In Plato’s dialogue Phaedo, the title character recounts the events of the day Socrates drank the hemlock ending his life. The dialogue is mainly about the immortality of the soul. In this essay, we will explore the three arguments for the immortality of the soul, Simmias’ and Cebes’ objections, and their respective responses from Socrates. Phaedo himself states that Plato was not in the prison cell during the events described, so this might be a hint to us that Plato...
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Classical Greece generated a variety of philosophical schools of thought, including the sophists and the physical, that influenced each other to some degree. The most famous to come from Classical Greece was Socrates and his dialectic approach to the question of the nature of things. Comparatively, Socrates is the most similar to the sophists because, in likeness to a sophist, he often stumps and humiliates the person who he is conversing with and does not seek the truth despite claiming...
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The Meno dialogue is a shift from the previous interests of Plato and Socrates on virtues and their particular features: Euthyphro, to an epistemological inquiry of what is the essence of virtues and what can we learn about them. The dialogue starts with an ethical dispute between Socrates and Meno – a young Thessalian aristocrat, on what is a “virtue” and is teachable to others. The discussion later shifts to what is known as Meno’s Paradox of Enquiry – an...
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As we have been going through the study of epistemology, we started off with an allegory. This was allegory was said by a famous philosopher named Plato. His allegory was called the allegory of the cave. This allegory was an explanation of how mankind live, its life and how our understanding are actually very limited. This is explained is multiple steps which show the evolution of knowledge. ‘The Matrix’ is a visual representation of the allegory. If you were to...
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A turtle and a salmon are swimming together. While swimming, the turtle asks the fish: “How does the water taste today”. After thinking about it for a couple of seconds, the salmon responds: “What’s water?”. The 2001 film ‘The Matrix’, directed by the Wachowski brothers is a science fiction homage to Plato’s allegory of the cave. Both stories tell of men living in delusional dream states who are inadvertently exposed to the truth of the real outside world. Neo discovers...
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Chapter one: Introduction “Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge.” – Plato Plato (427–347 B.C.E.) is, by any reckoning, one of the most dazzling writers in the Western literary tradition and one of the most penetrating, wide-ranging, and influential authors in the history of philosophy. An Athenian citizen of high status, he displays in his works his absorption in the political events and intellectual movements of his time, but the questions he raises are so profound...
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Aristotle was one of the great thinkers of the ancient world, so much so, that he has influenced the way people think throughout time. One of the fields in which he wrote extensively about was that of ethics. His book the “Nicomachean Ethics” outlines that happiness is the ultimate goal a human being should strive for and that it is the main purpose of one’s life. In his lectures, he states that happiness can be achieved with the cultivation of...
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Aristotle was born around 384 BC in the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia where his father was the royal doctor. He grew up to reach a state where one could say that he is indeed the most influential philosopher to have ever lived with nicknames like the philosopher or the master. Aristotle worked with Plato for a period then he ventured on his own and established a little school called the Lyceum. Many of his books are actually lecture notes...
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Why is Socrates dissatisfied with the explanations given by Anaxagoras? What does he suggest instead in Plato’s Phaedo? In this paper, I will first discuss the philosophy of Anaxagoras, particularly his theories on the infinite elements (chremata), and the Mind (nous). This will be followed by Socrates’s search for his own theory for the causes of how everything is the way everything is. I will raise questions in the irony within this theory and proceed on to discussing its inadequacy...
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1. Introduction Born and raised during a period of constant political turmoil and dramatic societal change, the Athenian philosopher, Plato has had numerous influences during his lifetime. Many different types of rulers and governments existed during his youth and had a lasting impact on his opinion on government and society. The first two of these big events is the seizure of power by the Four Hundred and later the Thirty. These powers were made up of wealthy families to took...
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History of Political Though ‘It looks to me as though the investigation we are undertaking is no ordinary thing, but one for a man who sees sharply. Since we’re not clever men, […] we should make this kind of investigation of it: if someone had, for example, ordered men who don’t see very sharply to read little letters from afar and then someone had the thought that the same letters are somewhere else also, but bigger and in a bigger...
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One can gauge the seriousness of Plato’s Symposium from the title itself: which means ‘drinking party.’ Naturally, like all drinking parties, absurdity is bound to be mixed with philosophy— but the overall mood is light and the celebratory atmosphere. Far from these reasons, it is appropriate that the Symposium’s theme is love, for if there is one subject that captures the ethereal, it is love. Or, in other words: Plato uses his characters as instruments to offer many love accounts...
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1) What kind of a character is Euthyphro? In the dialogue of the Apology, there appear only two characters, Socrates and Euthyphro. Here, Socrates is present on behalf of charges that accuse him for “corrupting the young and of not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, but in other new spiritual things” (Euthyphro 24b8 – c1). Euthyphro, in contrast, is present on behalf of an unusual case: he is prosecuting his aged father for having unintentionally killed...
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Love is one of the most convoluted and misunderstood concepts that still remains as a very prominent part in many individuals’ lives. Regardless of the fact that the majority of people cannot explain or fully understand the concept of love, many claim that love plays an integral part in their lives as they think they know what it entails and believe what they are feeling with another individual is true love. Since people believe they know what love is they...
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In the modern world, Ancient Greece is viewed as the paradigm of artistic and architectural achievement and expression. Along with being popular for its majestic temples and elegant sculptures, it is also well known for its vast and complex mythology and pantheon, with the creatures and deities that many associate with the Classical and Hellenistic periods finding their origins much earlier in the Bronze Age Aegean cultures. One such creature is the satyr. Often associated with the wine god Dionysos,...
