one of the most brilliant and far-reaching writers to have ever lived. Neha December 18, 2017. Socrates's methods of dialogue and debate impressed Plato so much that he soon he became a close associate and dedicated his life to the question of virtue and the formation of a noble character. Some scholars believe that Plato was named for his grandfather, Aristocles, following the tradition of the naming the eldest son after the grandfather. There is some debate among scholars on the order of these writings, but most believe they fall into three distinct periods. Arianna Huffington is a prolific author and international media mogul who started the award-winning news platform The Huffington Post. Well before his encounter with Socrates, Plato was known to accompany philosophers such as Cratylus, a disciple of Heraclitus. Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher considered to be the main source of Western thought. Often, members of Plato's family appeared in his dialogues. © 2021 The Foundation for Constitutional Government Inc. All rights reserved. It counts among its illustrious alumni many fine minds, but none more renowned than Aristotle. An admiration that will accompany him all his life and will mark Plato’s philosophical future. Plato represents the starting point of Western philosophy. His work covered a broad spectrum of interests and ideas: mathematics, science and nature, morals and political theory. Plato was born around 428 B.C., during the final years of the Golden Age of Pericles’ Athens. Plato was a student of Socrates(who did not write) and the teacher of Aristotle, who founded another university, known as the Lyceum. Both of his parents came from the Greek aristocracy. Plato was said to be an ancient Greek philosopher. The Athenian politician, Critias (l. c. 460-40 BCE), was Plato's mother's cousin and studied with Socrates as a young man. Inspired by Pythagoras, he founded his Academy in Athens in 387 BCE, where he stressed mathematics as a way of understanding more […] Plato was born in Athens, the son of Ariston and Perictione, both of Athenian aristocratic ancestry. Dana Plato was a child actress on the television show Diff'rent Strokes. Both his mother and father were members of wealthy and politically powerful families in Athens, which was at the time of Plato's birth embroiled in a political upheaval involving the city-states of Athens and Sparta and their allies. Other texts in this time period include Protagoras, Euthyphro, Hippias Major and Minor and Ion. In the words of Alfred North Whitehead, “The safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato.”. The Greek philosopher Plato was a student of Socrates, and teacher of Aristotle. Sometime around 385 B.C.E., Plato founded a school of learning, known as the Academy, which he presided over until his death. Traditional history estimates Plato's birth was around 428 B.C.E., but more modern scholars, tracing later events in his life, believe he was born between 424 and 423 B.C.E. One was meeting the great Greek philosopher Socrates. Due to a lack of primary sources from the time period, much of Plato's life has been constructed by scholars through his writings and the writings of contemporaries and classical historians. © 2021 Biography and the Biography logo are registered trademarks of A&E Television Networks, LLC. ), an Athenian of the ancient Greece, is the first major figure in the history of Western philosophy who is believed to be one of the most creative and influential thinkers in Western intellectual tradition. The family of his mother, Perictione, boasted a relationship with the great Athenian legislator Solon. Plato is one of the most important Greek philosophers. Plato was born in 428 or 427 b.c. He met Socratesaround 407 BC and became his disciple in philosophy. He had Dion exiled and Plato placed under "house arrest." His work on the use of reason to develop a more fair and just society that is focused on the equality of individuals established the foundation for modern democracy. Plato was an ancient Greek philosopher who played an important role in the development of Western philosophy. In the year 407, at the age of twenty, he met Socrates, being admired by the personality and the speech of Socrates. Upon his return to Athens at around 40 years of age, Plato founded the first known institution of higher learning in the West, the Academy, named for its location in the Grove of Academus. He authored philosophical works of unparalleled influences. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); Subscribe to the Biography newsletter to receive stories about the people who shaped our world and the stories that shaped their lives. His writings deal with justice, beauty and equality, as well as written on aesthetics, political philosophy, theology, cosmology, epistemology and the philosophy of language. Plato wrote about many ideas in philosophy that are still talked about today. Plato's father, Ariston, descended from the kings of Athens and Messenia. We strive for accuracy and fairness. It is widely accepted that Plato, the Athenian philosopher, was born in 428-7 B.C.E and died at the age of eighty or eighty-one at 348-7 B.C.E. As with many young boys of his social class, Plato was probably taught by some of Athens' finest educators. Plato died in 347 B.C. The Republic was written during this time with its exploration of