Plato and Innate Knowledge
Knowledge is present everywhere in society. Every human being has it. Some may have a lot, while some might have very little. How is one supposed to attain such knowledge? According to some philosophers it’s a tossup between being born with it while others think that knowledge is gained as one grows up. In simple terms, is knowledge nature or nurture? Are you already born to be joining IMSA or are you brought up with a great education? Plato believes that knowledge is innate, meaning that it’s already in you from the beginning, also known as a priori knowledge. But other philosophers claim that knowledge is gained through experience. While Plato’s theory does make some sense, I believe that the opposing side, empiricism, has more value in today’s society.
Plato’s theory on recollection and a priori knowledge is first brought up in his dialogue Meno. Socrates is Plato’s spokesperson to Meno. In the dialogue Meno asks Socrates if virtue can be taught. Socrates then tries to show that knowledge is brought up from within. He calls Meno’s uneducated slave and asks him to try and double the area of a figure shown. Through questions and answers the slave successfully draws the figure. Socrates then tries to prove that because he is “uneducated” and successfully drew the figure, knowledge is innate and that everyone is always born with it. (Pojman 43-44)
Some of the problems that I have with the dialogue are that Socrates assumes through the figure that the uneducated slave drew had the knowledge. If knowledge is innate then there would be no reason to call his slave uneducated. How can one tell that through the questions asked and the answers that were given is reliable? What if Socrates gave really great answers to the slave that they would understand? In the dialogue, the questions asked by the slave and the answers given by Socrates are not shown. So how can you tell what exactly took place. One can assume a lot of the questions and answers posed, so this situation
Plato’s theory on recollection and a priori knowledge is first brought up in his dialogue Meno. Socrates is Plato’s spokesperson to Meno. In the dialogue Meno asks Socrates if virtue can be taught. Socrates then tries to show that knowledge is brought up from within. He calls Meno’s uneducated slave and asks him to try and double the area of a figure shown. Through questions and answers the slave successfully draws the figure. Socrates then tries to prove that because he is “uneducated” and successfully drew the figure, knowledge is innate and that everyone is always born with it. (Pojman 43-44)
Some of the problems that I have with the dialogue are that Socrates assumes through the figure that the uneducated slave drew had the knowledge. If knowledge is innate then there would be no reason to call his slave uneducated. How can one tell that through the questions asked and the answers that were given is reliable? What if Socrates gave really great answers to the slave that they would understand? In the dialogue, the questions asked by the slave and the answers given by Socrates are not shown. So how can you tell what exactly took place. One can assume a lot of the questions and answers posed, so this situation
Bibliography: Pojman, Louis P. Who Are We? Theories of Human Nature. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.