Plato’s notion of the Forms vs. the physical realm is quite and interesting topic. I believe something very similar to what Plato thinks about the Forms and our physical reality. Plato says that there is nothing that is perfect in this reality that we live in. And the Forms are the perfect ideals or thoughts that we are striving to achieve throughout our lives. Plato says it is impossible to reach the Forms in our current reality and that it is only possible to achieve perfect knowledge and truth after our soul leaves our body and goes to the next realm where we can become or attain the Forms.
Now I believe like Plato, that we can’t attain perfection while here on Earth, but I do believe that we must strive to reach perfection throughout our lives. This life on Earth is a test from God where we come to learn and grow spiritually or with in our souls and also to grow physically. As we grow we age and become old, and will die eventually where our soul will continue to live until there is a resurrection. Our bodies and spirits or souls however you want to describe them will join together as a perfect body and we will finally have a perfect knowledge of all things and the “Forms” as Plato describes them. Part of this test while here on Earth is to see if we can follow certain laws given to us by God.
The Essay on Ideal Society Plato Utopia Perfect
Plato's Republic and Thomas More's Utopia have a relationship in that they both share an idea. These books both have the concept of an ideal society, although they do this for distinct reasons and they attain contrasted types of perfection. More describes Utopia as "the most civilized nation in the world." Plato is searching for the perfect soul and justice. These two writers base their ideal ...
I believe that these laws are the Forms Plato talks about. What we are all trying to become and that these laws will help us to gain the perfect knowledge that we desire. I don’t believe however that all knowledge is innate with in us. I do believe that we had a great deal of knowledge and that we understood many things before we came to this Earth. However before we came here I don’t think we had bodies, and without bodies how could we know or have perfect knowledge of all things physical? It is impossible to have perfect knowledge and understanding of something that you have never experienced. So in the sense that we are trying to get back to or remember the perfect understanding of the Forms Plato describes I can’t agree with what Plato thinks in that regard.
Plato’s notion that we have perfect knowledge in the realm of the forms without a body, come to Earth and receive a body and forget all our knowledge, then spend our lives remembering this knowledge, and then dying going back to the realm of the Forms to achieve perfection, is very similar to what I believe happens. Where Plato in my opinion goes wrong is he thinks that we continue this process over and over again. So Plato is someone who believes in reincarnation. I don’t believe that we come back to Earth and continue the process of forgetting and remembering. I think that when we die we do gain perfect knowledge of truth and that we continue to live with God forever.
