Philosophies of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle
The philosophies of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle had different points of-view but they were also similar in some ways. For example, all three philosophers had their own thoughts on the subject of justice and government.
Socrates belief on this matter was that democracy was an unwise form of government. He thought that the electing of the people was unfair justice.
Plato had some of the same beliefs. He believed that government should only have rulers who had the intelligence and education appropriate for the matter.
His thoughts were that a job should be done only by those who are best suited for it. To him aristocracy was a perfect form of government.
The point of Socrate's philosophies were to make people think about the questions he would often ask. The reason for these questions being asked were to have people to their own thoughts and opinions toward life. He did not think a person with the right mind should follow the steps of their ancestors.
Instead of going around asking questions, Plato, another philosopher, would write his own conversations with imaginerary people. These conversations would cover much of the same topics that Socrates had tried to cover earlier. These topics mostly dealt with life such as government, opinions toward justice and how people really viewed education.
Aristotle also had his own theories towards his belief of the "right government". He wanted his results to show happiness among the people.
He'd mainly collect information from studying living creatures and observing their living habits. He would do this so that he could see what brought them happiness. His opinion toward life was that all people should live a fair and happy life. After many attempts of forming the perfect government , his facts allowed him to believe that a perfect government could be formed only by those who have a middle class. The middle class would consist of those who were not rich yet not poor.
Both Aristotle and Plato had different thoughts on the division of the government. Aristotle claimed to believe that a government should consist of many classes for the protection of the people and the state.
Human nature to him was best when it was unspoiled by external forces because of his belief that human beings are inherently good. He asserted that a person not tainted by society, but rather ruled by their own emotions, would end up being unselfish, a concept he termed the noble savage. By allowing freedom of personal growth to occur, a person’s ultimate desire would be to live peacefully amongst each other (Hergenhahn & Henley, 2014).
His basic idea was this: In any given situation, a person should do what he called "the loving thing" rather than follow rigid rules derived from Divine revelation--or for that matter, any set of rigid rules, even those coming from simple reasoning. This idea is based on the worship of the person! That humankind, in its natural state, is "fundamentally, decent, enlightened, reasonable, and eager to do the right thing".
of democracy. While he may not have really done it if he had the chance, he wanted to at heart,
Look into the eyes of the bust of Socrates and you can almost see what he saw in the universe. It looks as though his wisdom is unsurmountable, as he did believe himself to be the most brilliant man in the universe, while also knowing for sure: the only thing he knows is that he doesn’t know anything. Unlike the famous Kouros statues that were all alike and used for a certain purpose of a grave maker, or shrine to the gods, the portrait of Socrates shows depth and importance. During the classical period it became increasingly common for Greek sculptures to depict more realistic forms. The portrait of Socrates details a man who was not afraid to ask hard questions, it also puts across the point that he may have been revered and feared as well by the Greeks. His statue was created twenty years after his death. For a man who was accused of corrupting the youth, and executed for it, one might question why then did someone find this man to be deserving of a statue? Did the Greeks begin to side with his ideas and theories after a low point in their victories? Perhaps the views of the sophists were beginning to surpass the previous views of Greek culture. This sculpture may have been the Apotheosis of Socrates’ career, a way to elevate him to a trailblazer status during a period when the gods were being pushed from explanation of cause in the lives of the Greeks.
Throughout his life, Socrates engaged in critical thinking as a means to uncover the standards of holiness, all the while teaching his apprentices the importance of continual inquiry in accordance with obeying the laws. Socrates primarily focuses on defining that which is holy in The Euthyphro – a critical discussion that acts as a springboard for his philosophical defense of the importance of lifelong curiosity that leads to public inquiry in The Apology. Socrates continues his quest for enlightenment in The Crito, wherein he attempts to explain that while inquiry is necessary, public curiosity has its lawful price, thus those who inquire must both continue to do so and accept the lawful consequences of their inquiry. Each of the above values, holiness, inquiry, and just lawful obedience, interlock under what Socrates describes in The Republic as, “the very cause of knowledge and truth, [it is also] the chief objective in the pursuit of knowledge,” (Sterling & Scott 198) – the good. The good embodies each Socratic pursuit: it acts as an umbrella for all things perceived in what Socrates names, “the intelligible sector,” (Sterling & Scott 199).
light to his society as they believed that what's done individually but not collectively cannot be
...cience?? He believed that conscience should tell a person what to do not just a majority vote. To follow a government blindly ruins people they should only trust what they believe is right.
