CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-sticky-header-enabled vector-toc-available" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>Theory of forms - Wikipedia</title> <script>(function(){var className="client-js vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-sticky-header-enabled vector-toc-available";var cookie=document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; )enwikimwclientpreferences=([^;]+)/);if(cookie){cookie[1].split('%2C').forEach(function(pref){className=className.replace(new RegExp('(^| )'+pref.replace(/-clientpref-\w+$|[^\w-]+/g,'')+'-clientpref-\\w+( |$)'),'$1'+pref+'$2');});}document.documentElement.className=className;}());RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":false,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat":"dmy","wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"291624ec-efe7-4131-8a69-8643e45372dd","wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":false,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"Theory_of_forms","wgTitle":"Theory of forms","wgCurRevisionId":1278087398,"wgRevisionId":1278087398,"wgArticleId":25754129,"wgIsArticle":true,"wgIsRedirect":false,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text","CS1: long volume value","Articles with short description","Short description matches Wikidata","Use dmy dates from January 2025","Articles needing additional references from November 2021","All articles needing additional references","Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference","Idealism","Platonism","Theories in ancient Greek philosophy"],"wgPageViewLanguage":"en","wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Theory_of_forms","wgRelevantArticleId":25754129,"wgIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgNoticeProject":"wikipedia","wgCiteReferencePreviewsActive":false,"wgFlaggedRevsParams":{"tags":{"status":{"levels":1}}},"wgMediaViewerOnClick":true,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":true,"wgPopupsFlags":0,"wgVisualEditor":{"pageLanguageCode":"en","pageLanguageDir":"ltr","pageVariantFallbacks":"en"},"wgMFDisplayWikibaseDescriptions":{"search":true,"watchlist":true,"tagline":false,"nearby":true},"wgWMESchemaEditAttemptStepOversample":false,"wgWMEPageLength":40000,"wgEditSubmitButtonLabelPublish":true,"wgULSPosition":"interlanguage","wgULSisCompactLinksEnabled":false,"wgVector2022LanguageInHeader":true,"wgULSisLanguageSelectorEmpty":false,"wgWikibaseItemId":"Q1068658","wgCheckUserClientHintsHeadersJsApi":["brands","architecture","bitness","fullVersionList","mobile","model","platform","platformVersion"],"GEHomepageSuggestedEditsEnableTopics":true,"wgGETopicsMatchModeEnabled":false,"wgGELevelingUpEnabledForUser":false}; RLSTATE={"ext.globalCssJs.user.styles":"ready","site.styles":"ready","user.styles":"ready","ext.globalCssJs.user":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","ext.categoryTree.styles":"ready","ext.cite.styles":"ready","skins.vector.search.codex.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles":"ready","skins.vector.icons":"ready","jquery.makeCollapsible.styles":"ready","ext.wikimediamessages.styles":"ready","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript":"ready","ext.uls.interlanguage":"ready","wikibase.client.init":"ready","ext.wikimediaBadges":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["ext.categoryTree","ext.cite.ux-enhancements","mediawiki.page.media","site","mediawiki.page.ready","jquery.makeCollapsible","mediawiki.toc","skins.vector.js","ext.centralNotice.geoIP","ext.centralNotice.startUp","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","ext.gadget.switcher","ext.urlShortener.toolbar","ext.centralauth.centralautologin","mmv.bootstrap","ext.popups","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.init","ext.visualEditor.targetLoader","ext.echo.centralauth","ext.eventLogging","ext.wikimediaEvents","ext.navigationTiming","ext.uls.interface","ext.cx.eventlogging.campaigns","ext.cx.uls.quick.actions","wikibase.client.vector-2022","ext.checkUser.clientHints","ext.quicksurveys.init","ext.growthExperiments.SuggestedEditSession"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.impl(function(){return["user.options@12s5i",function($,jQuery,require,module){mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); }];});});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.categoryTree.styles%7Cext.cite.styles%7Cext.uls.interlanguage%7Cext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript%7Cext.wikimediaBadges%7Cext.wikimediamessages.styles%7Cjquery.makeCollapsible.styles%7Cskins.vector.icons%2Cstyles%7Cskins.vector.search.codex.styles%7Cwikibase.client.init&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector-2022"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.44.0-wmf.21"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin-when-cross-origin"> <meta name="robots" content="max-image-preview:standard"> <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=1120"> <meta property="og:title" content="Theory of forms - Wikipedia"> <meta property="og:type" content="website"> <link rel="preconnect" href="//upload.wikimedia.org"> <link rel="alternate" media="only screen and (max-width: 640px)" href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_forms"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit this page" href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/static/apple-touch/wikipedia.png"> <link rel="icon" href="/static/favicon/wikipedia.ico"> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/rest.php/v1/search" title="Wikipedia (en)"> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="//en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"> <link rel="canonical" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_forms"> <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="Wikipedia Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//meta.wikimedia.org" /> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="login.wikimedia.org"> </head> <body class="skin--responsive skin-vector skin-vector-search-vue mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject mw-editable page-Theory_of_forms rootpage-Theory_of_forms skin-vector-2022 action-view"><a class="mw-jump-link" href="#bodyContent">Jump to content</a> <div class="vector-header-container"> <header class="vector-header mw-header"> <div class="vector-header-start"> <nav class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-main-menu-dropdown vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" title="Main menu" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Main menu" > <label id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-label" for="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-menu mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-menu"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Main menu</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-main-menu" class="vector-main-menu vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-main-menu-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="main-menu-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-main-menu" data-pinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Main menu</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-navigation" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Navigation </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-mainpage-description" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z"><span>Main page</span></a></li><li id="n-contents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents" title="Guides to browsing Wikipedia"><span>Contents</span></a></li><li id="n-currentevents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Portal:Current_events" title="Articles related to current events"><span>Current events</span></a></li><li id="n-randompage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Visit a randomly selected article [x]" accesskey="x"><span>Random article</span></a></li><li id="n-aboutsite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About" title="Learn about Wikipedia and how it works"><span>About Wikipedia</span></a></li><li id="n-contactpage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us" title="How to contact Wikipedia"><span>Contact us</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-interaction" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-interaction" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Contribute </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-help" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia"><span>Help</span></a></li><li id="n-introduction" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" title="Learn how to edit Wikipedia"><span>Learn to edit</span></a></li><li id="n-portal" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Community_portal" title="The hub for editors"><span>Community portal</span></a></li><li id="n-recentchanges" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes to Wikipedia [r]" accesskey="r"><span>Recent changes</span></a></li><li id="n-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_upload_wizard" title="Add images or other media for use on Wikipedia"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="n-specialpages" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages"><span>Special pages</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <a href="/wiki/Main_Page" class="mw-logo"> <img class="mw-logo-icon" src="/static/images/icons/wikipedia.png" alt="" aria-hidden="true" height="50" width="50"> <span class="mw-logo-container skin-invert"> <img class="mw-logo-wordmark" alt="Wikipedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-wordmark-en.svg" style="width: 7.5em; height: 1.125em;"> <img class="mw-logo-tagline" alt="The Free Encyclopedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-tagline-en.svg" width="117" height="13" style="width: 7.3125em; height: 0.8125em;"> </span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-header-end"> <div id="p-search" role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-collapses vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box-auto-expand-width vector-search-box"> <a href="/wiki/Special:Search" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only search-toggle" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </a> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail cdx-typeahead-search--auto-expand-width"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia" aria-label="Search Wikipedia" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" > <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-user-links vector-user-links-wide" aria-label="Personal tools"> <div class="vector-user-links-main"> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-preferences" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-userpage" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown " title="Change the appearance of the page's font size, width, and color" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Appearance" > <label id="vector-appearance-dropdown-label" for="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-appearance mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-appearance"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Appearance</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-notifications" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-overflow" class="vector-menu mw-portlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/?wmf_source=donate&wmf_medium=sidebar&wmf_campaign=en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en" class=""><span>Donate</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-createaccount-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Theory+of+forms" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory" class=""><span>Create account</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-login-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Theory+of+forms" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o" class=""><span>Log in</span></a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div id="vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-user-menu vector-button-flush-right vector-user-menu-logged-out" title="Log in and more options" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Personal tools" > <label id="vector-user-links-dropdown-label" for="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-ellipsis mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-ellipsis"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Personal tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-personal" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-personal user-links-collapsible-item" title="User menu" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/?wmf_source=donate&wmf_medium=sidebar&wmf_campaign=en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en"><span>Donate</span></a></li><li id="pt-createaccount" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Theory+of+forms" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-userAdd mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-userAdd"></span> <span>Create account</span></a></li><li id="pt-login" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Theory+of+forms" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-logIn mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-logIn"></span> <span>Log in</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-user-menu-anon-editor" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-user-menu-anon-editor" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Pages for logged out editors <a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" aria-label="Learn more about editing"><span>learn more</span></a> </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-anoncontribs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y"><span>Contributions</span></a></li><li id="pt-anontalk" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </header> </div> <div class="mw-page-container"> <div class="mw-page-container-inner"> <div class="vector-sitenotice-container"> <div id="siteNotice"></div> </div> <div class="vector-column-start"> <div class="vector-main-menu-container"> <div id="mw-navigation"> <nav id="mw-panel" class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav id="mw-panel-toc" aria-label="Contents" data-event-name="ui.sidebar-toc" class="mw-table-of-contents-container vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-toc-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-toc" class="vector-toc vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-toc-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="toc-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-toc" > <h2 class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Contents</h2> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.unpin">hide</button> </div> <ul class="vector-toc-contents" id="mw-panel-toc-list"> <li id="toc-mw-content-text" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a href="#" class="vector-toc-link"> <div class="vector-toc-text">(Top)</div> </a> </li> <li id="toc-Forms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Forms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1</span> <span>Forms</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Forms-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Forms subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Forms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Intelligible_realm_and_separation_of_the_Forms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Intelligible_realm_and_separation_of_the_Forms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.1</span> <span>Intelligible realm and separation of the Forms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Intelligible_realm_and_separation_of_the_Forms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Ambiguities_of_the_theory" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Ambiguities_of_the_theory"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.2</span> <span>Ambiguities of the theory</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Ambiguities_of_the_theory-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Evidence_of_Forms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Evidence_of_Forms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2</span> <span>Evidence of Forms</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Evidence_of_Forms-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Evidence of Forms subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Evidence_of_Forms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Human_perception" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Human_perception"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.1</span> <span>Human