Introduction to Plato and Descartes

Descartes

René Descartes, alongside Kant, is arguably the most important thinker in modern philosophy. Living in the 17th century and dividing his time between France, Holland, and Sweden, Descartes is considered the founder and greatest exponent of Rationalism. A fundamental concern of his thought was the construction of a robust philosophical method.

The basis of the Cartesian method, which, when applied to metaphysics, forms the foundation of knowledge, lies in mathematics (Descartes dedicated part of his work to this field). He concluded that only what can be reduced to mathematical motions can be truly understood. This highlights the importance Descartes placed on reason (as opposed to tradition, experience, or faith), which he identified with mathematical procedures to achieve a greater degree of certainty.

Descartes utilized the structured approach of mathematics (starting from simple elements grasped through intellectual intuition and deductively developing the rest of knowledge) to create four rules governing his method:

1. Evidence: Doubt everything that can be doubted (except for self-evident truths grasped through intellectual intuition) to arrive at simple, foundational ideas. This stage is also known as methodical doubt.
2. Analysis: Divide complex concepts into simpler parts, clearly and precisely, to avoid confusion.
3. Synthesis: Deductively reconstruct knowledge from the simple elements obtained in the previous step.
4. Enumeration: Deduction is not performed all at once but involves carefully examining each step, ensuring a complete and thorough process.

Having established these steps, Descartes applied them to metaphysics to find a foundational truth that could support his entire philosophical system (similar to an axiom in mathematics).

To find this foundational truth, he employed methodical doubt, seeking a truth that is impossible to doubt and therefore absolutely certain. Through this process, he doubted the following:

• Doubt of the senses: Descartes discarded sensory data as unreliable because it is not subject to intellectual intuition. Our senses have deceived us in the past, so they could potentially deceive us always.
• Doubt of reality: Since we sometimes have dreams that feel like reality, Descartes doubted the reality of the external world.
• Doubt of understanding: Even in dreams, certain things remain constant, such as mathematics and its axioms, which are truths of the understanding. Descartes concluded that he could doubt sensory reality but not the truths of the understanding, which he considered to be absolutely certain.
• Evil Genius: Descartes hypothesized that an evil genius might be deceiving us about the truths of understanding and even mathematics, making us believe things that are false.

Having doubted everything, Descartes arrived at one undeniable certainty: the very act of doubting proves that he is doubting, and therefore, that he exists as a thinking being. This is encapsulated in his famous statement: "I think, therefore I am."

Thus, the first principle of knowledge for Descartes is that we exist as thinking beings, and the self becomes the foundation of knowledge and the method itself. This foundation serves as the basis for demonstrating the existence of other things and developing his philosophical system.

Plato

Plato, born in Athens in the 5th century BC, was one of the most influential thinkers of all time. A follower of Socrates and later Cratylus, Plato initially aspired to a political career but abandoned this pursuit after Socrates' condemnation to death. One of his most important contributions is his critique of democracy, which he develops in his work The Republic, where he also outlines his political theories.

Politics

1. Politics and Virtue

Plato viewed politics as a technical skill arising from humanity's inability to survive independently. During the era of democracy in the Greek polis, the opinions of women, slaves, and foreigners were disregarded. As the Greeks began to take an interest in political matters, Plato, who had harbored political aspirations since childhood, found himself disillusioned with the prevailing system. He believed that the polis was where individuals could achieve their highest potential, demonstrating virtue and excellence. However, Plato's focus was primarily on the immortal soul, which he believed needed to be nurtured, and he saw politics as a means to achieve this.

2. Organization of Society: The Republic

Plato envisioned an ideal state founded on virtue, which he equated with justice. He believed that a city functions well when justice prevails, and he understood justice as order. Based on the functions of the soul, Plato proposed that a just state should be composed of:

• Rulers-Philosophers: Responsible for leading the citizens. These individuals would be the wisest, most prudent, and knowledgeable about the world of Ideas (including the Good and Justice). Their understanding of justice would enable them to guide citizens towards a just life. They are the philosophers.
• Warrior-Guardians: Responsible for defending the citizens. Chosen from the strongest and most courageous citizens, their defining virtue would be courage.
• Farmers, Artisans, and Traders: Responsible for producing the goods necessary for the population's survival. They would be the only class with the right to private property, and their defining virtue would be temperance.

Plato believed that when each of these classes fulfills its specific virtue, justice would be achieved. He also suggested that social mobility should be possible based on individual virtues, allowing women to participate in any class.

3. Degenerate Forms of Government

Plato developed a philosophy of history that aimed to demonstrate the inevitable corruption of all forms of government. He described the following forms of government and their degeneration:

• Aristocracy: The best form of government, ruled by the just and wise. However, as nothing is eternal, it eventually degenerates. The rulers might ally with the warriors against the people, leading to timocracy.
• Timocracy: A form of government that retains some of the virtues of aristocracy but is ruled by ambition and a thirst for honor rather than justice and wisdom. It eventually degenerates into oligarchy.
• Oligarchy: A government driven by greed and avarice, characterized by a division between the rich (who rule) and the poor. This eventually leads to democracy after a revolt by the people.
• Democracy: Government by the people, characterized by freedom. However, because the people are not necessarily wise, they can make mistakes, leading to the election of a tyrant to restore order.
• Tyranny: The people entrust power to an individual who initially imposes order and defends their interests. However, driven by self-interest, the tyrant eliminates opposition to maintain power, resulting in the worst form of government.