ABSTRACT
This chapter examines Plato's text in the light of three key issues: the relationship between appearance and reality and Plato's theory of the Forms; the relationship between knowledge and virtue, including Plato's account of morality; and Platos claims that philosophers should be political rulers. Plato argues that many particular objects can have the same property, for example, beauty. These properties can exist independently of the particular objects, as shown by the fact if we destroy all beautiful things, people have not destroyed beauty. Plato argues that particular things are always both X and not-X, depending on context, observer, time and so on. So it cannot be said to be X rather than not-X. By contrast, the Form of X is always X. The Divided Line divides into opinion, relating to the world of the senses, and knowledge, relating to the intelligible world. To acquire full knowledge of the Forms, we must be trained in philosophical argument.