perception</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Human_perception-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Perfection" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Perfection"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.2</span> <span>Perfection</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Perfection-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Criticisms_of_Platonic_Forms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Criticisms_of_Platonic_Forms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Criticisms of Platonic Forms</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Criticisms_of_Platonic_Forms-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Criticisms of Platonic Forms subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Criticisms_of_Platonic_Forms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Self-criticism" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Self-criticism"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.1</span> <span>Self-criticism</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Self-criticism-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Aristotelian_criticism" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Aristotelian_criticism"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.2</span> <span>Aristotelian criticism</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Aristotelian_criticism-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Scholastic_criticism" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Scholastic_criticism"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.3</span> <span>Scholastic criticism</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Scholastic_criticism-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Notes" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Notes"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>Notes</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Notes-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Primary_sources" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Primary_sources"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6</span> <span>Primary sources</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Primary_sources-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Bibliography" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Bibliography"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>Bibliography</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Bibliography-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" title="Table of Contents" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Theory of forms</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 32 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-32" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">32 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-af mw-list-item"><a href="https://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ide%C3%ABleer" title="Ideëleer – Afrikaans" lang="af" hreflang="af" data-title="Ideëleer" data-language-autonym="Afrikaans" data-language-local-name="Afrikaans" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Afrikaans</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ar mw-list-item"><a href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%86%D8%B8%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AB%D9%84" title="نظرية المثل – Arabic" lang="ar" hreflang="ar" data-title="نظرية المثل" data-language-autonym="العربية" data-language-local-name="Arabic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>العربية</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bg mw-list-item"><a href="https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A2%D0%B5%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%B7%D0%B0_%D1%84%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BC%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5" title="Теория за формите – Bulgarian" lang="bg" hreflang="bg" data-title="Теория за формите" data-language-autonym="Български" data-language-local-name="Bulgarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Български</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle mw-list-item" title="featured article badge"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideenlehre" title="Ideenlehre – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="Ideenlehre" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-el mw-list-item"><a href="https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%98%CE%B5%CF%89%CF%81%CE%AF%CE%B1_%CF%84%CF%89%CE%BD_%CE%BC%CE%BF%CF%81%CF%86%CF%8E%CE%BD" title="Θεωρία των μορφών – Greek" lang="el" hreflang="el" data-title="Θεωρία των μορφών" data-language-autonym="Ελληνικά" data-language-local-name="Greek" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Ελληνικά</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-es mw-list-item"><a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teor%C3%ADa_de_las_formas" title="Teoría de las formas – Spanish" lang="es" hreflang="es" data-title="Teoría de las formas" data-language-autonym="Español" data-language-local-name="Spanish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Español</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eu mw-list-item"><a href="https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideien_teoria" title="Ideien teoria – Basque" lang="eu" hreflang="eu" data-title="Ideien teoria" data-language-autonym="Euskara" data-language-local-name="Basque" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Euskara</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fa mw-list-item"><a href="https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%86%D8%B8%D8%B1%DB%8C%D9%87_%D8%A7%D8%B4%DA%A9%D8%A7%D9%84" title="نظریه اشکال – Persian" lang="fa" hreflang="fa" data-title="نظریه اشکال" data-language-autonym="فارسی" data-language-local-name="Persian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>فارسی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fr mw-list-item"><a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Th%C3%A9orie_des_formes" title="Théorie des formes – French" lang="fr" hreflang="fr" data-title="Théorie des formes" data-language-autonym="Français" data-language-local-name="French" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Français</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-gl mw-list-item"><a href="https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teor%C3%ADa_das_formas" title="Teoría das formas – Galician" lang="gl" hreflang="gl" data-title="Teoría das formas" data-language-autonym="Galego" data-language-local-name="Galician" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Galego</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ko mw-list-item"><a href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EC%9D%B4%EB%8D%B0%EC%95%84%EB%A1%A0" title="이데아론 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="이데아론" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hi mw-list-item"><a href="https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%AF_%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A7%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%82%E0%A4%A4" title="प्रत्यय सिद्धांत – Hindi" lang="hi" hreflang="hi" data-title="प्रत्यय सिद्धांत" data-language-autonym="हिन्दी" data-language-local-name="Hindi" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>हिन्दी</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-id mw-list-item"><a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teori_bentuk" title="Teori bentuk – Indonesian" lang="id" hreflang="id" data-title="Teori bentuk" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Indonesia" data-language-local-name="Indonesian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Indonesia</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-is mw-list-item"><a href="https://is.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frummyndakenning" title="Frummyndakenning – Icelandic" lang="is" hreflang="is" data-title="Frummyndakenning" data-language-autonym="Íslenska" data-language-local-name="Icelandic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Íslenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eidos" title="Eidos – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="Eidos" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-la mw-list-item"><a href="https://la.