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Back to Subjects - Philosophy

epistemology

epistemology Epistemology, the theory of knowledge, is one of several categories related to the broader heading, Philosophy. Plato was one of many Philosophers to practice the ideas related to Epistemology, as evident in his “Republic”. In this paper I will outline some of Plato’s views that he introduces in the “Republic” and I will give my opinion on these views. Plato may be the most recognized philosopher and his ideas are widely known. In the “Republic,” Plato defines the ideal government as one that is set up and run by a philosopher king. This person, having a completely just soul, would be able to organize and run a government that is also completely just. Plato can imagine pure justice and a man who is purely just. It isn’t relevant to Plato whether he has ever met such a man; he just assumes that since he can imagine such a man, it must be possible for such a man to exist. Plato uses the allegory of the cave to illustrate his epistemological view. In book VII of the “Republic,” Plato describes a cave where people are chained up and can only see shadows cast on a wall. He parallels these shadows to the things that people see in the world around them, the materialistic reality that most people base their lives on. He compares the chains to norms, customs, traditions, habits, etc. Plato believes that because people are so preoccupied with these shadows of truth, they ignore the real truth. So, it makes sense that Plato wouldn’t want to discount the possibility of a philosopher king based on the fact that he has never seen one, because the “shadows” could be fooling him into believing that no such man exists. This is a simple outline of Plato’s view of government but gives an example of one of Plato’s epistemological views. I agree with the idea of the cave and people being trapped by their “heritage”, the beliefs they are forced to believe. However, I do not believe that there is a perfectly just person, this may be a little naive, but for me to believe in something I must be able to witness it. Expanding on this idea, I would like to give an example of a more recent example. During slavery in the United States, southern white slave owners were raised to believe that blacks were inferior, and they believed it. It was hard for slave owners to imagine life any other way, and for them, there was no reason to imagine life any other way. It could be argued that the Yankees used Plato’s epistemology. They broke free from the “chains” holding them to the belief that blacks are inferior. The reason that they were able to do this might be that their “chains” weren’t as strong as those of the southerners. The Yankees weren’t totally immersed in the slave culture, which made it easier for them to look beyond the “shadows” to the real truth. This conflict between the epistemological methods of the north and the south arguably caused the civil war. If both sides held a similar epistemological view then the civil war wouldn’t have taken place. It seems impossible, however, for everyone to hold a view based on a Platonic epistemology. There will always be people who gain in some way from a current situation, or, because of habituation, simply can’t break from their “chains”to see past the “shadows”. It seems then, that one problem with Plato’s epistemology is that change can’t be clean or easy. Every belief must be tested. The issue of slavery is slowly passing the test of integration, blacks and whites are gradually becoming equal. Change is not safe; change is risky. Not only are people resistant to change (which in extreme cases, like slavery, could cause war), but change isn’t proven. It might not produce the desired outcome. At the same time, without change, humanity can’t evolve. Without imagination and willingness to try new things, humanity would still be living in caves pounding rocks together. This brings me to an interesting point; it seems that Plato’s epistemology may be necessary for scientific innovation. However, since science and innovation build on the study of the world around us, it also seems necessary to examine the world around us. If we ignore what is tangible and visible, and if we ignore proven facts, science can’t exist. Using Plato’s epistemological method, all that is physical is nothing more than a shadow of the truth. This means that it is pointless to examine and test physical things in search of the truth, because truth can’t be found in these “shadows”. However, the study of physical interactions between tangible, material things, is essential to science because those interactions are the basis os scientific knowledge. In addition, because science builds on previous discoveries, it is necessary in science to rely on historical evidence. So, although by using Plato’s epistemology, imaginative new scientific discoveries could be made, there would be no previous basis to build on in making these discoveries, and any discoveries that were made would deal with irrelevant “shadows” , shadows of reality anyway. Therefore, Plato’s beliefs are not practical in the area of science. Science being the building block of our material world as we know it must be practical, proving Plato’s theory to be incorrect. In conclusion, I have outlined Plato’s idea of knowledge and given several examples on how his theory has been applied. Plato’s theory seems to be a rough draft of an idea that works with some aspects of our lives but completely contrasts with others. Overall, Plato’s allegory of the cave provides us with a broader way of thinking and an increased area of knowledge. Bibliography:

Word Count: 955