spirit/reason structure of the individual
soul.
TRIP RTITE CL SS STRUCTURE
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Marcus_aurelius_bust.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:AlexanderAttackingDarius.jpg -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
20/36
1. Aristocracy
The Ancient Greek term meant a system ofgovernment with "rule by the best".This is the firstdefinition given in most dictionaries. The word isderived from two words, "aristos" meaning the
"best" and "kratein" "to rule". Aristocracy = ideal society ruled by a philosopher-
king; the ideal state: 3 classes:
merchant class: economic structure of the state;
temperance military class: security needs; courage
philosopher-kings: political leadership; wisdom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:T_Jefferson_by_Charles_Willson_Peale_1791_2.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Marcus_aurelius_bust.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:AlexanderAttackingDarius.jpg -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
21/36
What do you think of the following
statements by Plato (Socrates)?
The best possible
political system (state) will
be ruled (governed) by
PHILOSOPHERS!
(Is he kidding?)
The best rulers of the state are those who know the Good,who dont look to politics for their happiness, & who live ahigher life than the political life.
Political power should be held by those who do not want
it.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
22/36
2. Timarchy
= honor and fame
are valued aboveall (spirit)
The word derives from the
Greek words timo-, meaning
"honour" or "worth", and -
kratiameaning "rule" (as ingovernment).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Helmed_Hoplite_Sparta.JPG -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
23/36
3. Oligarchy
(Greek , Oligarkha) is a form of governmentwhere political power effectively rests with asmall, elite segment of society(typically the mostpowerful, whether by wealth, family, military strength, or
political influence). The word oligarchyis from the Greekwords for "few" ( fligon) and "rule" ( arcgekho)= rule of the few.
= money-making become the dominant activity,
political power reside with the wealthy
http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Money&id=Money02http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Money&id=Money02http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Money&id=Money02http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Consumerism&id=America23http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Progress&id=Progress01 -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
24/36
http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?full=1&set_albumName=Progress&id=Progress01 -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
25/36
4. Democracy
(literally "rule by the people", from the Greek demos,"people," and kratos, "rule") is a form of government for a
nation state, or for an organization in which all the
citizens have an equal voteor voice in shapingpolicy or electing government officials.
it is absurd to give every person an equalsay; the person lacks discipline, pursues mere pleasures ofthe moment, indulging unnecessary, spendthrift desires.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
26/36
http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?set_albumName=Politics&id=Politics01 -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
27/36
5. Tyranny
A tyrant(Latin tyrannus, from Greek
trannos) possesses absolute powerthrough the peoplein a state or in anorganization.
In ancient Greece, tyrants were generallyaristocrats who had gained power over theothers by getting the support of the poor peopleby giving them land, freeing them from slavery,etc.
the person is dominated by his own appetites,
especially sexual desires ; Money-making,pleasure-seeking, lust-dominatedpeople are unhappy! Idi Amin
http://radicalgraphics.org/collection/view_photo.php?set_albumName=Politics&id=Politics01 -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
28/36
PRESCRIPTION
JUSTICE: the just state is one in which each classperforms its own function well without infringing on theactivities of the other classes while the just man is the one inwhom the rational element, supported by the will, controls
the appetites. HARMONY(injustice is lack of it)
EDUCATION: themost important way to
produce virtuous,harmonious, well-
balanced, justpeople: not just formalschooling but all thesocial influences onones development
paideia
Training ofthe whole
person:- Sports
-Poetry
-Music
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
29/36
Can a really just (or at leastapproximately just) political
system exist? What would make itpossible?
(It is the separation ofphilosophy & politicalpower.)
And this leads to . . . .
