Plato's Epistemology: Understanding Knowledge and Reality

Plato's Theory of Knowledge: Epistemology

Characteristics of Platonic Knowledge

Plato's theory of knowledge requires characteristics of objectivity and universal validity. True knowledge, for Plato, must be unchanging and universally applicable.

The Object of Human Knowledge

The object of human knowledge cannot be solely derived from sensitive data. While describing science as a simple table is inaccurate due to its many types, the idea itself is unchangeable and serves as a true object of knowledge.

Degrees of Knowledge

Plato distinguishes between two main degrees of knowledge:

Science (Episteme)

This represents true knowledge, characterized by certainty and understanding of the Forms or Ideas.

• Intuitive Knowledge

  Within the realm of episteme, this is the highest level, representing the ultimate achievement. It does not depend on sensitive data. It is an intuitive, straightforward apprehension, the full knowledge of the ideas themselves, regardless of sensory representation.

• Discursive Knowledge

  This less elevated level of episteme involves understanding reality by considering facts as less sensitive, approximate data to be transcended. It seeks explanations from an intellectual perspective, often through mathematical entities or designs.

Opinion (Doxa)

This represents belief or conjecture, based on sensory experience and therefore unreliable and changeable.

• Belief (Pistis)

  This is knowledge of sensible things and material objects. It is not true knowledge, as it apprehends embodiments, not the eternal ideas.

• Imagination (Eikasia)

  The lowest degree of doxa, and the least reliable form of knowledge. One cannot imagine anything that has not been previously perceived.

Accessing Platonic Ideas

Plato proposed several ways through which the soul can access or apprehend the world of Ideas:

Memory or Reminiscence (Anamnesis)

For Plato, knowledge is essentially remembering. Before incarnating, the soul contemplates the pure ideas. Upon joining the body, the soul forgets what it previously knew. However, this knowledge does not disappear but remains latent within the soul, capable of being recalled.

Dialectics

An intellectual path to access knowledge and the ideas of true reality. It is an ascending process, moving from one idea to another, ultimately aiming to reach the supreme Idea of the Good.

The Erotic Impulse (Eros)

This is an emotional, rather than purely intellectual, path to accessing the Idea of Beauty. Eros compels us towards what is beautiful, thus necessitating an innate understanding of the Idea of Beauty.

Catharsis or Purification

A moral path to access the world of Ideas. The philosopher understands that direct contemplation of Ideas is only possible when the soul is freed from the body. While still embodied, the philosopher purifies their desires, freeing them from worldly attachments to become more receptive to true knowledge and transcend sensory limitations.