Plato: Episteme, Forms, Soul and Paideia

Science and Episteme

SCIENCE: episteme — justified knowledge; a foundation that provides reason whether something is true. Mathematics, astronomy and music are the sciences, but the knowledge of the Good is not the same kind of science. If the Good were merely based on science, then science would be nothing unless it were directed toward achieving the good.

Intelligible Realm

AMBITO INTELLIGIBLE: the world of ideas, the field that concerns the predicate of being — the really real — because it is imperishable and immutable. It can only be seen or known by intelligence (nous) and is beyond what is immediate.

Sensible Realm

AMBITO SENSITIVE: the world of things: the changing and changeable world that is immediately before us in the eyes and senses. The world is apparent and disputable, a world that is not truly what exists. It is known through the world of becoming — of change, birth and passing away — in opposition to the intelligible.

Idea (Eidos)

IDEA: the world of being. The term is related to the Greek eidos, often translated as "form" or "appearance," and points to completeness and the serious vision of what a thing is. An idea is not merely an original mental image but a way of apprehending the capacity or essence of things. Plato presents ideas as revealing the essence of things so that one attains an essential vision of their true image. For Plato, ideas are a form of intelligence.

Ideas are also realities, not merely psychological phenomena. They represent the highest conceivable authentic intelligence.

Species and Intelligibility

ESPECIE: eternal and immutable; a term related to ideas. Literally, it is what we perceive with intelligence — the intelligibility of things — which need not be a mere product of the human mind separate from the things themselves, but rather what the thing is essentially.

Soul (Psyche)

ALMA: the psyche. Plato offers a theory of the soul that makes it an immortal principle of life and movement and the seat of knowledge. In this context, because of its intangible character, the soul is capable of distinguishing appearance from true realities and of illuminating things as sunlight does, exposing them in their truth and authentic nature. The soul has three parts, and the rational part is the one that knows the ideas.

Education: Paideia

EDUCATION: paideia is the most outstanding ideal of ancient Greek culture. The word derives from the Greek for "child" (pais / paidos), and paideia is the art of guiding the powers and qualities of human beings from birth along the right path to make them good and beautiful citizens. In Plato, educational disciplines are intended to lead to knowledge and to the idea of the Good.

Related Sciences

• Mathematics
• Astronomy
• Music