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctrina_idearum" title="Doctrina idearum – Latin" lang="la" hreflang="la" data-title="Doctrina idearum" data-language-autonym="Latina" data-language-local-name="Latin" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Latina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-li mw-list-item"><a href="https://li.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theorie_vaan_V%C3%B6rm" title="Theorie vaan Vörm – Limburgish" lang="li" hreflang="li" data-title="Theorie vaan Vörm" data-language-autonym="Limburgs" data-language-local-name="Limburgish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Limburgs</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idee%C3%ABnleer" title="Ideeënleer – Dutch" lang="nl" hreflang="nl" data-title="Ideeënleer" data-language-autonym="Nederlands" data-language-local-name="Dutch" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nederlands</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ja mw-list-item"><a href="https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%A4%E3%83%87%E3%82%A2%E8%AB%96" title="イデア論 – Japanese" lang="ja" hreflang="ja" data-title="イデア論" data-language-autonym="日本語" data-language-local-name="Japanese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>日本語</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ps mw-list-item"><a href="https://ps.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AF_%D8%A8%DA%BC%D9%88_%D8%AA%D9%8A%D9%88%D8%B1%D9%8A" title="د بڼو تيوري – Pashto" lang="ps" hreflang="ps" data-title="د بڼو تيوري" data-language-autonym="پښتو" data-language-local-name="Pashto" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>پښتو</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pt mw-list-item"><a href="https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teoria_das_ideias" title="Teoria das ideias – Portuguese" lang="pt" hreflang="pt" data-title="Teoria das ideias" data-language-autonym="Português" data-language-local-name="Portuguese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Português</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ro mw-list-item"><a href="https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teoria_formelor" title="Teoria formelor – Romanian" lang="ro" hreflang="ro" data-title="Teoria formelor" data-language-autonym="Română" data-language-local-name="Romanian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Română</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_forms" title="Theory of forms – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="Theory of forms" data-language-autonym="Simple English" data-language-local-name="Simple English" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Simple English</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sk mw-list-item"><a href="https://sk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plat%C3%B3nova_te%C3%B3ria_ide%C3%AD" title="Platónova teória ideí – Slovak" lang="sk" hreflang="sk" data-title="Platónova teória ideí" data-language-autonym="Slovenčina" data-language-local-name="Slovak" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Slovenčina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ckb mw-list-item"><a href="https://ckb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AA%DB%8C%DB%86%D8%B1%DB%8C%DB%8C_%D9%81%DB%86%D8%B1%D9%85%DB%95%DA%A9%D8%A7%D9%86" title="تیۆریی فۆرمەکان – Central Kurdish" lang="ckb" hreflang="ckb" data-title="تیۆریی فۆرمەکان" data-language-autonym="کوردی" data-language-local-name="Central Kurdish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>کوردی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sr mw-list-item"><a href="https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9F%D0%BB%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0_%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%98%D0%B0_%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D1%98%D0%B0" title="Платонова теорија идеја – Serbian" lang="sr" hreflang="sr" data-title="Платонова теорија идеја" data-language-autonym="Српски / srpski" data-language-local-name="Serbian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Српски / srpski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sh mw-list-item"><a href="https://sh.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teorija_ideja" title="Teorija ideja – Serbo-Croatian" lang="sh" hreflang="sh" data-title="Teorija ideja" data-language-autonym="Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски" data-language-local-name="Serbo-Croatian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fi mw-list-item"><a href="https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideaoppi" title="Ideaoppi – Finnish" lang="fi" hreflang="fi" data-title="Ideaoppi" data-language-autonym="Suomi" data-language-local-name="Finnish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Suomi</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sv mw-list-item"><a href="https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Id%C3%A9v%C3%A4rlden" title="Idévärlden – Swedish" lang="sv" hreflang="sv" data-title="Idévärlden" data-language-autonym="Svenska" data-language-local-name="Swedish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Svenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-tr mw-list-item"><a href="https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%B0dealar_teorisi" title="İdealar teorisi – Turkish" lang="tr" hreflang="tr" data-title="İdealar teorisi" data-language-autonym="Türkçe" data-language-local-name="Turkish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Türkçe</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-zh-yue mw-list-item"><a href="https://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%90%86%E5%9E%8B%E8%AB%96" title="理型論 – Cantonese" lang="yue" hreflang="yue" data-title="理型論" data-language-autonym="粵語" data-language-local-name="Cantonese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>粵語</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-zh mw-list-item"><a href="https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%A7%80%E5%BF%B5%E8%AB%96" title="觀念論 – Chinese" lang="zh" hreflang="zh" data-title="觀念論" data-language-autonym="中文" data-language-local-name="Chinese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>中文</span></a></li> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="wb-langlinks-edit wb-langlinks-link"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q1068658#sitelinks-wikipedia" title="Edit interlanguage links" class="wbc-editpage">Edit links</a></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Theory_of_forms" title="View the content page [c]" accesskey="c"><span>Article</span></a></li><li id="ca-talk" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Talk:Theory_of_forms" rel="discussion" title="Discuss improvements to the content page [t]" accesskey="t"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown emptyPortlet" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Change language variant" > <label id="vector-variants-dropdown-label" for="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">English</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-variants" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-variants emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation" class="vector-collapsible"> <nav aria-label="Views"> <div id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-views" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-view" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Theory_of_forms"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-history" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-tools-dropdown" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Tools" > <label id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-label" for="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-page-tools" class="vector-page-tools vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-page-tools-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="page-tools-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-page-tools" data-pinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Tools</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-cactions emptyPortlet vector-has-collapsible-items" title="More options" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Actions </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-more-view" class="selected vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Theory_of_forms"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-edit" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-history" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=history"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-tb" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-tb" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> General </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-whatlinkshere" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Theory_of_forms" title="List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [j]" accesskey="j"><span>What links here</span></a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/Theory_of_forms" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k"><span>Related changes</span></a></li><li id="t-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:File_Upload_Wizard" title="Upload files [u]" accesskey="u"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="t-permalink" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&oldid=1278087398" title="Permanent link to this revision of this page"><span>Permanent link</span></a></li><li id="t-info" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=info" title="More information about this page"><span>Page information</span></a></li><li id="t-cite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CiteThisPage&page=Theory_of_forms&id=1278087398&wpFormIdentifier=titleform" title="Information on how to cite this page"><span>Cite this page</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UrlShortener&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FTheory_of_forms"><span>Get shortened URL</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener-qrcode" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:QrCode&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FTheory_of_forms"><span>Download QR code</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-coll-print_export" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-coll-print_export" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Print/export </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="coll-download-as-rl" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:DownloadAsPdf&page=Theory_of_forms&action=show-download-screen" title="Download this page as a PDF file"><span>Download as PDF</span></a></li><li id="t-print" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&printable=yes" title="Printable version of this page [p]" accesskey="p"><span>Printable version</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-wikibase-otherprojects" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-wikibase-otherprojects" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> In other projects </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-commons mw-list-item"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Theory_of_Forms" hreflang="en"><span>Wikimedia Commons</span></a></li><li class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikiquote mw-list-item"><a href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Theory_of_forms" hreflang="en"><span>Wikiquote</span></a></li><li id="t-wikibase" class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikibase-dataitem mw-list-item"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q1068658" title="Structured data on this page hosted by Wikidata [g]" accesskey="g"><span>Wikidata item</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-column-end"> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Philosophical theory attributed to Plato</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">"The Forms" redirects here; not to be confused with <a href="/wiki/The_Forms_(band)" title="The Forms (band)">The Forms (band)</a>.</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ul{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist .mw-empty-li{display:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dt::after{content:": "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li::after{content:" · ";font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li:last-child::after{content:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:first-child::before{content:" (";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:last-child::after{content:")";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol{counter-reset:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li{counter-increment:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li::before{content:" "counter(listitem)"\a0 "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li ol>li:first-child::before{content:" ("counter(listitem)"\a0 "}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1246091330">.mw-parser-output .sidebar{width:22em;float:right;clear:right;margin:0.5em 0 1em 1em;background:var(--background-color-neutral-subtle,#f8f9fa);border:1px solid var(--border-color-base,#a2a9b1);padding:0.2em;text-align:center;line-height:1.4em;font-size:88%;border-collapse:collapse;display:table}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .sidebar{display:table!important;float:right!important;margin:0.5em 0 1em 1em!important}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-subgroup{width:100%;margin:0;border-spacing:0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-left{float:left;clear:left;margin:0.5em 1em 1em 0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-none{float:none;clear:both;margin:0.5em 1em 1em 0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-outer-title{padding:0 0.4em 0.2em;font-size:125%;line-height:1.2em;font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-top-image{padding:0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-top-caption,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-pretitle-with-top-image,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-caption{padding:0.2em 0.4em 0;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-pretitle{padding:0.4em 0.4em 0;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{padding:0.2em 0.8em;font-size:145%;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{padding:0.1em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-image{padding:0.2em 0.4em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-heading{padding:0.1em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-content{padding:0 0.5em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-content-with-subgroup{padding:0.1em 0.4em 0.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-above,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-below{padding:0.3em 0.8em;font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-collapse .sidebar-above,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-collapse .sidebar-below{border-top:1px solid #aaa;border-bottom:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-navbar{text-align:right;font-size:115%;padding:0 0.4em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-list-title{padding:0 0.4em;text-align:left;font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6em;font-size:105%}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-list-title-c{padding:0 0.4em;text-align:center;margin:0 3.3em}@media(max-width:640px){body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .sidebar{width:100%!important;clear:both;float:none!important;margin-left:0!important;margin-right:0!important}}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .sidebar a>img{max-width:none!important}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-list-title,html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{background:transparent!important}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle a{color:var(--color-progressive)!important}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-list-title,html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{background:transparent!important}html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle a{color:var(--color-progressive)!important}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .sidebar{display:none!important}}</style><table class="sidebar nomobile nowraplinks hlist"><tbody><tr><td class="sidebar-pretitle">Part of <a href="/wiki/Category:Platonism" title="Category:Platonism">a series</a> on</td></tr><tr><th class="sidebar-title-with-pretitle"><a href="/wiki/Platonism" title="Platonism">Platonism</a></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-image"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Platon.png" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Platon.png/100px-Platon.png" decoding="async" width="100" height="113" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Platon.png/150px-Platon.