THE BIG THREE OF GREEK

PHILOSOPHY: SOCRATES, PLATO, AND

ARISTOTLE.
SEPTEMBER 19, 2014 STEVEN MICHAEL PERDUE 2 COMMENTS

Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BC and lasted through the Hellenistic period
(323 BC-30 BC). Greek philosophy covers an absolutely enormous amount of topics including:
political philosophy, ethics, metaphysics, ontology (the study of the nature of being, becoming,
existence, or reality), logic, biology, rhetoric, and aesthetics (branch of philosophy dealing with
art, beauty, and taste). Greek philosophy is known for its undeniable influence on Western
thought. Although there were Greek philosophers before their respective births, Socrates, Plato,
and Aristotle are the only three worth focusing on during this period.

Socrates, born in Athens in 470 BC, is often credited as one of the founders of Western
philosophy. The cloud of mystery surrounding his life and philosophical viewpoints propose a
problem; a problem so large that it’s given a name itself: The Socratic Problem. Since he did not
write philosophical texts, all knowledge related to him is entirely dependent on the writings of
other people of the time period. Works by Plato, Xenophon, Aristotle, and Aristophanes contain
all of the knowledge known about this enigmatic figure. His largest contribution to philosophy is
the Socratic method. The Socratic method is defined as a form of inquiry and discussion between
individuals, based on asking and answering questions to illuminate ideas. This method is
performed by asking question after question with the purpose of seeking to expose contradictions
in one’s thoughts, guiding him/her to arrive at a solid, tenable conclusion. The principle
underlying the Socratic Method is that humans learn through the use of reasoning and logic;
ultimately finding holes in their own theories and then patching them up.

Plato, student of Socrates, also has mystery surrounding him. His birth day is estimated to fall
between 428 BC and 423 BC. He’s known for being the founder of the Academy in Athens, the
first institution of higher learning in the Western world. My favorite of Plato’s contributions to
philosophy, and the one I’m going to focus on, is the Theory of Forms. This theory was created
to solve two problems, one of ethics and one of permanence and change. The ethical problem is:
how can humans live a fulfilling life in an ever changing world if everything that they hold close
to them can be easily taken away? The problem dealing with permanence and change is: How
can the world appear to be both permanent and changing? The world we perceive through senses
seems to be always changing–which is a pretty clear observation. The world that we perceive
through the mind, seems to be permanent and unchanging. Which world perceived is more real?
Why are we seen two different worlds?

To find a solution to these problems, Plato split the world into two: the material, or phyiscal,
realm and the transcendent, or mental, realm of forms. We have access to the realm of forms
through the mind, allowing us access to an unchanging world. This particular world is
invulnerable to the pains and changes of the material world. By detaching our souls from the
material world and our bodies and developing our ability to concern ourselves with the forms,
Plato believes this will lead to us finding a value which is not open to change. This solves the
ethical problem. Splitting existence up into two realms also leads us to a solution to the problem
of permanence and change. Our mind perceives a different world, with different objects, than our
senses do. It is the material world, perceived through the senses, that is changing. It is the realm
of forms, perceived through the mind, that is permanent.

Aristotle, student of Plato, lived from 384 BC-322 BC. At eighteen, he joined Plato’s Academy
in Athens and remained there until the age of thirty-seven. There, he honed his talents of
understanding the world. In his understanding of the world, he wrote his theory of the
universals–which I find to be extremely intriguing. The problem of the universals is the question
of whether properties exist, and if so, what exactly are they. To avoid confusion, a universal is a
metaphysical term describing what particular things have in common, focusing strictly
characteristics or qualities. His theory states that universals exist only where they are instantiated
(the concept that it is impossible for a property to exist which is not had by some object). In
simpler terms, he believes universals exist only in things, never apart from things–differing from
his teacher, Plato, on this. Aristotle believes that a universal is identical in each of its instances.
All round things are similar in that there is the same universal, characteristic, throughout.

These three laid the foundations of many of the believes of the rest of the Western world.
Philosophers such as John Locker and Descartes use the theories these brilliant minds brought
forth in their own works. I’m very interested to read your opinions, specifically on the Plato
theory.