Many philosophers have inquired about what is knowledge. Most believe that knowledge is attained by being taught, and not suppressed in our mind since birth. In Plato’s Meno, Socrates argues in favor of the pre existing knowledge, that knowledge is essentially suppressed, and is brought to light through questioning. The argument, which comes from this view of “knowledge”, is that if you know what it is you are inquiring about, you don’t need to inquire, because you already know. However, if you do not know what it is you are inquiring about, you are unable to inquire, because you do not know what you inquiring. One outcome about this view is Plato’s rejection of the claim that knowledge is derived from experience. However when you look at …show more content…
I believe that there are two views to consider when debating this issue. Firstly, there is the possibility that Socrates merely asked the right questions, bringing the knowledge that was suppressed in the boy’s mind out so he could solve the problems. This was the message that Plato was trying to convey. However, this would also mean the boy had already learned this information in another life. With this, it means that this would have been a problem in the other life, and if learning is not possible now, only recollection, where did he receive this information in the first place, as it would not have been possible in a previous life. The second view is how did the boy, who did not have any prior knowledge or geometry, recognize the proofs. You have to believe that the boy already had these answers in his mind or he could not have confidently said yes or no to a question. Also, that the boy says yes to correct answers because he sees that it is the obvious answer. It is easier to believe this when getting the correct answers requires only basic intelligence. An example to contradict this is the subject of chemistry for example. It involves skills that need to be taught by a teacher, as both require advanced processes to do correctly. Socrates may have been able to teach a slave boy basic geometric proofs using drawings in the sand, but the teaching of any other more complex would have required the passing on of knowledge that could not possibly have been “recalled” by
In Plato’s Meno, Socrates and Meno attempt to answer the question, ‘What is virtue?’ Through this discussion, Meno is lead to question whether they are even able to arrive at an answer, presenting us with the paradox of inquiry, ‘And how will you enquire, Socrates, into that which you do not know? What will you put forth as a subject of enquiry? And if you find what you want, how will you ever know that this is the thing which you did not know?’ (Meno 80d). Meno’s paradox states that one cannot gain knowledge through enquiry.
In the Meno, Plato believes that true beliefs becomes knowledge by the grounding true belief. As mentioned before, if virtue is x, then it can be taught (because knowledge can be taught), therefore virtue (x) is equal to knowledge. Plato's expositions of elements of his own theory of knowledge, yet, the investigation of knowledge is indirect. I believe Socrates states that everyone was born with a knowledge of right and wrong, he / she needed to experience situations where he / she needed to recall this knowledge. He makes reference to the initial knowledge being in the soul.
The main argument here is that the knowledge represents for me the basis of my values, from which I learned most things, which in return guided me to the other good values like the honesty, responsibility and accountability. I highly believe that the knowledge is the major source of all other good
Towards the end of Meno, Socrates states that knowledge differs from true opinion in its ability to last over long periods of time. Socrates acknowledges that in many ways, knowledge and true opinion are equal; since both are certainly true, they lead to correct action without distinction. For example, in the passage Socrates compares a man who knows the way to Larisa to one who has a right opinion about the directions but has never actually been there, concluding that both would be equally competent guides. However, knowledge is, he argues, “fastened by the tie of the cause,” meaning one who has knowledge of a certain statement has grounded that truth in explanations and reasoning. Earlier in Meno, Socrates
In Plato’s Meno, there are many arguments Socrates and Meno encounter. They never seem to find a common ground and that leads to disagreements. The disagreements seem to never become an agreement because not only does Socrates makes it so difficult to give a definition of a word that he thinks is suitable but Meno is just letting him change his mind about his definition. The argument does not just consist on if knowledge an opinion can be taught, they argue that knowledge can be the only way to find correct actions, but opinion can also mean the same. Meno brings up a question, “ What makes Knowledge so prized than correct opinion.” Socrates answers with an example of Daedalus and when he uses a slave for example. That a slave will still
The Paradox of Inquiry is also known as Meno’s Paradox, there are a few interpretations to this dialogue which can appear to be quite challenging to understand. In the Paradox, Socrates and Meno are inquiring into the term “virtue” and what the definition of “virtue” might be. Socrates postulates three possible options of acquiring knowledge in the Meno; finding out for yourself, learning from someone else or by a divine inspiration. My thesis is that …….
