...completely so that they can only see the shadows like illusion, which they believe, as real but it is just their illusion. - See more at: http://www.bachelorandmaster.com/creationofknowledge/allegory-of-the-cave.html#.Vm1VcUp961s Plato also talks about an ideal state, which is a utopian world. In an ideal state, there is equality among the people because no one is superior or inferior in this world. There is free flow of knowledge justice and truth, everywhere in the ideal state. Plato is also known as the first communist because of his concept of equality among the people. In the ideal state, rulers are also true philosopher whose wealth is not money or gold but spiritual knowledge. Those are the best rulers to rule the ideal state because they are reluctant to rule and active to serve the people as true servants. In other words, the rulers at the ideal state are never thirsty to exercise power, they do not want to impose cruelty over the people but instead they are worried of the condition of the people and the welfare of the state. These rulers are based because for them ruling is not imposing power but it is serving the people. But it is just an ideal state so practically there is not possibility of such state as such ideal rulers are rarely found, these true philosophers are not only the rulers but also best teachers, who should go to the dark and ignorant world to enlightenment the ignorant people....
Words: 1383 - Pages: 6
...our thoughts to aim at'? On the Realists view, there is a mind-independed world about which we form beliefs, and truth is the correspondence between a statement or belief and the mind-independed world the statement or belief is about. Central in the Realists conception is that its obtaining is independed of our ways of finding out about it. That is, that truth transcends our ability to know the truth. For the Realist, if reality did not contain answers to our questions, then there would be no ‘target for our thoughts to aim at’ and ‘truth’ or ‘falsity’ would cease to matter. Opposed to Realism is the Anti-Realists view that ‘reality’ is constituted in part by our conceptual activities or the conceptual tools we employ in our inquiry. The anti-realist seeks a notion of truth that can be constructed out of verification. For anti-realism truth is to be analyzed in terms of concepts like evidence or scientific inquiry. For a statement to be true is to be capable of being verified or asserted. Reality for the Anti-Realist is defined as the totality of these ‘actual truths’. The Anti-realist identifies truth with verification. He argues that when we are making any assertions, the actual standard these assertions have to pass, is the best interpretation of the best available evidence. So the Anti-realist asks ‘what use does a truth that transcends verification have, if the only target we have in making assertions is the test of verification?’ According to...
Words: 1056 - Pages: 5
...Does ideal speech ever really take place? Jürgen Habermas formulated a concept in his early works, which is known as the ideal speech situation. Ideal speech can be simply defined as idealised conditions of speech, which is speech that focuses on reasoning rather than persuasion. Habermas sets out four conditions that must be followed in order for ideal speech to be achieved. All participants must have equal opportunity to speak. They all must have the right to state, defend or question any factual or normative claim. Discussion must not be constrained by status differences. Finally, the members must only be motivated by the desire to reach an agreement on the truth (Stickle). The ideal speech situation does not and cannot take place because it is merely impossible for everyone to have equal opportunity to speak, there will always be participants with varying status and power and it is human nature for people to argue persuasively. It is because of these conditions that the ideal speech situation is not possible, although aspects of it are beneficial. Ideal speech cannot work in reality due to the fact that Habermas’ idea is based on perfect human traits such as equality and honesty, and in a case of discussion or argument these traits are not the priority of participants. The ideal speech situation focuses on quintessential speakers that are always faithful to their words. From a biblical point of view, no human can be always faithful, in the sense that it is impossible...
