Plato
Plato (Greek: ∏λ?των, English: Plato, about 427 BC - 347 BC) is not only ancient Greek philosophy, but also all Western philosophy and even One of the greatest philosophers and thinkers in all of Western culture.
His original name was Aristokles, but he was later renamed Plato because of his strong body and broad forehead (in Greek, the word Platus means "flat, broad", etc.). The fourth child in the family. Plato was the nickname given to him by his physical education teacher.
He was born in Athens to parents from a prominent family, and received a complete education since childhood. He loved literature in his early years, wrote poems and tragedies, and was interested in politics. After dating Socrates when he was about 20 years old, he became obsessed with philosophical research. In 399 BC, Socrates was tried and sentenced to death, which made him completely disappointed with the existing political system. The death of his teacher dealt a heavy blow to Plato. Like his teacher, he opposed democratic politics and believed that a person should do and According to his status, farmers only farm, craftsmen only work, businessmen only do business, and civilians cannot participate in national affairs. Socrates' death deepened his prejudice against the civilian government. He said that when we make a pair of shoes, we need to find a person with good craftsmanship. When we are sick, we need to find a good doctor. But if we leave such an important matter as governing the country to just anyone, isn't this absurd?
After the death of his teacher, Plato no longer wanted to stay in Athens. From the age of 28 to 40, he roamed overseas, visiting Egypt, Italy, Sicily and other places, where he investigated and promoted his political ideas. In 388 BC, he went to the ancient city of Syracuse in Sicily and wanted to persuade the ruler to establish an utopia governed by philosophers, but his goal was not achieved. Unfortunately, he was sold into slavery on his way back, and his friends spent a lot of money to redeem him.
In 387 BC, Plato returned to Athens and founded his own school_--the Academy (or Academy) in the northwest corner of the city near a garden and sports ground dedicated to the Greek hero Acadmus. "Academy", Academy). The name of the academy is related to the address of the academy. The location of the academy is related to the legendary Greek hero Academus, so it was named after him. This is the earliest institution of higher learning in the West, and later higher academic institutions (Academy) are also named after it. It is the predecessor of the universities that developed in the West during the Middle Ages. The academy existed for more than 900 years until it was closed by Emperor Justinian in 529 AD. The academy was greatly influenced by Pythagoras, and its curriculum was similar to the traditional topics of the Pythagoreans, including arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and acoustics.
In 367 BC, Plato traveled again. At this time, the Academy had been established for more than 20 years. He went to Sicily twice in an attempt to realize his political ambitions and put his ideas into practice, but was forcibly exiled. He returned to Athens in 360 BC and continued to lecture and write in the academy. Until 347 BC, Plato died at the age of 80.
Plato was a student of Socrates, and Aristotle was a student of Plato. The three of them had a profound influence on ancient Greece and later Western thought and civilization.
Plato’s main works
Plato was quick in thinking, extensive in research and prolific in writing. There are more than 40 works handed down in his name, and 13 letters. Plato's main philosophical thoughts are recorded in the form of dialogues. In Plato's dialogues, there are many conversations in the name of Socrates, so it is difficult for people to distinguish which are Socrates' thoughts and which are Plato's thoughts. After generations of scholars' painstaking and meticulous research, 24 of them and 4 letters were confirmed to be authentic, mainly including:
I "Epicurus", "Socrates' Apology", "Crimson" "Litong" "Phaedo"
II "Ctyras" "Theaetetus" "Wise Man" "Statesman"
III "Ba Menides" "Philippas" "Feasting" "Phaedrus"
IV "Archibaede One" "Archibaede Two" "Gorgias"
"The Sophist", "The Statesman", "Philippus", "The Laws" and "The Republic"
Most of Plato's works It is written in a dialogue style, with distinctive characters, vivid and interesting scenes, beautiful and gorgeous language, rigorous and meticulous arguments, rich and profound content, and achieves a high degree of unity between philosophy and literature, logic and rhetoric. It is not only philosophical but also literary. extremely important meaning and value.
Plato’s Thoughts
Plato believed that in order for any philosophy to be universal, it must include a theory about nature and the universe. Plato sought to grasp eternal truths about individuals and nature, and therefore develop a natural philosophy that suited and was subordinate to his political and theological views.
Plato believed that tangible things in nature are fluid, but the "forms" or "ideas" that make up these tangible substances are eternal. Plato points out that when we say "horse" we are not referring to any horse, but to any kind of horse.
The meaning of "horse" itself is independent of various horses ("tangible"). It does not exist in space and time, and therefore is eternal. But a specific, tangible horse that exists in the sensory world is "fluid" and can die and decay. This can be used as a preliminary explanation of Plato's "Theory of Ideas".
Plato believes that we cannot have a true understanding of those changing and flowing things. We only have opinions or views on them. The only things we can truly understand are those that we can use our reason to understand. The “form” or “idea” of understanding. Therefore Plato believed that knowledge is fixed and certain, and there can be no wrong knowledge. But opinions can be wrong.
Plato's metaphor of the cave In Plato's "The Republic", there is such a famous metaphor of the cave to explain the theory of ideas: There is a group of prisoners in a cave, their hands and feet are tied, The body could not turn around and could only face away from the hole. There was a white wall in front of them and a fire burning behind them. On the white wall they saw the shadows of themselves and the objects behind them and between the fire and the fire. Since they could not see anything else, the prisoners thought the shadows were real things. Finally, one man broke free from his shackles and groped his way out of the cave. For the first time he saw the real thing. He returns to the cave and tries to explain to the others that the shadows are actually illusions and show them the way to the light. But to the prisoners the man seemed even more foolish than before he had escaped, and declared to him that there was nothing in the world but the shadow on the wall.