Suppose Socrates managed to adequately prove the immortality and all knowing nature of the soul, his use of the slave boy interrogation as proof of recollection still remains problematic. What is being called into question is the method of interrogation that Socrates uses to help the salve boy recollect. Is the slave-boy actually recollecting forgotten knowledge? Or is Socrates asking strategic questions that direct the slave boy to the correct answer? It is assumed that because Socrates is asking questions and not explicitly teaching the slave boy anything that he has to be recollecting (106, Weiss). However, upon closer inspection this assumption can be easily questioned. Socrates’ use of diagrams begs the question, “can a process of discovery which leans so heavily on seeing- not in the sublimated sense, but in the literal one-be anything but an empirical process?”(Vlastos, 144). Would the slave boy have been able to arrive at the correct answer if Socrates had not drawn out the geometric figures? If he
It is thought that Meno's paradox is of critical importance both within Plato's thought and within the whole history of ideas. It's major importance is that for the first time on record, the possibility of achieving knowledge from the mind's own resources rather than from experience is articulated, demonstrated and seen as raising important philosophical questions.
Socrates then introduces the discussion of “what is completely,” “what is and what is not,” and “what is not completely,” (Republic 477a, 478a-478c). Knowledge is to know something that exists (i.e. object of knowledge). While objects of belief consists of what does exist and does not exist. This shows how knowledge is infallible and true belief is fallible. Knowledge is eternal and does not change or go anywhere, and true belief is the opposite.
Socrates does well in applying his Socratic method to his conversation with Meno as well. It seems evident from the text that Meno is rather ignorant. For, a great sum of his responses to Socrates consisted mostly of impertinent questioning and meek agreements. However, Socrates did not seem to mind, as he continued to fathom the nature virtue. He explores the relationship between virtue and knowledge, more specifically whether virtue is a kind of knowledge and may therefore be taught (though he concluded to be uncertain of this case). Socrates also goes on to invalidate Meno’s paradoxical question, “... how will you enquire, Socrates, into that which you do not know?” Socrates concludes with the argument that “...there is no teaching, but only recollection.” He goes on to prove his argument to Meno by questioning one of his slaves. This supports Socrates’ claim
Plato states that "all inquiry and all learning is but recollection" (81). Socrates uses Meno's slave to show that knowledge comes from recollection. This is Plato's way of stating that recognition of truth depends on the use of one's intellect. Truth may be understood as the conformity of intellect with reality. By using his intellect, Meno's slave recognizes the truth of the measurement of squares drawn by Socrates. Socrates calls this action "recollection." The act of recollecting, or using the intellect, is defined by Socrates as one
A perpetual conflict emanating throughout all mankind questions the significance of knowledge to human nature, regarding knowledge’s definition, acquisition, branches, and value. Major role models in the foundation of philosophy - specifically, in this essay, Plato and Aristotle - obsess over the significance of knowledge and its importance to and relationship with the development of human beings and their mindsets. Although Plato’s view on knowledge describes the internal predisposed essence of all Forms and the need for a superior being to extract them from the student, Aristotle’s outlook resides as more reliable and realistic due to his beliefs in the premise of knowledge in the sensation and perception, with continuing development in memory, experience, art and science, and, ultimately, true wisdom.
Plato contended that all true knowledge is recollection. He stated that we all have innate knowledge that tells us about the things we experience in our world. This knowledge, Plato believed, was gained when the soul resided in the invisible realm, the realm of The Forms and The Good.
Plato and Aristotle view knowledge and the process whereby it is obtained. They both point out that many epistemological concepts which they believe where knowledge comes from and what it is actually. Most of them have been astonished me in certain ways, but I found that rationalism and "wisdom consists in knowing the cause which made a material thing to be what it is" make the most sense to me regarding the nature of knowledge. As the following, we will discuss about why these two philosophical viewpoints are superior and the others are inferior.
or that death is not the end. There is no way to prove that this is