Words: 842 - Pages: 4
...(iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) The Videc Rishis of India Plato – (427-347 B.C) Kant (1724- 1804 A.D) Hegal (1770-1831 A.D) Froebel (1772 – 1852 A.D) Swami Dyananda (1825 – 1883 A.D) R.N. Tagore (1861-1941 A.D) Aurobindo Ghosh (1872 – 1950 A.D) 02. MEANING OF IDEALISM The word „Idealism‟ signifies two terms: „Idea‟ and „ideal‟. In other words Idealism is born out of Plato‟s “Theory of Ideas”. According to this doctrine, the ultimate supremacy is of ideas. In this way, the real word is „ideaism‟, but adding the letter „I‟ for pronunciation facility it is known as idealism. 03. DEFINITION OF IDEALISM (i) (ii) Views of D.M. Dutta: “Idealism holds that ultimate reality is spiritual”. Views of J.S. Ross: “Mind or spirit is the essential world stuff that the true reality is of a mental character”. (iii) Harold B. Titus: “Idealism asserts that reality consists of ideas, thoughts, minds, or selves rather than material objects and force”. (iv) R.N. Tagore: “Idealism is that school of philosophy which Iays great emphasis on ideas as well as on moral and spiritual values”. ..1.. (v) Oxford dictionary: “Idealism means representation of things in an ideal form, imaginative treatment, system of thought in which the object of external perception is hold to consist of ideas”. 04. MAIN FEATURES / CHARACTERISTICS OF IDEALISM (i) (ii) True...
Words: 2938 - Pages: 12
...How do you know when you should question the truth? It can be altered at moment in our lives, like playing a game of telephone, the sentence comes around to its original person, and never the same as it was in the beginning of the game. One of the most famous quotes said by Walter Benjamin is “History is written by the victors”. Being true because of the people of the past who have experience it, and tell it as they remember it, at times over exaggerating there part in history or even the situation. One can never know what exactly happened in history. In 1984, written by George Orwell, there world was being controlled and change whenever they felt it was needed, or they altered their truth to make it sound better than it really was. Many people have known this as the Ben Trovato effect when you have a statement, but change it to your liking, stating something false but ad How do you know when you should question the truth?...
Words: 726 - Pages: 3
...Emerson’s Unifying Philosophy Throughout human existence, scholars have earnestly pursued knowledge and the attainment of truth. Historical figures such as Plato, Descartes, and Emerson sought answers to daunting questions of: ‘What is truth?’; ‘What is reality?’; ‘How is wisdom acquired?’ Many scholars believe these philosophers presented conflicting viewpoints: Plato encouraging skepticism among all previous historical, cultural, and personal perspectives; Descartes questioning definitions of reality and his very existence; Emerson encouraging self-trust and confidence in one’s ideals, opinions, and convictions. Surprisingly, reconciliation can be reached from these three differing hypotheses. Emerson’s thesis merely expounds from Descartes and Plato’s philosophies. He builds from Descartes’ search for self-identity and reconciles Plato’s skepticism with his views of self-trust and unconformity among scholars. Throughout “Mediations I and II”, Descartes disputes definitions of reality and identity, establishing a precursor to Emerson’s philosophy. Initially, Descartes questions all notions of being. In “Mediation I”, Descartes begins his argument explaining the senses which perceive reality can be deceptive and “it is wiser not to trust entirely to any thing by which we have once been deceived” (Descartes 59). But, he then continues to reason; “opinions [are] in some measure doubtful…and at the same time highly probable, so that there is much more reason to believe in...
Words: 1008 - Pages: 5
...used similar methods to lead their movements in a nonviolent manner. They both had four basic steps for the ideal passive resister or nonviolent protester. Between their ideals, there is not...
Words: 721 - Pages: 3
...defined by just one document, The Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence was written to explain why colonists needed to be independent from Britain. This document contains an explanation for the separation from Britain, ideals about the government, and grievances towards the British. Ideals given in this document include equality, natural rights, consent of the governed, and the right to alter or abolish the government. Of the four main ideas, the most important one is equality. An important ideal is consent of the governed. This ideal delivers a message of how the ruling of the government should be based on the citizens. Consent of the governed is very important because without it brings chaos. “In 1989, Chinese students who had gathered in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square adopted the Statue of Liberty… as a symbol of their demands of truth, freedom, and democracy from their government…(Doc C).” Consent of the governed lets citizens have a say in government by allowing them to participate by voting for presidents or even just cooperating with the government. Without consent of the governed, citizens would be mislead without any say in every decision made because they had no rule in it. Consent of the governed is a...