Plato uses this story to tell us that "form" is actually the physical object illuminated by the sun, and what our sensory world can feel is just the shadow on the white wall. Our nature is dark and monotonous compared to the bright conceptual world. People who do not understand philosophy can only see those shadows, while philosophers see external things in the sunshine of truth.
Plato's "Utopia" also painted us a picture of an ideal utopia. Plato believed that the country should be ruled by philosophers. The citizens in Plato's Utopia are divided into three classes: defenders, soldiers and ordinary people. The Patriots are a small group of elites who manage the country. They can be inherited, but outstanding children from other classes can also be trained to become defenders, and the descendants of defenders may also be demoted to the class of ordinary people. The task of the Patriots is to oversee the formulation and implementation of the Code. Plato had a complete theory for this purpose. His ideal country requires everyone to have a special function in society to meet the overall needs of society. But in this country, women have the same rights as men, and there is complete sexual equality. The government can lie when it is in the public interest. Everyone should do their own thing and not disturb others. From today's perspective, Plato's ideal nation is a terrifying totalitarian state. But "The Utopia is actually the perspective of scientists who manage the country in the correct way." Plato himself did not try to realize the state machinery in the Utopia.
Plato pointed out in "The Laws" that the "Constitutional State" is the best country after the Utopia. He also pointed out in the book that women and men should receive the same respect and training.
Plato attempted to make astronomy a department of mathematics. He believed: "Astronomy, like geometry, can be studied by raising and solving problems, regardless of the stars in the sky." Plato believed that the universe began as chaos without distinction. The opening of this chaos was the result of the activity of a supernatural god. According to Plato, the most important feature of the universe changing from chaos to order is that the Creator formulated a rational plan for the world; the mechanical process of putting this plan into effect is a natural event that is taken for granted.
Plato’s cosmology is basically a mathematical cosmology. He imagined that the universe began with two kinds of right triangles, one half a square and the other half an equilateral triangle. From these triangles four regular polyhedra are reasonably produced, which constitute the particles of the four elements. Fire particles are regular tetrahedrons, air particles are regular octahedrons, water particles are regular icosahedrons, and earth particles are cubes. The fifth type of regular polyhedron is the dodecahedron formed by regular pentagons. This is the fifth element that makes up the matter in the sky, called ether. The entire universe is a sphere, because the sphere is symmetrical and perfect, and every point on the sphere is the same. The universe is also alive and moving, with a soul filling the entire space. The motion of the universe is a circular motion, because circular motion is the most perfect and does not require hands or feet to propel it. The amount of each of the four elements in the universe is as follows: the ratio of fire to air is equal to the ratio of air to water and the ratio of water to earth. All things can be named by a number, and this number expresses the proportion of the elements they contain.
Plato’s status in the West
Compared with his student Aristotle, Plato has received more respect and attention in the West. Because his works are the founding documents of Western culture. Among the various schools of Western philosophy, it is difficult to find one that has not absorbed his works. In later generations of philosophers and Christian theology, Plato's ideas retain great radiating power.
Some historians of philosophy believe that it was not until modern times that Western philosophy gradually got rid of the control of Plato's ideas.
Before the 12th century AD, Aristotle’s teachings had been rejected by the Holy See, and Aristotle’s works were even no longer circulated in Europe. Plato's teachings were dominant at the time, as St. Augustine borrowed and transformed Plato's ideas in the service of theological teachings. Until the 13th century, Thomas Aquinas used Aristotle's teachings to explain religious doctrines and established a complicated and huge scholasticism. Aristotle was taken seriously again.
Plato in China
Plato’s Theory of Ideas was officially considered idealistic by the People’s Republic of China after 1949. However, his role in enlightening Western philosophy is generally recognized, and he is also highly respected because of his outstanding personality.
What exactly is "Platonic love"?
Plato and Aristotle are the most influential people among ancient Greek philosophers, and among them, Plato has a particularly great influence on future generations. Plato wrote in the words of his teacher Socrates that when the mind abandons the body and yearns for the truth, the thinking at this time is the best. And when the soul is infected by the sins of the body, people's desire to pursue truth will not be satisfied.
In Europe, there has long been Platonic love, which we Chinese call "spiritual love". This kind of love believes that physical union is impure and dirty, and that love and lust are They are two opposite states. Therefore, when a person is really in love, it is completely impossible for him to think of physically uniting with the object of his love.
To people today, Plato’s view of love is incredible. However, an American scholar has put forward new insights into Plato's view of love as it is understood today. Ira Reiss, president of the Eastern and Western Sociological Association and author of "The American Family System", believes after research that the spiritual love advocated by Plato actually refers to a kind of love between same-sex people. That is "gay"! The ancient Greeks believed that the process of homosexuality was more about spiritual intercourse and divine intercourse than physical intercourse. In ancient Greek society where women rarely received education, it was difficult for men to find spiritual rivals in women. This is why Plato focuses on love between men. Plato firmly believes that "real" love is an enduring emotion, and only time is the touchstone of love. Only transcendent love can withstand the test of time.
American sociologists have different opinions on whether "Platonic love" is "pure love" that only involves divine intercourse, or whether it is an elegant love that includes physical intercourse but emphasizes divine intercourse. But one thing is certain, that is, Plato believed that love can sublimate people. He said that for a man who lives a noble life, it is not blood, honor, or wealth that guides his behavior, but love. There is no other emotion in the world as deeply rooted in the human heart as love. If a person who is passionately in love commits a dishonorable act and is seen by his father, friends, or anyone else, it will not make him pale in the same way as if he is seen by his lover.
Love is undoubtedly the force that makes people good and upward