Term Paper on "Socrates in Plato's Writings, He Frequently Uses"

Term Paper 3 pages (1117 words) Sources: 3 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Socrates

In Plato's writings, he frequently uses the ideas and person of Socrates to further his philosophical goals, and also to teach his own pupils the principles of Socratic philosophy. In this, there is a definite distinction for Plato between the visible and intellectual world. He directly addresses this distinction on various occasions, among which is included the images of the sun, the divided line and the cave. These ideas are bound together by the central idea of "the good," which, according to Socrates, is the goal of all intellectual endeavor.

Socrates believes that hypotheses are necessary to explain his ideas relating to the intellectual good, as the visible reflects the invisible. The visible world is a manifestation of Plato's philosophy of Forms or Ideas. Forms or Ideas are stable, whereas the reflection of these are highly variable. Socrates' use of images clarify such concepts for his student, Glaucon, who is on his way to intellectual enlightenment. Specifically, the Allegory of the Cave in Book VII of the Republic clearly shows Aristotle's emphasis on the necessity of gradual intellectual development.

The images of the cave and the sun are juxtaposed in Socrates' allegory. The cave is used to symbolize the visual, physical experience of life, where the intellectual merely casts shadows of itself. Socrates uses the idea of ascent to symbolize how the mind might rise from the darkness to the "sun" of the intellect. It is interesting to note that the image of the sun appears in two capacities in the allegory: there is a fire in the cave, which stands for the sun, and secondly there is a sun outside the cave, where seekers may travel to see the light.

For Socrates, the cave therefore represents the entire physical world, including the physical sun. In the cave allegory, the fire stands for the sun that warms the physical world. The intensity of the sun outside of the cave is described in extreme terms. Socrates emphasizes that if this sun were to suddenly shine on the inhabitants of the cave, it would hurt their eyes and they would turn away from it right away. This bright sun stands for what Socrates holds as the "good" or "truth." It is the ultimate goal of those with intellectual rather than physical goals. Socrates also makes a distinction between people who prefer to remain in the cave, among reflections and shadows that they know, rather than to the light of the intellectual sun.

As mentioned above, Socrates furthermore issues the warning that the sun cannot be viewed suddenly; it would hurt the eyes. This is used as an allegory for learning. When faced with too much intellectual knowledge at a time, it is likely that the learner will reject it in favor of the half-true reflections of true knowledge. Hence it is better to take small incremental steps towards the final goal of the "good."

This allegory explicates via the images of the cave and the sun Plato's philosophy of the Form, or the Idea. For Plato, true reality is located in the intellectual world. Forms are unchanging and constant. These are then reflected in the physical world that people see and experience on a daily basis. These reflections are, however, as Socrates states, "shadows" of a higher truth, which is unchanging. With the allegory of the cave, he also… READ MORE

How to Reference "Socrates in Plato's Writings, He Frequently Uses" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Related Term Papers:

Alleged Hypocrisy of Socrates it Is Important Term Paper

Alleged Hypocrisy of Socrates

It is important to note that, in the Apology, Socrates shows a will to go against authority. He is defiant in his trial and displays a… read more

Term Paper 7 pages (1954 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: Philosophy / Logic / Reason

---

Compare and Contrast of Democracy From the Viewpoints of Pericles Plato and Aristotle Term Paper

Democracy

The classical features of Greek democratic tradition was an emphasis on disbursing political power among all citizens, and the participation of all citizens was seen as essential both to… read more

Term Paper 9 pages (3340 words) Sources: 7 Style: APA Topic: Government / Politics

---

Aristotle and Dante Research Proposal

Aristotle Dante

Goodness According to Aristotle and Alighieri

In the perpetually ongoing discourse of philosophy, the most frequently referenced pursuits with regard to the human experience are knowledge, goodness and… read more

Research Proposal 5 pages (1666 words) Sources: 1 Style: MLA Topic: Philosophy / Logic / Reason

---

Vis and Ramin vs. Beowulf Essay

Beowulf and Vis and Ramin have no apparent points of comparison. One is a Persian romance while other is an Old English poem, both written around about the same time… read more

Essay 4 pages (1151 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: Religion / God / Theology

---

Contemporary Myth Term Paper

Myth of Santa Claus

One of the greatest myths of Christian American is the myth of Old Saint Nick. Santa Claus is a favorite childhood memory of millions of adults… read more

Term Paper 3 pages (994 words) Sources: 4 Style: MLA Topic: Child Development / Youth / Teens

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>