1B. As Socrates takes the stand to defend himself against the Athenian government he began to explain why he should not be there and how he ended up at the stand in the first place. He cites an encounter with the oracle Delphi. He explains that he asked the oracle who was wisest of all men. The oracle replied that no man was wiser then Socrates (note this will be important later in describing his philosophy). Socrates knowing that he himself knew nothing and that there must be somebody out there with more knowledge than him set out on a journey. He went to many different kinds of people, poets, craftsmen, even politicians. All seemed to have much knowledge about many things. But Socrates found that even with all their knowledge of poetry, politics, and crafts none of it was true wisdom. When he would tell these people that they were in fact not wise, they wouldn’t take to kindly to Socrates.
In the last days of Socrates’ life while he awaits his death sentence, he examines and evaluates the facets of life and the morals that come as a part of human nature. He analyzes the concept of being, and what it means to be either living or deceased and through this analysis, Socrates particularly goes in depth with his examination of the human soul. In Phaedo, Plato meets with a follower who had been with Socrates on his last day, on which he talked much about the innermost qualities of being; life and death and how the soul constitutes those two entities. According to Socrates, there are four arguments that prove the existence of the soul: the Argument from Opposites, the Theory of Recollection, the Affinity Argument, and the Theory of Forms.
Socrates (470-399 BC) was a credited philosopher born in the city of Athens to father Sophroniscus and mother Phaenarete. Despite his world-renowned contributions, he did not leave any written accounts of his life. His story was taught through the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, along with Aristotle and Aristophanes in various forms of dramatic texts and histories. Among others, Plato wrote many dialogues that quoted Socrates’ exact words. Much of what we know comes from this greatly influenced student. However, Plato being a literary artist, leads many to think that he brightened up Socrates’ teachings as a result of his positive bias. For this reason, much of his history remains uncertain.
Political society today, has taken many lessons from Plato and Aristotle’s political ideas. As was the case in Ancient Greece, there are many different political ideologies and regimes that will may serve the purpose for one society, but in another, could cause utter chaos. Aristotle attributed the need for there being a number of political regimes due to the fact that there are “many parts to a city.” (4.3.1) The many parts to a city that he was referring to, simply enforces the necessity of having different forms of office for each of these parts. Not every method will work for each society. Aristotle’s concepts of political regimes have deeply rooted itself in society today. In order to understand the concepts of regime as suggested by Aristotle, this paper will consider the three different types; royalty, aristocracy, and constitutional government, as well as each of their deviations.
Plato’s thoughts about power and reason are much different than Aristotle. Plato looked at the meaning of justice and different types of governments. Plato looked into four different types of governments
Greek philosophers Aristotle and Plato were two of the most influential and knowledgeable ancients in our history. Their contributions and dedication to science, language and politics are immensely valued centuries later. But while the two are highly praised for their works, they viewed several subjects entirely differently, particularly education practices, and human ethics and virtue.
Philosophy can be defined as the pursuit of wisdom or the love of knowledge. Socrates, as one of the most well-known of the early philosophers, epitomizes the idea of a pursuer of wisdom as he travels about Athens searching for the true meaning of the word. Throughout Plato’s early writings, he and Socrates search for meanings of previously undefined concepts, such as truth, wisdom, and beauty. As Socrates is often used as a mouthpiece for Plato’s ideas about the world, one cannot be sure that they had the same agenda, but it seems as though they would both agree that dialogue was the best way to go about obtaining the definitions they sought. If two people begin on common ground in a conversation, as Socrates often tries to do, they are far more likely to be able to civilly come to a conclusion about a particular topic, or at least further their original concept.
... state. In Plato's argument for the ideal state, the fundamental bonds which hold together his republic are unity and harmony. He explains how the just state is held together by the unity of each individual in each social class, and harmony between all three social classes. Plato explains how the ideal state must have citizens who are united in their goals. It is not the happiness of the individual but rather the happiness of the whole which keeps the just state ideal. At the same time, Plato argues that there must be harmony within the individual souls which make up the state. The lack of unity and harmony leads to despotism through anarchy which eventually arises within a democracy. Plato makes a clear argument, through The Republic, that without the unity and harmony of the individual and the state there can be no order and therefore there can be no ideal state.