Plato’s best (and worst) ideas - Wisecrack
-
0:07 - 0:13Few individuals have influenced the world
and many of today's thinkers like Plato. -
0:13 - 0:16One 20th century philosopher
even went so far -
0:16 - 0:22as to describe all of Western philosophy
as a series of footnotes to Plato. -
0:22 - 0:24He created the first Western university
-
0:24 - 0:27and was teacher to Ancient Greece's
greatest minds, -
0:27 - 0:29including Aristotle.
-
0:29 - 0:33But even one of the founders of philosophy
wasn't perfect. -
0:33 - 0:34Along with his great ideas,
-
0:34 - 0:39Plato had a few that haven't
exactly stood the test of time. -
0:39 - 0:44So here are brief rundowns
of a few of his best and worst ideas. -
0:44 - 0:48Plato argued that beyond
our imperfect world -
0:48 - 0:52was a perfect unchanging world of Forms.
-
0:52 - 0:58Forms are the ideal versions of the things
and concepts we see around us. -
0:58 - 1:02They serve as a sort of instruction
manual to our own world. -
1:02 - 1:06Floating around the world of Forms
is the ideal tree, -
1:06 - 1:08and the ideal YouTube channel,
-
1:08 - 1:09and even the ideal justice,
-
1:09 - 1:12or ideal love.
-
1:12 - 1:17Our own reality is comprised of imperfect
copies of ideal Forms. -
1:17 - 1:21Plato argued that philosophers
should strive to contemplate -
1:21 - 1:24and understand these perfect Forms
-
1:24 - 1:28so that they may better navigate
our misleading reality. -
1:28 - 1:30While it may seem silly,
-
1:30 - 1:32the disconnect between the world
as it appears -
1:32 - 1:34and the greater truth behind it
-
1:34 - 1:37is one of philosophy's
most vexing problems. -
1:37 - 1:41It's been the subject of thousands
of pages by theologians, -
1:41 - 1:42philosophers,
-
1:42 - 1:44and screenwriters alike.
-
1:44 - 1:48It raises questions like should we trust
our senses to come to the truth -
1:48 - 1:50or our own reason?
-
1:50 - 1:53For Plato, the answer is reason.
-
1:53 - 1:58It alone provides us with at least
the potential to contemplate the Forms. -
1:58 - 2:01But reason didn't always pan out
for Plato himself. -
2:01 - 2:05When he sought to situate humankind
amongst the animals, -
2:05 - 2:08he lumped us in with birds.
-
2:08 - 2:12"Featherless bipeds"
was his official designation. -
2:12 - 2:15Diogenes the Cynic,
annoyed by this definition, -
2:15 - 2:18stormed into Plato's class
with a plucked chicken, -
2:18 - 2:22announcing, "Behold. Plato's man."
-
2:22 - 2:24But back to a few good ideas.
-
2:24 - 2:28Plato is one of the earliest
political theorists on record, -
2:28 - 2:32and with Aristotle, is seen as one
of the founders of political science. -
2:32 - 2:36He reasoned that being a ruler
was no different than any other craft, -
2:36 - 2:39whether a potter or doctor,
-
2:39 - 2:43and that only those who had mastered
the craft were fit to lead. -
2:43 - 2:46Ruling was the craft
of contemplating the Forms. -
2:46 - 2:52In his Republic, Plato imagined a utopia
where justice is the ultimate goal. -
2:52 - 2:57Plato's ideal city seeks a harmonious
balance between its individual parts -
2:57 - 3:00and should be lead by a philosopher king.
-
3:00 - 3:02Millennia before his time,
-
3:02 - 3:08Plato also reasoned that women were
equally able to rule in this model city. -
3:08 - 3:11Unfortunately, Plato was inconsistent
with women, -
3:11 - 3:14elsewhere likening them to children.
-
3:14 - 3:17He also believed that a woman's
womb was a live animal -
3:17 - 3:21that could wander around in her body
and cause illness. -
3:21 - 3:25This bad idea, also espoused by other
contemporaries of Plato, -
3:25 - 3:30was sadly influential for hundreds
of years in European medicine. -
3:30 - 3:34Furthermore, he thought that society
should be divided into three groups: -
3:34 - 3:35producers,
-
3:35 - 3:36the military,
-
3:36 - 3:38and the rulers,
-
3:38 - 3:43and that a great noble lie should convince
everyone to follow this structure. -
3:43 - 3:45The noble lie he proposed
-
3:45 - 3:50was that we're all born with gold,
silver, or a mixture of brass and iron -
3:50 - 3:52in our souls,
-
3:52 - 3:54which determine our roles in life.
-
3:54 - 3:58Some thinkers have gone on
to credit the idea of the noble lie -
3:58 - 4:02as a prototype for 20th century
propaganda, -
4:02 - 4:07and the philosopher king as inspiration
for the dictators that used them. -
4:07 - 4:08Should a few bad ideas
-
4:08 - 4:12tarnish Plato's status as one
of the greatest philosophers in history? -
4:12 - 4:13No!
-
4:13 - 4:17Plato gave the leaders and thinkers who
came after him a place to start. -
4:17 - 4:18Through the centuries,
-
4:18 - 4:22we've had the chance to test those ideas
through writing and experience, -
4:22 - 4:26and have accepted some
while rejecting others. -
4:26 - 4:30We are continuing to refine,
amend, and edit his ideas -
4:30 - 4:33which have become foundations
of the modern world.
- Title:
- Plato’s best (and worst) ideas - Wisecrack
- Speaker:
- Wisecrack
- Description:
-
View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/plato-s-best-and-worst-ideas-wisecrack
Check out Wisecrack's YouTube channel here: https://goo.gl/A5vb5K
Few individuals have influenced the world and many of today’s thinkers like Plato. He created the first Western university and was teacher to Ancient Greece’s greatest minds, including Aristotle. But even he wasn’t perfect. Along with his great ideas, Plato had a few that haven’t exactly stood the test of time. Wisecrack gives a brief rundown of a few of Plato’s best and worst ideas.
Lesson by Wisecrack, animation by Aaron, Tom and Mathias Studios.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 04:49
Jessica Ruby approved English subtitles for Plato's best (and worst) ideas | ||
Jessica Ruby accepted English subtitles for Plato's best (and worst) ideas | ||
Jessica Ruby edited English subtitles for Plato's best (and worst) ideas | ||
Jennifer Cody edited English subtitles for Plato's best (and worst) ideas |