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Platon.png/200px-Platon.png 2x" data-file-width="314" data-file-height="354" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Life_of_Plato" title="Life of Plato">Life</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Dialogues_of_Plato" title="Category:Dialogues of Plato">Works</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Theory of forms</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Form_of_the_Good" title="Form of the Good">Form of the Good</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_theory_of_soul" title="Plato's theory of soul">Theory of soul</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_epistemology" title="Platonic epistemology">Epistemology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_political_philosophy" title="Plato's political philosophy">Political philosophy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Euthyphro_dilemma" title="Euthyphro dilemma">Euthyphro dilemma</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Demiurge" title="Demiurge">Demiurge</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Atlantis" title="Atlantis">Atlantis</a></li></ul></td> </tr><tr><th class="sidebar-heading"> <i><a href="/wiki/The_Republic_(Plato)" class="mw-redirect" title="The Republic (Plato)">The Republic</a></i></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Allegory_of_the_cave" title="Allegory of the cave">Allegory of the cave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Analogy_of_the_Sun" title="Analogy of the Sun">Analogy of the Sun</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Analogy_of_the_divided_line" title="Analogy of the divided line">Analogy of the divided line</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosopher_king" title="Philosopher king">Philosopher king</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ship_of_State" title="Ship of State">Ship of State</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_of_Gyges" title="Ring of Gyges">Ring of Gyges</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Myth_of_Er" title="Myth of Er">Myth of Er</a></li></ul></td> </tr><tr><th class="sidebar-heading"> <a href="/wiki/Category:Dialogues_of_Plato" title="Category:Dialogues of Plato">The works of Plato</a></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Euthyphro" title="Euthyphro">Euthyphro</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Apology_(Plato)" title="Apology (Plato)">Apology</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Crito" title="Crito">Crito</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedo" title="Phaedo">Phaedo</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Theaetetus_(dialogue)" title="Theaetetus (dialogue)">Theaetetus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Sophist_(dialogue)" title="Sophist (dialogue)">Sophist</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Statesman_(dialogue)" title="Statesman (dialogue)">Statesman</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Philebus" title="Philebus">Philebus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Symposium_(Plato)" title="Symposium (Plato)">Symposium</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedrus_(dialogue)" title="Phaedrus (dialogue)">Phaedrus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/First_Alcibiades" title="First Alcibiades">First Alcibiades</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Second_Alcibiades" title="Second Alcibiades">Second Alcibiades</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hipparchus_(dialogue)" title="Hipparchus (dialogue)">Hipparchus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Rival_Lovers" title="Rival Lovers">Rival Lovers</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Theages" title="Theages">Theages</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Charmides_(dialogue)" title="Charmides (dialogue)">Charmides</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Laches_(dialogue)" title="Laches (dialogue)">Laches</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Lysis_(dialogue)" title="Lysis (dialogue)">Lysis</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Euthydemus_(dialogue)" title="Euthydemus (dialogue)">Euthydemus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Protagoras_(dialogue)" title="Protagoras (dialogue)">Protagoras</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Gorgias_(dialogue)" title="Gorgias (dialogue)">Gorgias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Meno" title="Meno">Meno</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hippias_Major" title="Hippias Major">Hippias Major</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hippias_Minor" title="Hippias Minor">Hippias Minor</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Ion_(dialogue)" title="Ion (dialogue)">Ion</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Menexenus_(dialogue)" title="Menexenus (dialogue)">Menexenus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Clitophon_(dialogue)" title="Clitophon (dialogue)">Clitophon</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Republic_(Plato)" class="mw-redirect" title="The Republic (Plato)">Republic</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Critias_(dialogue)" title="Critias (dialogue)">Critias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Minos_(dialogue)" title="Minos (dialogue)">Minos</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Laws_(dialogue)" title="Laws (dialogue)">Laws</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epinomis" title="Epinomis">Epinomis</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epistles_(Plato)" title="Epistles (Plato)">Epistles</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Definitions_(Plato)" title="Definitions (Plato)">Definitions</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/On_Justice" title="On Justice">On Justice</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/On_Virtue" title="On Virtue">On Virtue</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Demodocus_(dialogue)" title="Demodocus (dialogue)">Demodocus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Sisyphus_(dialogue)" title="Sisyphus (dialogue)">Sisyphus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Halcyon_(dialogue)" title="Halcyon (dialogue)">Halcyon</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Eryxias_(dialogue)" title="Eryxias (dialogue)">Eryxias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Axiochus_(dialogue)" title="Axiochus (dialogue)">Axiochus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epigrams_(Plato)" title="Epigrams (Plato)">Epigrams</a></i></li></ul></td> </tr><tr><th class="sidebar-heading"> Related articles</th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Commentaries_on_Plato" title="Commentaries on Plato">Commentaries</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_Academy" title="Platonic Academy">The Academy in Athens</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Middle_Platonism" title="Middle Platonism">Middle Platonism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Neoplatonism" title="Neoplatonism">Neoplatonism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Allegorical_interpretations_of_Plato" title="Allegorical interpretations of Plato">Allegorical interpretations of Plato</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_unwritten_doctrines" title="Plato's unwritten doctrines">Plato's unwritten doctrines</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pseudo-Platonica" title="Pseudo-Platonica">Pseudo-Platonica</a></li></ul></td> </tr><tr><th class="sidebar-heading"> Related categories</th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="CategoryTreeTag" data-ct-options="{"mode":20,"hideprefix":20,"showcount":false,"namespaces":false,"notranslations":false}"><div class="CategoryTreeSection"><div class="CategoryTreeItem"><span class="CategoryTreeBullet"><a class="CategoryTreeToggle" data-ct-title="Plato" aria-expanded="false"></a> </span> <bdi dir="ltr"><a href="/wiki/Category:Plato" title="Category:Plato">Plato</a></bdi></div><div class="CategoryTreeChildren" style="display:none"></div></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-below"> <ul><li><span class="nowrap"><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/10px-Socrates.png" decoding="async" width="10" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/15px-Socrates.