Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 98 views

    B2 - Plato

    Uploaded by

    Veda Leigh Sy
    Plato believed the soul/self consisted of three parts: Reason, Physical Appetite, and Spirit or Passion. Reason enables wise thinking and understanding truth, Appetite encompasses biological needs, and Spirit represents emotions. These parts can work together or conflict. Plato used a metaphor of a charioteer (Reason) guiding two horses (Spirit and Appetite) to represent how Reason must control the other parts to achieve harmony and true wisdom. For Plato, genuine happiness requires consistently letting Reason dominate Spirit and Appetite.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    B2 - Plato

    Uploaded by

    Veda Leigh Sy
    98 views1 page
    Plato believed the soul/self consisted of three parts: Reason, Physical Appetite, and Spirit or Passion. Reason enables wise thinking and understanding truth, Appetite encompasses biological needs, and Spirit represents emotions. These parts can work together or conflict. Plato used a metaphor of a charioteer (Reason) guiding two horses (Spirit and Appetite) to represent how Reason must control the other parts to achieve harmony and true wisdom. For Plato, genuine happiness requires consistently letting Reason dominate Spirit and Appetite.

    Original Title

    B2.-Plato

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Plato believed the soul/self consisted of three parts: Reason, Physical Appetite, and Spirit or Passion. Reason enables wise thinking and understanding truth, Appetite encompasses biological needs, and Spirit represents emotions. These parts can work together or conflict. Plato used a metaphor of a charioteer (Reason) guiding two horses (Spirit and Appetite) to represent how Reason must control the other parts to achieve harmony and true wisdom. For Plato, genuine happiness requires consistently letting Reason dominate Spirit and Appetite.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    98 views1 page

    B2 - Plato

    Uploaded by

    Veda Leigh Sy
    Plato believed the soul/self consisted of three parts: Reason, Physical Appetite, and Spirit or Passion. Reason enables wise thinking and understanding truth, Appetite encompasses biological needs, and Spirit represents emotions. These parts can work together or conflict. Plato used a metaphor of a charioteer (Reason) guiding two horses (Spirit and Appetite) to represent how Reason must control the other parts to achieve harmony and true wisdom. For Plato, genuine happiness requires consistently letting Reason dominate Spirit and Appetite.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 1

    Plato

    Plato was for the most part committed to Socrates’s view of the essence of the self—the soul—
    as a unified, indissoluble, immortal entity that remains the same over time; but he also recognizes the
    inherent difficulties with this view. For instance, quoting a female philosopher named Diotima he asked,
    “How is it possible to say that a self remains the same when it is obvious that every self is defined by a
    process of continual change and evolution?” This is visibly apparent in our physical bodies, and
    contemporary science has revealed that, even on the cellular level, old cells are dying and being
    replaced by new cells on an ongoing basis. In what sense can we say that an infant at the age of six
    months is the same person at the age of sixty years, when so much of his or her physical body has
    changed?

    Plato elaborates his concept of the soul (the Greek word is psyche) by introducing the idea of a
    three-part soul/self constituted by

    Reason—Our divine essence that enables us to think deeply, make wise choices, and achieve a
    true understanding of eternal truths.
    Physical Appetite—Our basic biological needs such as hunger, thirst, and sexual desire.
    Spirit or Passion—Our basic emotions such as love, anger, ambition, aggressiveness,
    and empathy.

    These three elements of our selves are in a dynamic relationship with one another, sometimes
    working in concert, sometimes in bitter conflict. For example, we may develop a romantic relationship
    with someone who is an intellectual companion (Reason), with whom we are passionately in love
    (Spirit), and whom we find sexually attractive, igniting our lustful desires (Appetite). Or we may find
    ourselves in personal conflict, torn between three different relationships, each of which appeals to a
    different part of our self: Reason, Spirit, Appetite. When conflict occurs, Plato believes it is the
    responsibility of our Reason to sort things out and exert control, reestablishing a harmonious
    relationship among the three elements of our selves.

    Plato illustrates his view of the soul/self with a vivid metaphor: The soul is likened to a chariot
    drawn by two powerful winged horses—a noble horse, representing Spirit, and a wild horse, embodying
    Appetite. The charioteer is Reason, whose task is to guide the chariot to the eternal realm by controlling
    the two independent-minded horses. Those charioteers who are successful in setting a true course and
    ensuring that the two steeds work together in harmonious unity achieve true wisdom and banquet
    with the gods. However, those charioteers who are unable to control their horses and keep their chariot
    on track are destined to experience personal, intellectual, and spiritual failure. The fact that the horses
    are “winged” suggests the capacity of the soul to soar to the elevated realm of wisdom and intellectual
    enlightenment.

    Plato believed that genuine happiness can only be achieved by people who consistently make
    sure that their Reason is in control of their Spirits and Appetites. This harmonious integration under the
    control of Reason is the essence of Plato’s concept of justice, both at the individual level and at the
    social and political level as well.

    Source: John Chaffee, The Philosopher’s Way: Thinking Critically about Profound Ideas, 5th ed.

    You might also like