The Utility Of Myth Plato s Metaphysics - 1624 Words

The Utility of Myth in Plato’s Metaphysics ï » ¿Plato speaking from the mouth of Socrates in Phaedo, tells us, â€Å"people are likely not to be aware that those who pursue philosophy aright study nothing but dying and being dead.† (61a) As a philosopher Plato sought to offer not only descriptions of the world him around, but prescriptions as well. The above quote when understood metaphorically, for him, shows the aim of philosophy, and goal of the philosopher is and should be to scratch at the surface of our faculties. To do this, Plato believes we must let our ability to reason override our baser, desires, so as to reach our maximum potential to the benefit of ourselves and the those who come after. Plato s conception of psychology—â€Å"from Greek†¦show more content†¦His doctrine of the immortality of the soul, are tied to myths found throughout his Dialogues and coalesces with his theories of eternal/absolute forms, and mind-body dualism. Though they are asunder, they should be considered part a nd parcel of the same argument—to have a good life, and its opposite—death, calls for a harmony between our lowly and high desires, and as with his placement of myth at the end of his Dialogues, rather than the beginning—with our logos first and foremost at the helm. This reversal of the myth--reason, to reason--myth, sequential chain, can be argued to not just be a stylistic, or arburity choice; taking into account the consistency of placement, one can reasonably infer, Plato’s views were in many ways diametrically opposed to the plethora of expressions found among the masses. As an aristocrat, Plato was afforded the leisure needed to properly philosophize, and by chance, and virtue, his dialogues have survived to act as a foundation, for much western thought and religion to build on. The speculated life of Plato, much like his work, is rife with mystery and myth. We are given almost all secondary accounts of his life, sometimes more than a hundred years after the fact. Indeed, the specifics of Plato’s life are a matter of much debate with countless books penned on the subject. We can however, adopting a postmodernist stance (admitting much of the details are inference, ratherShow MoreRelated Plato on Education as the Development of Reason Essay3512 Words   |  15 PagesPlato on Education as the Development of Reason ABSTRACT: Socrates great educational innovation was in ascribing moral worth to the intellectual activity reflectively directed at ones own life. His concept of eudaimonia was so different from the ordinary that talking about it took on sometimes a paradoxical air, as in Apology 30b3. For him, reason is not a tool for attaining goals independently thought worthwhile; rather, rationality itself, expressed in the giving of reasons and the avoidance