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/19px-Socrates.png 2x" data-file-width="326" data-file-height="500" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Portal:Philosophy" title="Portal:Philosophy">Philosophy portal</a></li></ul></td></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-navbar"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239400231">.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:inline;font-size:88%;font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .navbar-collapse{float:left;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .navbar-boxtext{word-spacing:0}.mw-parser-output .navbar ul{display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;line-height:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::before{margin-right:-0.125em;content:"[ "}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::after{margin-left:-0.125em;content:" ]"}.mw-parser-output .navbar li{word-spacing:-0.125em}.mw-parser-output .navbar a>span,.mw-parser-output .navbar a>abbr{text-decoration:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-mini abbr{font-variant:small-caps;border-bottom:none;text-decoration:none;cursor:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-full{font-size:114%;margin:0 7em}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-mini{font-size:114%;margin:0 4em}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}}@media print{.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:none!important}}</style><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Platonism" title="Template:Platonism"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Platonism" title="Template talk:Platonism"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Platonism" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Platonism"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p class="mw-empty-elt"> </p><p>The <b>Theory of Forms</b> or <b>Theory of Ideas</b>,<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> also known as <b>Platonic <a href="/wiki/Idealism" title="Idealism">idealism</a></b> or <b>Platonic <a href="/wiki/Realism_(philosophy)" class="mw-redirect" title="Realism (philosophy)">realism</a></b>, is a <a href="/wiki/Philosophical_theory" title="Philosophical theory">philosophical theory</a> widely credited to the <a href="/wiki/Classical_Greece" title="Classical Greece">Classical Greek</a> philosopher <a href="/wiki/Plato" title="Plato">Plato</a>. A major concept in <a href="/wiki/Metaphysics" title="Metaphysics">metaphysics</a>, the theory suggests that the physical world is not as real or true as Forms. According to this theory, Forms—conventionally capitalized and also commonly translated as Ideas<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>—are the non-physical, timeless, absolute, and unchangeable <a href="/wiki/Ousia" title="Ousia">essences</a> of all things, which objects and matter in the physical world merely imitate, resemble, or participate in.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Plato speaks of these entities only through the characters (primarily <a href="/wiki/Socrates" title="Socrates">Socrates</a>) in his <a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_dialogues" class="mw-redirect" title="Plato's dialogues">dialogues</a> who sometimes suggest that these Forms are the only objects of study that can provide <a href="/wiki/Knowledge" title="Knowledge">knowledge</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Scriptures written by <a href="/wiki/Pythagoras" title="Pythagoras">Pythagoras</a> suggest that he developed a similar theory earlier than Plato, though Pythagoras's theory was narrower, proposing that the non-physical and timeless essences that compose the physical world are specifically <a href="/wiki/Number" title="Number">numbers</a>. One term Plato used was <i><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">idea</i></span></i> (<i><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">ἰδέα</span></span></i>; from a root meaning <i>to see</i>), a word that precedes attested philosophical usage, alongside other words which mainly relate to <a href="/wiki/Visual_perception" title="Visual perception">vision</a>, sight, and <a href="/wiki/Phenomenon" title="Phenomenon">appearance</a>. Plato uses these aspects of sight and appearance from the early Greek concept in his dialogues to explain his Forms, including the <a href="/wiki/Form_of_the_Good" title="Form of the Good">Form of the Good</a>. The theory itself is contested by characters within Plato's dialogues, and it remains a general point of controversy in philosophy. Nonetheless, it is considered to be a <a href="/wiki/Classical_antiquity" title="Classical antiquity">classical</a> solution to the <a href="/wiki/Problem_of_universals" title="Problem of universals">problem of universals</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Forms">Forms</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Forms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The original meaning of the term <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">εἶδος</span></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">eîdos</i></span>), "visible form", and related terms <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">μορφή</span></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">morphḗ</i></span>), "shape",<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">φαινόμενα</span></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">phainómena</i></span>), "appearances", from <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">φαίνω</span></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">phaínō</i></span>), "shine", <a href="/wiki/Proto-Indo-European_language" title="Proto-Indo-European language">Indo-European</a> <i><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/b%CA%B0eh%E2%82%82-" class="extiw" title="wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰeh₂-"><i>*bʰeh₂-</i></a></i> or <i>*bhā-</i><sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> remained stable over the centuries until the beginning of <a href="/wiki/Western_philosophy" title="Western philosophy">Western philosophy</a>, when they became equivocal, acquiring additional specialized philosophic meanings. Plato used the terms <i><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">eidos</i></span></i> and <i><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc">idea</i></span></i> (<i><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">ἰδέα</span></span></i>) interchangeably.<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The <a href="/wiki/Pre-Socratic_philosophy" title="Pre-Socratic philosophy">pre-Socratic philosophers</a>, starting with <a href="/wiki/Thales" class="mw-redirect" title="Thales">Thales</a>, noted that appearances change, and began to ask what the thing that changes "really" is. The answer was <a href="/wiki/Substance_theory" title="Substance theory">substance</a>, which stands under the changes and is the actually existing thing being seen. The status of appearances now came into question. What is the form really and how is that related to substance? </p><p>The Forms are expounded upon in Plato's dialogues and general speech, in that every object or quality in reality—dogs, human beings, mountains, colors, courage, love, and goodness—has a form. Form answers the question, "What is that?" Plato was going a step further and asking what Form itself is. He supposed that the object was essentially or "really" the Form and that the phenomena were mere shadows mimicking the Form; that is, momentary portrayals of the Form under different circumstances. <a href="/wiki/The_problem_of_universals" class="mw-redirect" title="The problem of universals">The problem of universals</a> – how can one thing in general be many things in particular – was solved by presuming that Form was a distinct singular thing but caused plural representations of itself in particular objects. For example, in the dialogue <a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a>, Socrates states: "Nor, again, if a person were to show that all is one by partaking of one, and at the same time many by partaking of many, would that be very astonishing. But if he were to show me that the absolute one was many, or the absolute many one, I should be truly amazed."