Plato (428-348 BC)
Safest general characterization of the European philosophical
tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to
Plato.This assessment by the 20th-century philosopher-mathematician
Alfred North Whitehead can be considered only a slight
exaggeration. The religious traditions of Judaism and Christianity
have provided one foundation of Western civilization, while the
Greek philosophers Socrates, Plato, and
Aristotle have provided another (see Philosophy). The influence of
Plato has been persistent and unbroken. His Academy at Athens,
which opened in about 387 BC, was the first forerunner of today's
colleges and universities. It was a school devoted to philosophy,
law, and scientific research primarily mathematics and it endured
as an institution until AD 529, when it and other non-Christian
schools were closed by the emperor Justinian.
Plato
Plato's influence extended far beyond the Academy. In his lifetime
he was the most celebrated teacher of his day. After his death his
ideas were taken up by countless other thinkers. Philo of
Alexandria used Plato's ideas to give a philosophical framework to
Judaism. Early Christian writers eagerly embraced Plato's thought
as the best available instrument for explaining and defending the
teachings of the Bible and church tradition. Of the Christian
Platonists, St. Augustine of Hippo was the best known and most
influential. Plato's influence spread into Islam as well, through
the writings of the philosophers Avicenna and Averroes.
Plato was born in Athens in about 428 BC and grew up during the
decades of conflict with Sparta and other city-states. His parents,
Ariston and Perictione, were one of the most distinguished and
aristocratic couples in the city. Of the details of Plato's early
life almost nothing is known. Because of his family's position it
is likely that he was acquainted with Socrates from childhood.
Plato probably intended to go into politics, but the fate that
Socrates met at the hands of Athenian politicians changed his
mind.
With the forced suicide of Socrates in 399, Plato and other
followers took temporary refuge in Megara. Some early biographers
say that he then traveled around the Mediterranean world, visiting
other Greek city-states, Egypt, Italy, and Sicily. None of the
reports can be confirmed except for a trip to Sicily. There he met
and befriended Dion, brother-in-law of the ruler of Syracuse,
Dionysius I. Sometime after the death of Socrates Plato decided to
devote himself to philosophy and teaching. He opened the Academy
and remained with it as teacher, with two brief interruptions,
until his death in about 348 BC.
The interruptions had to do with the government in Syracuse.
Dionysius I died in 367 and was succeeded by Dionysius II, an
uneducated youth. Dion called on Plato to come to Syracuse to teach
the new ruler. Plato agreed, but the cause proved hopeless and he
returned to Athens. He made one more journey to Syracuse in
361-360.
Plato's complete body of work has come down to the present. No
genuine writing was lost, though a number of false writings were
passed along as his. If the 'Epistles' are considered one item,
there are 36 works. All, except for the letters, are called
dialogues because they are presented mostly in conversational style
as discussions between two or more individuals. One of the
masterpieces of world literature is the 'Republic'. Like the 'Laws'
Plato's last work it is book length, while many others are much
shorter. The earliest dialogues were those in which Socrates takes
the lead in conversation. The shorter ones usually deal with one
issue. The 'Lysis', for instance, examines the nature of
friendship, while the 'Meno' is a discussion of virtue. The
'Apology' is the last
statement of Socrates about his life and work through speeches at
his trial for impiety.
The 'Republic' discusses the nature of justice and the institutions
of society. In some ways it is utopian in that it describes Plato's
ideal society. But it also deals with the whole range of human
knowledge, the purpose and content of education, and the nature of
science. Much of it is a comprehensive ethical treatise in which
three types of lives are distinguished. The philosopher is devoted
to attaining wisdom, the hedonist seeks only pleasure and
self-gratification, and the man of action desires recognition for
his practical abilities.