Words: 539 - Pages: 3
...Plato, one of Socrates most valued students, is one of the first known philosophers. He followed Socrates around, wrote down his theories and added on to them. Plato was born in 437BC and died around 347BC. He came from a wealthy and powerful family. When he was about 20 years old he came under Socrates spell and decided to devote himself to Philosophy. “He was also a mathematician, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the western world.(Piyong)” “He divides reality into two: on the one hand we have ontos, idea or ideal. This is ultimate reality, permanent, eternal, spiritual. On the other hand, there’s phenomena, which is a manifestation of the ideal. Phenomena are appearances, things as they seem to us, and are associated with matter, time, and space.” (Carlson) Phenomena are illusions which decay and die. Ideals are unchanging and perfect. Ideas are available to us through thought, while phenomena are available through our senses. Plato taught us this so we can realize that some things in life are reality and some are always changing and never forever. He relates back to this theory when he talks about art. Plato believes that art is imitation. Although Plato is not the first person to believe and understand that art is imitation, he does explain why very greatly. Plato says that “art must be imitating the world as it appears, not the world as it is (Palmer, 419).” He says that art is a copy of a...
Words: 1076 - Pages: 5
...His conversations with his fellow Athenians, as recorded by Plato, are the first records we have of an individual, by his own careful reasoning, trying to discover the guiding principles of moral choices. METAPHYSICS Because Socrates always claimed that his only wisdom was that he knew nothing, it is difficult to determine his metaphysics, his view of reality. However, in some accounts of his conversations, like Plato’s EUTHYPHRO, we may catch glimpse of his beliefs. Socrates seemed to hold that individual entities, like holy actions, have universal characteristics, like Holiness, which can be discovered by the mind after careful investigation. This may mean that he anticipate Plato’s metaphysics that thee is higher, eternal world of truths (like Holiness) which exists independently of this world. EPISTEMOLOGY Socrates’s epistemology, his theory of how knowledge is possible, is very difficult to determine because he appears not to have a great deal of interest in the subject. Socrates would much rather have talked about the purpose of life, than the process by which the minds gains knowledge of the purpose of life. His claims that he knew nothing, except that he knew nothing, might make...
Words: 1632 - Pages: 7
...www.galaxyimrj.com Galaxy: International Multidisciplinary Research Journal ISSN 2278-9529 Gandhian Ideals in Raja Rao’s Kanthapura P. Prayer Elmo Raj Assistant Professor, Department of English Karunya University, Coimbatore Raja Rao’s Kanthapura is one of the finest depictions of the Freedom Movement commenced in the early twentieth century by Mahatma Gandhi to lead India towards freedom from the colonial British rule. India’s freedom struggle which exerted considerable influence on the demeanor of Indian population is the central thrust of the novel. Kanthapura illustrates how Gandhian ideals and struggle for freedom against the British arrived to a characteristic South Indian village Kanthapura. The novel is a striking example of the impact of Gandhian leadership and value that affected even the distant Indian villages. Kanthapura, the “dynamo” of the Gandhian ideals communicates the fresh impetus that propelled the freedom struggle against the British. Iyengar identifies, in Kanthapura, the“veritable grammar of the Gandhian myth.” The novel illustrates two faces of Gandhian vision: the political and the social. This paper is an attempt to critically elucidate the manner in which Raja Rao appropriates Gandhian vision through his creative imagination in Kanthapura. There is no village in India, however mean, that does not have a rich sthala-purana, or legendary history, of its own. Some god or godlike hero has passed by the village – Rama might have rested under this papal-tree...
