Plato’s Theory of Forms
Hypothesis Method
Republic VI, “Theory of Forms”
Material world
In the material world the sun is the sovereign. All thing are illuminated, and made clear by the sun. The material world is divided into two stages.
Stage 1 (Opinion)
The first the stage is the world of images. The world of images consists of shadows, and reflections. In the world of images, all perspectives are equal and all judgments are based in ignorance and on prejudice. For Socrates this was the lowest form of action, barely deserving of a name. This is the domain of Gorgias of Leontini, namely the world of opinions.
Stage 2 (Belief)
The second stage is the world of the actual objects that generated the images, shadows and reflections of the previous stage. At this stage we achieve actual knowledge of objects, and the ability to describe them. All followers of Gorgias would seek to restrict humanities cognitive ability at this level.
Intelligible World
In the intelligible world the Good is the sovereign. All things are illuminated, and made clear by the good. The intelligible similarly is divided into to stages. Stages 3 and 4 take place in the intelligible world.
Stage 3 (Thought)
The third stage is the world of mental objects. At stage 3 we take the knowledge of objects gained from stage 2 and begin to for the first time form a hypothesis. At this stage we begin to as the question why and all judgments are based on knowledge. At this stage we begin to determine the causality behind our mental objects.
Stage 4 (understanding)
The fourth and finally stage is the world of the hypothesis. At the level of understanding we use the hypothesis itself to generate a series of hypotheses, of ever decreasing imperfection until we reach the unhypothetical highest principle.
““ It does not consider these hypothesis as first principles but truly as hypotheses-but as stepping stones to take off from, enabling it to reach an unhypothetical first principle of everything. Having grasped this principle, it reverses itself and, keeping hold of what follows from it, comes down to a conclusion without making use of anything visible at all, but only forms themselves, moving on from forms to forms, and ending in forms. ”
Republic VII, “The Cave Parable”
Cave world
The cave world of his cave parable is very much analogous with the material world in his theory of forms. The cave is the world of speculation and opinion. The dialogue illustrates how it is that many false notions are conceived of in incorrect identifying an image or shadow of a thing with the actual thing itself. Just as the material world was partial illuminated by the the sun in his theory of forms, the ignorance prisoners in the cave have the shadows illuminated by the fire.
Real World
Similarly his real world in the cave parable is analogous to the intelligible world in his theory of forms. As in the intelligible world is illuminated by the Good in his theory of forms, the sun in the illuminates the real world of the cave parable. In the real world of the cave parable we discover, as would the prisoners of the cave if they were ever to be freed, that beyond the shadows or images we perceive is a lawful existence responsible for generating the shadow we perceive