Explain the Relationship Between Plato’s Form of the Good and the Other Forms.
essay by M.J - copy right
a) Explain the relationship between Plato’s Form of the Good and the other Forms.
Plato was a dualist and so believed that human beings consisted of two parts- body and soul. This view is portrayed throughout Plato’s famous theory of the Forms of which he suggests that true substances are not physical bodies, but are the eternal Forms that our bodies are merely the imperfect copy. In his Theory he tells of a World of Forms representing knowledge, which he also names the ‘real’ world and the world of Particulars signifying opinions, the world in which we live in. The Forms come from a world of perfection which are illuminated by the Form of the Good which is at the top of the hierarchy and is the source of which the other Forms stemmed from.
The theory of the Forms suggests that there are two worlds in which we live, one is through reality (world of Forms), whilst the other is accessed through our minds (world of Particulars). He highlights that there is only one of each Form while there are many copies of that Form, however, they all share common factors to the Form allowing them to be recognised and compared to. Plato describes the Forms to be perfect, eternal and un-changing whereas the Particulars are imperfect, finite and changing. This can be related to Plato’s conflicting ideas about education in his era, as he believes that the world of Particulars is based on opinion rather than knowledge and so does not approve of this world- the theory of the Forms and the Form of the Good allowed him to express these views showing how the Forms portray the creation of a better, conceptual world. Additionally, Plato describes the Forms to be intelligible, rational and non-corporal which means that his world of Forms cannot be accessed physically and so disproved. This therefore shows the Particulars to be material and corruptible which became a strong ground for us to relate to his theory as the imperfection and continuously changing world
a) Explain the relationship between Plato’s Form of the Good and the other Forms.
Plato was a dualist and so believed that human beings consisted of two parts- body and soul. This view is portrayed throughout Plato’s famous theory of the Forms of which he suggests that true substances are not physical bodies, but are the eternal Forms that our bodies are merely the imperfect copy. In his Theory he tells of a World of Forms representing knowledge, which he also names the ‘real’ world and the world of Particulars signifying opinions, the world in which we live in. The Forms come from a world of perfection which are illuminated by the Form of the Good which is at the top of the hierarchy and is the source of which the other Forms stemmed from.
The theory of the Forms suggests that there are two worlds in which we live, one is through reality (world of Forms), whilst the other is accessed through our minds (world of Particulars). He highlights that there is only one of each Form while there are many copies of that Form, however, they all share common factors to the Form allowing them to be recognised and compared to. Plato describes the Forms to be perfect, eternal and un-changing whereas the Particulars are imperfect, finite and changing. This can be related to Plato’s conflicting ideas about education in his era, as he believes that the world of Particulars is based on opinion rather than knowledge and so does not approve of this world- the theory of the Forms and the Form of the Good allowed him to express these views showing how the Forms portray the creation of a better, conceptual world. Additionally, Plato describes the Forms to be intelligible, rational and non-corporal which means that his world of Forms cannot be accessed physically and so disproved. This therefore shows the Particulars to be material and corruptible which became a strong ground for us to relate to his theory as the imperfection and continuously changing world