Plato and Locke's Views on an Innate Idea
What is an innate idea? This can be defined as some idea or mental
representation that is produced by outside perception or created anew by our
imagination. It exists in the mind in virtue of the nature of the human mind.
According to Plato most if not all of our knowledge is innate. However, John
Locke feels that we do not have any innate ideas. Then the question arises of
who is right or are they both wrong. In this paper I will attempt to examine
the conflicting views of Plato and Locke.
The problem that I will be dealing with involves the different views of Locke
and Plato. The main focus of the paper will be to deal with
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Like many others Meno believes he knows what the
virtues are. However, Socrates is not pleased by Meno's response to the
question. Meno states that, "it is easy to say that a man's virtue consists of
being able to manage public affairs and in so doing to benefit his friends and
harm his enemies and to be careful that no harm comes to himself." [Meno 71e]
This is not pleasing to Socrates because Meno also finds that women have
different virtues than a man. This topic alone would need an entire paper to
finish therefore, I will move ahead with innate ideas of beings.
Meno wants to know whether virtues can be learned or simply known. Can they be
taught to people or do we just acquire the virtues? Socrates believes that
one's soul or minds knows what one thinks he learns. As this question arises
Socrates uses the slave boy example to explain.
In this example Socrates has a slave boy look at a mathematical problem. After
the boy looks at the problem he cannot work it. However, after being showed the
problem and having it broken down the boy is able to give the right answer.
Socrates begins by guiding the slave boy by drawing out the ideas that the slave
boy already knows or are present in him. From this the slave boy uncovers that
he has ideas that he did not know he had before the encounter with Socrates.
Socrates shows that the boy has never
When first introduced to Douglass and his story, we find him to be a young slave boy filled
Through several dialogues Plato gives readers accounts of Socrates’ interactions with other Athenians. While some may think of him as a teacher of sorts, Socrates is adamant in rejecting any such claim (Plato, Apology 33a-b). He insists that he is not a teacher because he is not transferring any knowledge from himself to others, but rather assisting those he interacts with in reaching the truth. This assistance is the reason Socrates walks around Athens, engaging in conversation with anyone that he can convince to converse with him. An assertion he makes at his trial in Plato’s Apology is at the center of what drives Socrates in his abnormal ways, “the unexamined life is not worth living for a human being” (38a). Socrates, through aporia, looks to lead an examined life to perfect his soul and live as the best person he can be. This paper looks to examine the ‘unexamined life’ and the implications rooted in living a life like Socrates’.
To be a human you must practice the four virtues, benevolence, righteousness, propriety and knowledge. Mencius said, “Since all men have these four principles in themselves, let them know to give them all their development and completion” (Plato, 47). One can practice good virtue by correcting oneself after every failure, eventually developing their true potential. Mencius taught the golden rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” as a sure path to achieving goodness. Mencius’s philosophy of human nature consists of obtaining the pure instincts you were born with as a child throughout your life and eventually achieving good virtue humans are capable of
The boy is very warm-hearted and appears to struggle to understand that danger could occur at any moment, whilst his father knows a lot more about what some people, “the bad guys”, do in order to survive. It could be seen that the child is very naive and therefore trusts others more than his father. However his trust in others teaches his father a valuable lesson; that not everyone is a “bad guy”. For instance when the pair come across Ely, the father is wary about him but his son is adamant that they give him a tin of food. This shows to readers that the boy has faith unlike his father. Another example is when the son sees the little boy; he begs his father to go back and help him and asks if he can go with them. I believe that he wants to help others as
Socrates declares that there is no one to teach people about wisdom and virtues. His conversation with Callias explains that no one can teach wisdom and virtue as there is no one that has mastered wisdom and virtue. Human beings are fallible creatures, morality, ethics and virtues are not always primarily considered in the multitude of decisions and actions that are performed every day. Humans are imperfect individuals, bound by no definitive moral code that is enforceable under any circumstance. Humans are creatures of free will and with free will comes evil and righteousness simultaneously. No one can teach a human being to always be righteous, kind, caring and generous. Socrates declares that there is no one capable of teaching all of these virtues because humans are all imperfect individuals but through inner evaluation humans can constantly strive to get closer to perfection.
The Parsley Garden by William Saroyan is a short story that follows a young 10 year old boy named Al. He really wants a hammer because he wants to build a bench in his mother's garden. But, the issue is that he can’t afford the hammer so he attempts to steal the hammer and he gets caught. Al faces internal conflict in the story deciding if he should go back and steal the hammer a second time or work to earn the hammer. Through the plot in the short story The Parsley Garden, William Saroyan present’s the idea that there's always a correct way and an incorrect way to solve a problem.
Locke’s states that “All knowledge comes from the senses through experience” interpreted when Locke’s “blank slate” idea to when we are kids we know nothing. Our brains have to make connections to things and these connections are gained through experience and continues
Boy realizes what he is guilty of and what he repressed for so many years. Boy
Mencius believed that human nature is good. Every person is born instilled with four main virtues; Righteousness, Ritual property, Wisdom and Benevolence. These virtues will only develop fully if it is nurtured and put to effect appropriately. He also claimed that those who are not virtuous have been “corrupted by the environment” . He believes that “Individual effort was needed to cultivate oneself, but one’s natural tendencies were good to begin with.” In this way, Mencius has integrated elements of Taoism into his theory. Basically, people are born well with good intentions, but they must work to maintain their good nature.
In the context of this extraordinary real life story a boy, depending on which society you
As a boy, however, he doesn’t know how to explain the conflict he is feeling and can only take in what is happening around him.
achieve the maximum point of virtue, self – knowledge has a central role, as it is a prerequisite
When Socrates and Meno are trying to deduce the qualities and definition of virtue, one of their results is that virtue must be a kind of wisdom. Socrates makes the claim that “virtue is something in the soul and it must be beneficial, it must be knowledge, since all the qualities of the should are in themselves neither beneficial nor harmful, but accompanied by wisdom or folly they become harmful or beneficial. This argument shows that virtue, being beneficial, must be a kind of wisdom” (88c-d). In this claim, Socrates is assuming that only wisdom and folly are the culprits to making elements of the soul harmful or beneficial. Since Socrates also claims that virtue
“Socrates’ positive influence touches us even today” (May 6) and we can learn a great deal about him from one of his students, Plato. It is in Plato’s report of Socrates’ trial a work entitled, Apology, and a friend’s visit to his jail cell while he is awaiting his death in Crito, that we discover a man like no other. Socrates was a man following a path he felt that the gods had wanted him to follow and made no excuses for his life and they way he lived it.
Plato and Locke have opposite opinions on the matter of innate ideas. Plato argues that the recognition of truth in reality is derived from the "recollection" of truth in the soul. A necessary part of Plato's argument is that "recollection" of Truth depends upon the existence of an immortal soul. Locke, on the other hand, rejects Plato's argument by stating that the recognition of truth is not dependent on "recollection" but is rather "self-evident." In other words, Locke argues that one does not need to "understand" truth to know it or admit of the existence of an immortal soul, for truth according to Locke reveals itself by virtue of its being true. This paper will analyze the arguments of each philosopher and show why I believe Plato to have the better argument on the matter of "recollection" and innate ideas in the soul.