PHI102 EXAMEN PHILOSOPHICUM – RANI LILL ANJUM

Lecture 3: Plato’s theory of Forms

Introduction once knew but have forgotten. It won’t teach people
Plato’s philosophy covers a wide range of areas, including something new, but the aim of education is to turn a
epistemology (how do we gain knowledge), ontology (what is person’s soul in the right direction. The soul must turn its
the nature of reality), ethics (what is good) and politics (what “eye” (thought) in the right direction (towards the Form).
is justice). In this lecture, we deal with the first two. He was a In order to explain the theory of Forms, Plato uses allegories.
student of Socrates. His known works are written as These can help us to understand better both his ontology and
dialogues, featuring Socrates in philosophical conversations. his epistemology.
His most influential ideas are developed in The Republic.

The cave allegory

What really exists can only be grasped by thought In a cave, prisoners have been chained by their legs and necks
Socrates emphasises the importance of dialogue for philosophical since childhood. They cannot move, and all they can see is
insight. Only through reflection, reasoning and concept the cave wall in front of them. Behind them is a wall and
analysis could we get to the real nature of things. Plato above it a fire. Between the fire and the wall, some people
develops this idea to include both a theory of reality are holding up objects that cast shadows on the wall in front
(ontology) and a theory of knowledge (epistemology). of the prisoners. The prisoners think the shadows are reality.
Much of Plato’s philosophy can be seen as an answer to the One day a prisoner is released and forced away from the others.
Sophists’ relativism. By using rhetorics, the Sophist were able On the way out, he sees the objects being held up, then the
to make any side of an argument seem equally true. In fire. He is then dragged up and out in the open air. He sees
contrast, Plato was interested in real knowledge (EPISTEME), the trees, the birds and eventually the sun.
not in persuasion or strong beliefs (DOXA). He argued that Plato says we are like the prisoners. We live in the cave (the
the Sophists did not give people wisdom, but only opinions. material world), without knowledge about the real world or
Plato divides reality in two (dualism = a 2-part division): the the origin of our experiences (the Forms). To be pulled away
material world, which we can access through our senses, and from the familiar surroundings and life in the prison and into
the world of Forms, which we can only access through the real world, is a painful and frightening experience, and it
thinking. The world of Forms is for Plato more real than the will take time to adjust to the new reality. Still, it is what we
material world. need to if we want true knowledge of reality.
If the prisoner returning from the real world tried to explain it to
the others, he would be thought crazy. His eyes would not be
What are the Forms?
used to the dark and he would not have much interest in the
Plato thought that we recognise the particular things through shadows. And if he tried releasing others, he might even get
their universal properties. X is Red. X is a Book. X is a Horse. killed. Plato thought of Socrates as the released prisoner.
He called such universals Forms. Forms are eternal, perfect
and unchanging essences. They are non-material, but real.
Forms are the causes or origin of all material things. But while the The divided line
Forms are perfect, the material things are only imperfect Plato uses a second allegory. With the cave in mind, we start at
copies. All physical triangles are copies of the Form Triangle. the lowest level of the shadows that the prisoners see. These
The objects imitate the Forms. are the least real. The objects behind them are more real, but
Plato thought of Forms and virtues as closely related. Objects still in the cave. Shadows and objects belong to the visible,
have “virtue” (ARETÉ) when they are similar to their Form. A material world, to belief (DOXA).
knife has ARETÉ/virtue when it functions at its best as a knife, Once we move out of the cave, toward the trees and the sun, we
e.g. sharp and a good grip. In this way, material objects are in the world of Forms. But this reality can only be grasped
should be as much like their Form as possible. Humans by thought. Real knowledge (EPISTEME) can only be gained
should also try to be virtuous and imitate the Form Human. above the line (see figure on the next page).
There is a Form for each virtue: Justice, Good, Honesty, Beauty, Instead of saying that we get no knowledge from our senses, we
and so on. Since Forms are perfect and ideal, there can be no could interpret the 4 levels as degrees of knowledge. First we
Form for evil, ugly, stupidity or other vices. A vice is simply a have superficial understanding, gained from persuasion and
lack of virtue. rhetorics. Next we study particular objects. Science, however,
The Forms exist in a different realm of reality. The world of Forms must move above the particular and towards abstractions
is also where our souls lived before they came into the body, and more general hypotheses and principles.
and they will return there after death. The highest level of knowledge in science are the laws of nature,
When our souls are in the world of Forms, they have real the ultimate explanations of everything that goes on in the
knowledge of them. But once the soul comes into a body, it world. These go beyond particular experiences and objects,
forgets this knowledge and gets occupied with bodily and often involved a high level of idealisation.
pleasures and needs. Science could then be seen as a Platonic activity, where we try to
Plato called philosophy “a preparation for death”, since it is a way go from ungrounded believes (truth by authority), to
for the soul to visit the world of Forms, its home. Education studying particular objects, in order to find classifications,
can help people remember, or recollect, what their souls general hypotheses, and, ultimately, universal laws.
 PHI102 EXAMEN PHILOSOPHICUM – RANI LILL ANJUM

Discussion questions
Plato thought there is a real world and a world that only seems
real. Which world do we live in?
What is a Form?
Explain how the Forms relate to objects.
Plato thought that the only way to have knowledge of the
concrete things is through knowledge of what is universal.
How did Plato think we can gain such real knowledge?
Explain the divided line allegory.
Plato was concerned mainly with what is universal, eternal and
ideal, not with the particular and concrete. Do we think like
this today at all, or is Plato outdated?
How is the theory of Forms both ontology and epistemology?

Plato (429? – 347? BCE)

The divided line allegory:

REALM ONTOLOGY EPISTEMOLOGY PERSPECTIVE

the Forms knowledge
EPISTEME

Universal
the world
concepts, and abstract
of Forms
mathematics, thinking principles
hypotheses
objects beliefs Particular
DOXA

the visible and concrete

shadows,
world events and
(fiction, imaginations
objects
rhetorics)

Doxa or Episteme? Compare the edited version we are presented via

media and education with the vast complexities of real life
phenomena. Who should we trust to inform us?
Many stories seem inspired by Plato’s cave allegory, e.g. The Truman
Show, The Matrix and Room. 5 year-old Jack thinks Room is the entire
world and Ma allows him to believe that the rest of the world exists
only on television.