just government ruled by philosopher kings. Fortunately, chancing upon an admirer who purchased his freedom, Plato was spared and found his way home. The defeat of Athens ended its democracy, which the Spartans replaced with an oligarchy. Diogenes Laertius also reports that the philosopher’s name was Aristocles, for his grandfather, but that his wrestling coach dubbed him “Platon,” meaning “broad,” either on account of his robust physique, or the width of his forehead, or eloquence of his speech. Our very conception of philosophy—of rigorous thinking concerning the true situation of man, the nature of the whole, and the perplexity of being—owes a great debt to his work. Biography of Plato. His mother, Perictione, is said to be related to the 6th century B.C.E. Plato accepted, hoping the experience would produce a philosopher king. Plato Biography - Plato (Greek: Πλάτων, Plátōn) (c.427 to c.347 BC) was an immensely influential ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens where Aristotle studied. Biography of Plato. he became a pupil and friend of Socrates. Plato (423 BC – 348 BC) was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens – the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Among the most important of these abstract objects (as they are now called, because they are not located in spac… His mother Perictione remarried the politician Pyrilampes. During this time, or soon after, he began his extensive writing. In his writings on the Theory of Forms, Plato suggests that the world of ideas is the only constant and that the perceived world through our senses is deceptive and changeable. If Plato's date of death is correct in Apoll… His beliefs on the importance of mathematics in education have proven to be essential for understanding the entire universe. After living for a time at the Syracuse court, Plato founded (c.387 B.C.) He was the student of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle and was immensely … Ancient Greek philosopher Plato was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle. According to one source, Plato died peacefully in his bed listening to the sweet sounds of a Thracian flute girl. Athens, Greece. Other historians claim that "Plato" was a nickname, referring to his broad physical build. - Plato Biography and List of Works - Plato Books Plato was a classical Greek philosopher and mathematician, influencing the realm of Western philosophy. Biography; Plato Plato. For 2,400 years, Plato’s writings have been interpreted, re-interpreted, debated, and taught as the foundational issues and methods of Western philosophical discourse. Over its years of operation, the Academy's curriculum included astronomy, biology, mathematics, political theory and philosophy. Ancient Greek philosopher Plato was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle. In another reversal of fortune, Dionysius II expelled his uncle Dion, and compelled Plato to remain. The Academy operated until 529 C.E.., when it was closed by Roman Emperor Justinian I, who feared it was a source of paganism and a threat to Christianity. Ancient Greek statesman Pericles, leader of Athens from 460–429 B.C., organized the construction of the Parthenon and developed a democracy based on majority rule. View seven larger pictures Euripides was one of the great Athenian playwrights and poets of ancient Greece, known for the many tragedies he wrote, including 'Medea' and 'The Bacchae.'. Plato studied with, and represented in writing, Socrates, “the wisest man in the world.” He founded what some consider the first institution for higher learning, the Academy, where he taught Aristotle, whose ideas and influence were probably greater even than his teac… Plato founded the Academy in Athens, one of the first institutions of higher learning in the Western world. As a young man, Plato experienced two major events that set his course in life. When he was in his late teens or early twenties, Plato heard Socrates teaching in the market and abandoned his plans to pursue a literary career as a playwright; he burned his early work and devoted himself to philosophy.It is likely that Plato had known Socrates, at least by reputation, since youth. While there, Dionysius’ brother-in-law, Dion, became Plato’s disciple. One of the greatest Greek philosophers (considered the greatest Greek writer of prose by some), Plato, was born into an aristocratic Athenian family. Plato was probably born in 427 BC, and died around 347 BC, aged about 80. This too is possible, although there is record that the name Plato was given to boys before Aristocles was born. In the second, or middle, period, Plato writes in his own voice on the central ideals of justice, courage, wisdom and moderation of the individual and society. He remained a diligent disciple of Socrates, and along with Socrates and his renowned student Aristotle, he found the first higher learning academy in Athens.Plato’s philosophy is heavily influenced by Socrates, Parmenides, Heraclitus and Pythagoras. near Athens the most influential school of the ancient world, the Academy, where he taught until his death. But there is no conclusive evidence of this, or that Plato was the eldest son in his family. It has been sug… Dion, however, later turned against Plato, selling him into slavery. he studied Socrates also he was a teacher of Aristotle and he found the academy. Upon the death of