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In Greece, we discover the roots of a considerable lot of our instructive arrangements and frameworks as it is the beginning wellsprings of Western human advancement. Greek thoughts regarding training and their instructive practices have been extremely compelling to different societies. One of Rome’s most noteworthy support of humankind is that it conveyed the Greek convention to all the Western terrains. Greek human advancement was created somewhere in the range of 1200 and 490 B.C. It is in the Age...
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When contemplating the opposing perceptions of two prominent Greek thinkers; Sappho and her descriptions of Eros are regarded as an overwhelming, intense, emotional response felt throughout her entire physical body, a feeling worth dropping anything for to be felt in all of its wholeness that can lead to dropping anything in the present moment for what one truly loves. Additionally, we confront Plato’s effects of Eros – wherein he assigns the use of a narrator known as Apollodorus to begin...
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At the very beginning of Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle starts from goodness and states one of his main ethical ideas, “Every art and inquiry, and similarly every action and pursuit, is thought to aim at some good.”[footnoteRef:1] The good here refers to something that is morally right, or in other words, righteousness. The he distinguishes between two kinds of practical activities, one of them aims to themselves, and the other one aims to the products apart from the activities that produce...
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“All laws are a social construct”. How would Aristotle respond to this statement? Aristotle would argue that all laws are a social construct due to providing a guideline for society to follow and benefit from, he expresses his judgement on social construct through his types of laws in his book called “Nicomachean Ethics”, the connection and influence the justice system has on the political community in his second book “Politics”, and that without a community of citizens to govern in...
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Knowledge can be depicted in many ways. In Plato’s foundational text on Western philosophy and justice, Republic, true knowledge is represented in terms of permanent and immortal truths that can be represented only by the absolute reality of Forms; whereas in John Milton’s biblical epic poem, Paradise Lost, knowledge is symbolized by an all-knowing God and the Tree of Knowledge. In Thomas More’s socio-politically driven narrative, Utopia, access to knowledge is for everyone and it is complemented by religious faith;...
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The idea and feeling of love can be a controversial part of life to many people due to the many ways of interpreting it. Throughout Plato’s Symposium, the account and nature of love and what it means differs between speakers. The speeches of Aristophanes and Socrates vary as Aristophanes focusses on human nature and takes a mythical approach to define love whereas Socrates focusses on the idea that love is bad and ugly but is then questioned by Diotima. Aristophanes...
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The Homecoming of the Truth In The Republic, Plato argues that the ideal society is one that “uses propaganda and lies to perpetuate the rule of a single class, insisting that justice is everyone keeping his or her place”. Upon reading The Republic, I am convinced that such a society cannot be ideal. Plato seems to contradict himself by proposing a society based on the “noble lie” because he himself elevates truth and convinces his rulers to abide by the...
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Throughout history, we have endlessly questioned the nature of our reality- whether or not we feel comfortable in our own skin so to speak. Prior to being awakened at birth to our version of reality, we enjoyed an existence of intelligent design- pureness created to allow for a limitless existence. It is, therefore, by that same design that the body as Deutsch puts it, is seen as a prison holding the soul hostage, driving us to evil ends and maleficent...
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The story of Crito is held in the prison cell of Socrates, where he waits for his prison sentence. His old buddy Crito, who had negotiated to sneak Socrates out of prison, visits him. Crito is a 70-year-old guy who is very rich and well-known for having a good reputation. Socrates seems quite ready for his inevitable execution, so Crito puts forward as many arguments as he can to convince Socrates to bail. Also, Socrates wouldn’t need to worry about...
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Aristotle was a Greek philosopher that lived in the fourth century BC of Ancient Greece. He spent his life analyzing different philosophical texts; which led to his work on a good human life and happiness. Aristotle believed that in order to achieve a good human life we must be a good human being through our actions. In the film, Groundhog Day, we meet a weatherman, Phil Connors, who repeats the weather countless times on February 2nd. As Phil continues to...
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Video Summary: Altruism and Empathy Natural Selection can put certain facts or guides in our brains to allow for our survival. This has to do with kindness and being nice to others. Our ancestors were nice to people so they could stay alive in hard times. While at life and death situations they fought and showed no mercy to protect themselves. This is seen today around the world. We are all taught to be nice to everyone and many people...
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No matter how we view our upbringing, morality stems from a higher power. Philosophers question rather this higher power comes from God or somewhere else. When reading religious books, they speak about God and the ten commandments which lay down the laws about right and wrong. Therefore, religious people are more conscientious about their actions. Yet we have the naturalist who believes human laws are defined by morality but not from a higher authority figure. They feel rather right or...
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To Destroy, Humble, and Lead Socrates of Athens was famous for his never-ending questioning in search for knowledge and wisdom with the belief that he knows nothing and his method of doing so. This questioning method of Socrates would start off with Elenchus, or “belief destroyer.” Socrates would go around Athens and talk to everyone asking questions and puzzling them with their own words. Socrates would strike conversation with somebody who is deemed knowledgeable and try to gain this knowledge...
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To start with a quick paraphrase of the reading Euthyphro written by Plato, Socrates meets a young prophet by the name of Euthyphro in Athens Greece. Socrates and Euthyphro are at the courthouse due to their actions that relate to being devout, which turns out to be the central theme of the story. In the reading, we see that Euthyphro is prosecuting his dad for behaving immoral because he allowed a murderous slave who the father had thrown in a...
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I’d like to preface this paper with the following quote, not because it is directly relevant to my thesis or point, but because I find it “awesomely hilarious.” “Take what has to do with the body to the point of bare need, such as food, drink, clothing, house, household slaves, and cut out everything that is for reputation or luxury.” -Epictetus (Handbook of Epictetus pg. 23) “It’s only through reasoning and intellect, not through the body, that the one can...
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