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
30/36
Paraguay President Fernando Lugo
http://aa.wrs.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0S0zu7FI.1JZKkAn2C1Rwx.;_ylu=X3oDMTBpaWhqZmNtBHBvcwMzBHNlYwNzcgR2dGlkAw--/SIG=1m2l4g8tj/EXP=1240364357/**http%3A//ph.images.search.yahoo.com/images/view%3Fback=http%253A%252F%252Fph.images.search.yahoo.com%252Fsearch%252Fimages%253F_adv_prop%253Dimage%2526fr%253Dfp-yie8%2526va%253Dfernando%252Blugo%2526sz%253Dall%26w=500%26h=375%26imgurl=static.flickr.com%252F3039%252F2291491292_215aa4948b.jpg%26rurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F2291491292%252F%26size=157.8kB%26name=Fernando%2BLugo%26p=fernando%2Blugo%26type=JPG%26oid=c503995a3791d558%26fusr=Fernando%2BLugo%2BAPC%26tit=Fernando%2BLugo%26hurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F%26no=3%26tt=4037%26sigr=11osl8ov2%26sigi=11gvelb04%26sigb=132gogioh%26sigh=11d8miijbhttp://aa.wrs.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0S0zu7FI.1JZKkAnWC1Rwx.;_ylu=X3oDMTBpZTByOGFiBHBvcwMyBHNlYwNzcgR2dGlkAw--/SIG=1m240d6r7/EXP=1240364357/**http%3A//ph.images.search.yahoo.com/images/view%3Fback=http%253A%252F%252Fph.images.search.yahoo.com%252Fsearch%252Fimages%253F_adv_prop%253Dimage%2526fr%253Dfp-yie8%2526va%253Dfernando%252Blugo%2526sz%253Dall%26w=500%26h=375%26imgurl=static.flickr.com%252F2086%252F2290688247_80750617b8.jpg%26rurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F2290688247%252F%26size=126.2kB%26name=Fernando%2BLugo%26p=fernando%2Blugo%26type=JPG%26oid=3d3b3a17cfa15c84%26fusr=Fernando%2BLugo%2BAPC%26tit=Fernando%2BLugo%26hurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F%26no=2%26tt=4037%26sigr=11oias9bi%26sigi=11gkrkskh%26sigb=132gogioh%26sigh=11d8miijbhttp://aa.wrs.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0S0zu7FI.1JZKkAm2C1Rwx.;_ylu=X3oDMTBpdnJhMHUzBHBvcwMxBHNlYwNzcgR2dGlkAw--/SIG=1m27481ep/EXP=1240364357/**http%3A//ph.images.search.yahoo.com/images/view%3Fback=http%253A%252F%252Fph.images.search.yahoo.com%252Fsearch%252Fimages%253F_adv_prop%253Dimage%2526fr%253Dfp-yie8%2526va%253Dfernando%252Blugo%2526sz%253Dall%26w=500%26h=375%26imgurl=static.flickr.com%252F2045%252F2175557642_a0115372c7.jpg%26rurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F2175557642%252F%26size=138.5kB%26name=Fernando%2BLugo%26p=fernando%2Blugo%26type=JPG%26oid=a48be1e0697fee94%26fusr=Fernando%2BLugo%2BAPC%26tit=Fernando%2BLugo%26hurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252Ffernandolugoapc%252F%26no=1%26tt=4037%26sigr=11okg1a10%26sigi=11g7uh6i6%26sigb=132gogioh%26sigh=11d8miijb -
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
31/36
unlesspolitical power & philosophyare brought together& those who nowpursue either the one or the other
exclusively are prevented from doing so --neither our political problems nor ourhuman troubles in general can be ended
. . ..
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
32/36
From the elite:
Produce philosopher-kings(Guardians): intellectual studies
(mathematics, philosophy, etc) = only such lovers of wisdom
and truth would be impervious to the usual temptations tomisuse power; they value more happiness of a right and rational
life.
From the non-elite:
the Auxiliaries= soldiers, police and civil servants; theywould put the directions of the Guardians into effect.
the workers of all kinds= farmers, craftsmen, traders,
and all those who produce and distribute the material
necessities of life.
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
33/36
CRITICAL DISCUSSION
He seems more concerned with the harmony andstability of the whole society than the well-beingof the individuals in it
HisRepublichas a directly authoritarian,totalitarian character
He dismisses democratic constitutions rather
unfairly He endorses democracy for all its imperfections
as the best kind of constitution, given humannature as it is (Stateman, Laws)
Wh t ill I b h I ?
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
34/36
What will I be when I grow up?
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
35/36
-
8/11/2019 Plato the Rule of REASON
36/36
THE RULE OF
REASON
(427-347 BC)