Dionysius, according to Plato’s account in his Seventh Letter, Dion requested that Plato return to Syracuse to tutor young Dionysius II. Although Hippocrates probably didn't write the famous oath that bears his name, it serves as foundation for the oath medical school graduates take at the start of their careers. According to an anecdote told by the Greek biographer Diogenes Laertius, Plato was originally named Aristocles. The Greek philosopher Plato (428-347 B.C.) Another source reports that he died while attending a friend’s wedding feast. He influenced many of the writers or researchers such as Heraclitus, Parmenides, and Pythagoreans. ), following Apollodorus' chronology, Plato was born the year Pericles died, was six years younger than Isocrates, and died at the age of eighty-four (D.L. She fell into drug addiction and died of an overdose in 1999. Plato's father died when he was young, and his mother remarried her uncle, Pyrilampes, a Greek politician and ambassador to Persia. The Academy was open until its destruction by Sulla in 84 BCE. In 367 B.C.E., Plato was invited by Dion, a friend and disciple, to be the personal tutor of his nephew, Dionysius II, the new ruler of Syracuse (Sicily). He was condemned to death for his Socratic method of questioning. Plato grew up in the Greek city-state of Athens during the Classical Period of Ancient Greece. One story says he traveled to Egypt. No area of inquiry seems foreign to him: his writings investigate ethics, politics, mathematics, metaphysics, logic, aesthetics, and epistemology in tremendous depth and breadth. As is common among many of the great philosophers of his day, records about the birth and early life of Plato do not exist. According to Diogenes Laertius, who lived many centuries later than the philosophers about whom he was writing, Plato was born to Ariston, an Athenian aristocrat who traced his lineage to Codrus, the king of Athens, and to Melanthus, the king of Messina. Some scholars suggest that he died while attending a wedding, while others believe he died peacefully in his sleep. But Dionysius fell far short of expectations and suspected Dion, and later Plato, of conspiring against him. Plato – Biography, philosophy, Works, Contribution. He founded the Academy in Athens. After founding the Academy, Plato became involved in the politics of Syracuse. Plato was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle. Plato - Biography and Works Plato (427-347B.C. They were either never recorded or they were lost or destroyed. Still another account simply says he died in his sleep. In the third, or late, period, Socrates is relegated to a minor role and Plato takes a closer look at his own early metaphysical ideas. He wrote about ideas of deductive reasoning. Plato is believed to have had two full brothers, one sister and a half brother, though it is not certain where he falls in the birth order. For further biographical reading, see also: The Cambridge Companion to Plato, ed. The curriculum would have featured the doctrines of Cratylus and Pythagoras as well as Parmenides. He lived his whole life in Athens, although he traveled to Sicily and southern Italy on several occasions. Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher, one of the three greatest figures of the ancient period of Western philosophy (the others were Plato and Aristotle), who lived in Athens in the 5th century BCE.A legendary figure even in his own time, he was admired by his followers for his integrity, his self-mastery, his profound philosophical insight, and his great argumentative skill. Although historians don't know a lot about Plato's early life they know he came from a wealthy family and likely had two brothers and a sister. 3.2-3.3). His thought had enormous impact on the development of Western philosophy. These probably helped develop the foundation for Plato's study of metaphysics (the study of nature) and epistemology (the study of knowledge). El Greco was a Greek artist whose painting and sculpture helped define the Spanish Renaissance and influence various movements to come. Born in the era of ancient philosophy, Plato is one of the world’s most recognized philosophers of classical Greece. After the oligarchy was overthrown and democracy was restored, Plato briefly considered a career in politics, but the execution of Socrates in 399 B.C.E. These dates, however, are not entirely certain, for according to Diogenes Laertius (D.L. Dion believed that Dionysius showed promise as an ideal leader. Plato would eventually leave Syracuse, while Dion later returned to Syracuse and overthrew Dionysius II, only to be usurped by Callipus, another disciple of Plato. His most famous pupil there was Aristotle. According to Diogenes, Plato visited Syracuse while it was under the rule of Dionysius. Although both Plato and Aristotle had a similar childhood and upraising and followed some of the same footprints both Aristotle and Plato share both many different moral and beliefs on certain issues such as epistemology, cosmology and body and soul theory. The first, or early, period occurs during Plato's travels (399-387 B.C.E.). He was of noble Athenian lineage on both sides. It seems unlikely that Plato had a very intense relationship with the one he considered his master. Plato was born sometime between 428 and 427 B.C. Two of Plato's relatives, Charmides and Critias, were prominent figures in the