Topics Philosophers

Question I am reading The Republic by Plato right now. I am now on the 8th book of The Republic. I have read that Plato enumerates the theory of forms in the 7th book. Yet when I read the 7th book I found his theory of forms very unlike what I have heard about this theory. According to how the theory of forms has been taught to me a horse or a person corresponds to the form of a horse or person. It seemed like Plato what actually said was very different from that. I admit that I had a difficult time following Plato's arguments in book 7 but I am curious if I am the only person who finds a discrepancy between how Plato is taught and what he actually says.

Accepted:
May 13, 2010

Comments

The Forms make their first appearance in Book V, and are also significantly represented in the metaphysics of the Divided Line passage in Book VI. I agree, however, that they also appear in the theory of higher education Plato discusses in Book VII.

I can't speak to how Plato's theory of Forms is taught, because I suspect that it is taught very differently by different teachers. But there are very good scholarly works on Plato's Forms. I recommend Richard Patterson's Image and Reality in Plato's Metaphysics (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1985). I also think a good review is provided in Henry Teloh's The Development of Plato's Metaphysics (University Park: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1981), Chapter 3.