Words: 4998 - Pages: 20
...Plato was an Ancient Greek Philosopher who was taught by Socrates. Plato believed the world we live in a world of appearances, however he also believed that there is a world beyond, one containing forms which was the world of ideas which he the world of the forms. Forms are the general realities or ideals versions of something. Forms in Plato’s eyes where perfect versions of something, and in the world of the appearances they are many particulars which have copies or impact versions which imitate the perfect version of the form. The world of the forms is an epistemology which can only be used by tapping into the intelligible world without using your senses. For example in the world appearances they are many types of cats but in the world of the forms there is only one perfect version of that cat. Plato’s analogy of the cave is a way to interpret Plato theory of the forms and his idea about the universe. Plato’s analogy begins with the prisoners sat in the cave, chained together, and facing a wall preventing them to see or to gain any movement: a fire blazes behind them and on the other side of a passage way. Along the pass way men carrying statues and talking casting shadows on the wall which the prisoners face which made the prisoners it is a puppet because that is all they have seen all their life. When a prisoner escapes the cave, he realises that the shadows casted are real people and that they is another world with a sun outside which at first he is blinded by. When he returns...
Words: 1667 - Pages: 7
...identity due to choosing between his father’s ideals of loyalty to family and justice. Sarty lives and travels with a very poor white family, and they work on farms of rich landowners, but they get paid very little. As the beginning of the story begins, Sarty and his family are in court for Abner’s decisions of burning landowners’ barns. In the process, Sarty is pressured to choose between two paths, in which Faulkner shows “the classic conflicts of good versus evil, son versus father, and individual versus familial identity” (Ford). At the end Sarty’s final resolution develops his identity. Sarty’s conflict with his father is very strong, because Abner Snopes believes family loyalty is everything. Sarty is unable to make his own choices due to Abner’s ideals, because from the beginning Abner enforces Sarty to “stick to your own blood”(Faulkner 175). In the opening scenes, Sarty’s conflict is unveiled. Sarty loves and respects his father, but in court he does not want to lie. This causes Sarty to recognize his father’s enemies as his own enemies, and this puts Sarty in a very uncomfortable position. As Ford states, during the first trial with Mr. Harris’ Barn, the Justice of the peace banishes Abner from town instead of testifying...
Words: 1152 - Pages: 5
...This article from PPST Bulletin is made available on-line by Samanvaya (www.samanvaya.com). All the rights of the article rest with the authors and any enquiries and clarifications may be directed to them. These are made available in an as-is basis, please report any mistakes to knowledge@samanvaya.com. TOWARDS A NON-WESTERN PERSPECTIVE ON SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE I The available studies on the phenomenon and institution of science suffer from a curious limitation. It is as if all those who analyse the subject were overawed by the grandeur of modern science, and their studies were in the nature of tributes laid at the feet of this great saviour. All analysis starts from the assumption that modern science is a set of value-free theories that uniquely explain reality. After the scientists in the early 20th century started overhauling their theories in a big way, it was granted that the value-free theories of science that explain reality may do so only partially at a given time, but as science progresses, its theories explain more and more of reality and the process converges towards the ‘ultimate’, ‘unique’ law that explains everything. Committed to this idealist picture of a unique value free science, the philosophy of science is reduced to a set of attempts at finding the epistemological criterion, internal to science, that allows the scientist, unencumbered by any extraneous considerations, to choose the true theory out of a competing set; the sociology of science is reduced to...
Words: 4795 - Pages: 20
...Side Story qualifies as a literary tragedy because the established tragic hero impacts the rise, climax, fall, and ultimate inescapable disaster of the story. The plot structure of a literary tragedy follows a very specific and necessary path throughout the story. The tale begins with hatred, fighting, and conflict, at nobody’s ideal. The plot requires a reason to escalate or rise, which is the Tony, the tragic hero, and his desire to reach his ideal of love. Other characters’ ideals are also attempted to be achieved. The individual members of the Jets and Sharks strive to gain superiority and territory from each other. The gangs start the path to their ideals by arranging a fight to decide who the victorious and superior gang will be. Tony rises towards his ideal when he meets Maria, and makes a proud and willful decision to pursue a relationship, despite forces acting against them. Uncontrollable forces act upon our hero, such as his circumstance and the hate he is surrounded by, but he nevertheless begins to rise to something greater, establishing Tony as an elevated character. Tony raises himself above his peers because he strives for a greater ideal than one achieved through fighting; he is pushed by fate and peers to conform, but stands by his different beliefs and goals and embraces his situation. For example, Tony works a job...
Words: 850 - Pages: 4