new government, part of the notorious Thirty Tyrants whose brief rule severely reduced the rights of Athenian citizens. He explores the role of art, including dance, music, drama and architecture, as well as ethics and morality. by Samreen Sagheer. Plato is one of the most brilliant and far-reaching writers to have ever lived. And yet modern scholars are in doubt, since the name “Plato” was not uncommon in the Athens of Plato’s day. Eventually, Plato returned to Athens and his Academy. GREAT Ancient sources offer differing accounts of Plato’s death. In 407 B.C. His father Ariston died when he was a child. If we understand the term relationship in its most personal sense, it is true that it was understood in its most theoretical sense… Plato (427-347 BC) His political and moral philosophy dominates a long chain of thinkers, writers and critics. Greek statesman Solon. Plato's final years were spent at the Academy and with his writing. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! The Greek poet Homer is credited with being the first to write down the epic stories of 'The Iliad' and 'The Odyssey,' and the impact of his tales continues to reverberate through Western culture. The circumstances surrounding his death are clouded, though it is fairly certain that he died in Athens around 348 B.C.E., when he was in his early 80s. He was born in Athens around 428 BC to an aristocratic family with a long and esteemed history of political leadership. In these dialogues, Plato attempts to convey Socrates's philosophy and teachings. Historians believe this is an indication of Plato's pride in his family lineage. Plato (Ancient Greek: Πλάτων, Plátōn, "wide, broad-shouldered"; c. 428/427 – c. 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, the second of the trio of ancient Greeks including Socrates and Aristotle said to have laid the philosophical foundations of Western culture. Socrates was executed in 399 BC. His works on philosophy, politics and mathematics were very influential and laid the foundations for Euclid's systematic approach to mathematics. Plato, (born 428/427 bce, Athens, Greece—died 348/347, Athens), ancient Greek philosopher, student of Socrates (c. 470–399 bce), teacher of Aristotle (384–322 bce), and founder of the Academy, best known as the author of philosophical works of unparalleled influence. There are few contemporary sources for the life of Plato. PLATO (427- 347 B.C.) As the scion of a rich and aristocratic family, he received good education under renowned teachers, including Socrates. The other significant event was the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, in which Plato served for a brief time between 409 and 404 B.C.E. Many people associate Plato with a few central doctrines that are advocated in his writings: The world that appears to our senses is in some way defective and filled with error, but there is a more real and perfect realm, populated by entities (called forms or ideas) that are eternal, changeless, and in some sense paradigmatic for the structure and character of the world presented to our senses. One of his more promising students there was Aristotle, who would take his mentor's teachings in new directions. His writings explored justice, beauty and equality, and also contained discussions in aesthetics, political philosophy, theology, cosmology, epistemology and the philosophy of language. The Apology of Socrates seems to have been written shortly after Socrates's death. Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, together with Socrates and Plato, laid much of the groundwork for western philosophy. Biography of Plato. During this time, Plato nearly faced death in Cyrene. It is believed the school was located at an enclosed park named for a legendary Athenian hero. soured him on this idea and he turned to a life of study and philosophy. Plato and fellow … Because Aristotle had disagreed with some of Plato’s philosophical treatises, Aristotle did not inherit the position of director of the academy, as many imagined he would. After Socrates's death, Plato traveled for 12 years throughout the Mediterranean region, studying mathematics with the Pythagoreans in Italy, and geometry, geology, astronomy and religion in Egypt. Early, Middle and Late Periods: An Overview. Plato’s birthplace and time are not known but it has been estimated between 427/428 B.C. Richard Kraut, Cambridge: 1992. Later in life, after the death of Socrates, Plato traveled around Egypt, Italy, Sicily, and Cyrene, Libya. THINKERS. PLATO – THE ATHENIAN PHILOSOPHER Biography: What was Plato Known for Plato (c.428-348 BCE) Although usually remembered today as a philosopher, Plato was also one of ancient Greece’s most important patrons of mathematics. Plato was born in Athens, Greece, the son of Ariston and Perictione, both of Athenian noble backgrounds. Plato's biography is drawn mainly from the work of other ancient writers and a few of what are presumed to be Plato's letters. Plato hoped the Academy would provide a place for future leaders to discover how to build a better government in the Greek city-states. December 19, 2010 | No Comments. founded the Academy, one of the great philosophical schools of antiquity. Ancient Greek philosopher Plato founded the Academy and is the author of philosophical works of unparalleled influence in Western thought. 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