Platonic reasoning has several starting points, but one of the most relevant is the discovery of a supersensible reality, which has had a significant impact on Western culture (Lavernia, 2020). To manifest this novelty, Plato used a symbolic image employed by the Presocratic philosophers. According to Lavernia (2020), in material and sensible terms, however, Platonic philosophy set aside physics and charted a new path that involved the transition from sensible knowledge to supersensible knowledge.
In other words, while the Presocratic philosophers would explain the beauty of something in physical terms, such as its color or shape, Plato showed that these factors do not determine the cause for which various sensible objects appear to be beautiful (Lavernia, 2020). Lavernia (2020) mentions that the beauty of these objects seems to depend on something beyond their individual figure or color, suggesting the existence of a higher cause that explains their intrinsic beauty, something nonsensible and invisible.
Plato referred to these intelligible realities that transcend the changing appearance of things as ideas or eidos, which represent exclusive and immutable archetypal models of certain objects, such as the idea of a circle or a chair (Lavernia, 2020). These terms can also refer to common characteristics between two or more things or to a type of thing based on a characteristic (Meinwald, 2020). However, according to Lavernia (2020), ideas are not mere thoughts or mental objects, but purely intelligible entities that can only be grasped through wisdom, disregarding the senses.
The theory of ideas is the core of Platonic philosophy, encompassing physics, ethics, politics, and the theory of knowledge (Lavernia, 2020). This theory developed throughout Plato's life and is primarily addressed in critical dialogues such as The Republic, Phaedo, and Phaedrus (Regader n.d.; Rodríguez, 2019). Rodríguez (2019) mentions that it is believed that Plato learned this theory from his teacher Socrates.
Ontological Dualism
Plato revisited the fundamental questions posed by the pre-Socratic philosophers: What exists? and How does the cosmos function? According to Triglia (n.d.), Plato asserted that grand human ideals, such as goodness and justice, are perfect and valid in any context, but the surrounding world always undergoes change due to events in time and space: trees grow and wither, people age and vanish, mountains are shaped by storms, the sea changes with the wind, and so on.
Furthermore, Plato noted that the knowledge gained from the environment is not universal but depends on each person's perspective and available information (Triglia, n.d.). For example, from afar, an ox may seem large, but upon approaching, one may notice that the tree next to it is nearly a bush, and the animal is quite small. However, behind the perceived things, there appear to be ideas that help comprehend the ever-changing chaos of the matter that forms things. For instance, when observing an olive tree, one knows it is a tree, and upon seeing a pine tree, which is quite different, one also understands it is a tree. In short, according to Triglia (n.d.), ideas serve to think correctly and avoid getting lost in constant confusion since they are valid everywhere.
Nevertheless, according to Plato, ideas exist in a realm separate from the physical world (Triglia, n.d.). For him, when different types of chairs are observed and recognized as such, individuals are not merely acknowledging the common physical properties of these objects; rather, an idea of a chair is created that transcends the objects themselves (Triglia, n.d.). Thus, Plato postulates the existence of two worlds: the sensible world, or the world of the senses, and the intelligible world, or the world of reason (Rodríguez, 2019). In accordance with Rodríguez (2019), this is what is known as ontological dualism.
On one hand, the intelligible world is the world of ideas, universals, and essences, and it is the only true world (Rodríguez, 2019). This world is accessible solely through reason, through a dialectical process that leads from ignorance to knowledge of the ideas (Rodríguez, 2019). In it, ideas are not all equal and are hierarchically classified; there can exist mathematical or geometric forms, as well as moral or aesthetic values that are preceded by the idea of the good (Lavernia, 2020). Moreover, according to Rodríguez (2019), this world transcends space and time, and it is the place where ideas reside, which are immutable and eternal, as well as the soul before its birth into the body.
On the other hand, the sensible world refers to the physical and material realm, the realm of particular objects that can be perceived through the senses (Rodríguez, 2019). Therefore, in this world, real knowledge of the rational world cannot be attained, only opinion (Rodríguez, 2019). It is a changing and imperfect world, susceptible to transformations, generation, and destruction (Lavernia, 2020). Additionally, it is characterized by spatiality and temporality (Rodríguez, 2019). Correspondingly with Rodríguez (2019), the visible world, also referred to as the world of appearances, has existence due to its participation in the world of ideas. Plato argues that there is a resemblance between objects in the sensible world and those in the intelligible world, which he calls participation.
Each physical element has its corresponding idea, a perfect version in the mind that does not originate from the material realm but from the world of ideas (Triglia, n.d.). In this way, the reality perceived through the senses is essentially an illusion, consisting of deficient copies of elements from the world of ideas, which present imperfections that distort their true essence (Triglia, n.d.). In summary, according to Rodríguez (2020), material objects participate in ideas, and their degree of perfection is determined by their proximity to the universal.
Epistemological Dualism
For Plato, the existence of two orders of reality is closely related to his theory of knowledge, making the doctrine of ideas have an epistemological aspect, meaning it is related to the nature of knowledge and its different levels (Lavernia, 2020). In fact, Plato's theory of ideas posed an important question: how is it possible for human beings to be connected to both realms, despite the world of ideas and the material world being two separate domains? To answer this, Triglia (n.d.) mentions that the philosopher argued that what is perceived is actually a mixture of two elements: the body and the soul.
On one hand, the body has senses to comprehend what happens in the physical world, but it is imperfect, vulnerable, and susceptible to the deception of appearances (Triglia, n.d.). In other words, the body belongs to the sensible world, as it is perishable and corruptible, subject to creation and destruction, and constantly changing, while the soul is trapped within it (Rodríguez, 2019). Therefore, according to Rodríguez (2019), the body is considered a prison for the soul.
On the other hand, the soul is the most valuable part of a human being and, before being trapped in a body, it existed in the world of ideas. However, it fell and will only be liberated from the body and return to the world of ideas after physical death (Rodríguez, 2019). Since it has already lived in the intelligible world, the soul already knows the ideas. Thus, for Plato, knowledge is nothing more than remembering what the soul already knew but had forgotten when it fell to Earth. This is referred to as the theory of reminiscence, which appears in the dialogue of Phaedo, according to Rodríguez (2019).
References
Lavernia, K. (2020). Platón. Biografia, Pensamiento y Obras. Alejandra de Argos. Recuperado 15 May 2021, a partir de https://www.alejandradeargos.com/index.php/es/completas/42-filosofos/41827-platon-biografia-pensamiento-y-obras
Meinwald, C. (2020). Plato | Life, Philosophy, & Works. Encyclopedia Britannica. Recuperado 27 April 2021, a partir de https://www.britannica.com/biography/Plato#ref281697
Regader, B. Los impresionantes aportes de Platón a la Psicología. Psicologiaymente.com. Recuperado 7 April 2021, a partir de https://psicologiaymente.com/psicologia/platon-historia-psicologia
Rodríguez, P. (2020). La TEORÍA de los dos MUNDOS de Platón. unprofesor.com. Recuperado 15 May 2021, a partir de https://www.unprofesor.com/ciencias-sociales/cual-es-la-teoria-de-los-dos-mundos-de-platon-412.html
Rodríguez, P. (2019). Mundo sensible y mundo inteligible. unprofesor.com. Recuperado 15 May 2021, a partir de https://www.unprofesor.com/ciencias-sociales/mundo-sensible-y-mundo-inteligible-definicion-3059.html
Rodríguez, P. (2019). Teoría de las ideas de Platón. unprofesor.com. Recuperado 15 May 2021, a partir de https://www.unprofesor.com/ciencias-sociales/teoria-de-las-ideas-resumen-breve-3094.html
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