<sup id="cite_ref-Parmenides_11-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Parmenides-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup class="reference nowrap"><span title="Page / location: 129">: 129 </span></sup> Matter is considered particular in itself. For Plato, forms, such as beauty, are more real than any objects that imitate them. Though the forms are timeless and unchanging, physical things are in a constant change of existence. Where forms are unqualified perfection, physical things are qualified and conditioned.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>These Forms are the essences of various objects: they are that without which a thing would not be the kind of thing it is. For example, there are countless tables in the world but the Form of tableness is at the core; it is the essence of all of them.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Plato's Socrates held that the world of Forms is transcendent to our own world (the world of substances) and also is the essential basis of reality. Super-ordinate to matter, Forms are the most pure of all things. Furthermore, he believed that true knowledge/intelligence is the ability to grasp the world of Forms with one's mind.<sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>A Form is <i>aspatial</i> (transcendent to space) and <i>atemporal</i> (transcendent to time).<sup id="cite_ref-:1_15-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:1-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In the world of Plato, atemporal means that it does not exist within any time period, rather it provides the formal basis for time.<sup id="cite_ref-:1_15-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:1-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> It therefore formally grounds beginning, persisting and ending. It is neither eternal in the sense of existing forever, nor mortal, of limited duration. It exists transcendent to time altogether.<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Forms are aspatial in that they have no spatial dimensions, and thus no orientation in space, nor do they even (like the point) have a location.<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> They are non-physical, but they are not in the mind. Forms are extra-mental (i.e. real in the strictest sense of the word).<sup id="cite_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>A Form is an objective "blueprint" of perfection.<sup id="cite_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The Forms are perfect and unchanging representations of objects and qualities. For example, the Form of beauty or the Form of a triangle. For the form of a triangle say there is a triangle drawn on a blackboard. A triangle is a polygon with 3 sides. The triangle as it is on the blackboard is far from perfect. However, it is only the intelligibility of the Form "triangle" that allows us to know the drawing on the chalkboard is a triangle, and the Form "triangle" is perfect and unchanging. It is exactly the same whenever anyone chooses to consider it; however, time only affects the observer and not the triangle. It follows that the same attributes would exist for the Form of beauty and for all Forms. </p><p>Plato explains how we are always many steps away from the idea or Form. The idea of a perfect circle can have us defining, speaking, writing, and drawing about particular circles that are always steps away from the actual being. The perfect circle, partly represented by a curved line, and a precise definition, cannot be drawn. The idea of the perfect circle is discovered, not invented. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Intelligible_realm_and_separation_of_the_Forms">Intelligible realm and separation of the Forms</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Intelligible realm and separation of the Forms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Plato often invokes, particularly in his dialogues <i><a href="/wiki/Phaedo" title="Phaedo">Phaedo</a></i>, <i>Republic</i> and <i><a href="/wiki/Phaedrus_(dialogue)" title="Phaedrus (dialogue)">Phaedrus</a></i>, poetic language to illustrate the mode in which the Forms are said to exist. Near the end of the <i>Phaedo</i>, for example, Plato describes the world of Forms as a pristine region of the physical universe located above the surface of the Earth (<i>Phd.</i> 109a–111c). In the <i>Phaedrus</i> the Forms are in a "<a href="/wiki/Hyperuranion" title="Hyperuranion">place beyond heaven</a>" (<i>hyperouranios topos</i>) (<i>Phdr.</i> 247c ff); and in the <i>Republic</i> the sensible world is contrasted with the intelligible realm (<i>noēton topon</i>) in the famous <a href="/wiki/Allegory_of_the_Cave" class="mw-redirect" title="Allegory of the Cave">Allegory of the Cave</a>. </p><p>It would be a mistake to take Plato's imagery as positing the intelligible world as a literal physical space apart from this one.<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Plato emphasizes that the Forms are not beings that extend in space (or time), but subsist apart from any physical space whatsoever.<sup id="cite_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>22<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Thus we read in the <i>Symposium</i> of the Form of Beauty: "It is not anywhere in another thing, as in an animal, or in earth, or in heaven, or in anything else, but itself by itself with itself," (211b). And in the <i>Timaeus</i> Plato writes: "Since these things are so, we must agree that that which keeps its own form unchangingly, which has not been brought into being and is not destroyed, which neither receives into itself anything else from anywhere else, <i>nor itself enters into anything anywhere</i>, is one thing," (52a, emphasis added). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Ambiguities_of_the_theory">Ambiguities of the theory</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Ambiguities of the theory"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1251242444">.mw-parser-output .ambox{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;border-left:10px solid #36c;background-color:#fbfbfb;box-sizing:border-box}.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+link+.ambox{margin-top:-1px}html body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .ambox.mbox-small-left{margin:4px 1em 4px 0;overflow:hidden;width:238px;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em}.mw-parser-output .ambox-speedy{border-left:10px solid #b32424;background-color:#fee7e6}.mw-parser-output .ambox-delete{border-left:10px solid #b32424}.mw-parser-output .ambox-content{border-left:10px solid #f28500}.mw-parser-output .ambox-style{border-left:10px solid #fc3}.mw-parser-output .ambox-move{border-left:10px solid #9932cc}.mw-parser-output .ambox-protection{border-left:10px solid #a2a9b1}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-text{border:none;padding:0.25em 0.5em;width:100%}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image{border:none;padding:2px 0 2px 0.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-imageright{border:none;padding:2px 0.5em 2px 0;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-empty-cell{border:none;padding:0;width:1px}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image-div{width:52px}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .ambox{margin:0 10%}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .ambox{display:none!important}}</style><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Theory_of_forms" title="Special:EditPage/Theory of forms">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">November 2021</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Plato's conception of Forms actually differs from dialogue to dialogue, and in certain respects it is never fully explained, so many aspects of the theory are open to interpretation. Forms are first introduced in the <i>Phaedo</i>, but in that dialogue the concept is simply referred to as something the participants are already familiar with, and the theory itself is not developed. Similarly, in the <i>Republic</i>, Plato relies on the concept of Forms as the basis of many of his arguments but feels no need to argue for the validity of the theory itself or to explain precisely what Forms are. Commentators have been left with the task of explaining what Forms are and how visible objects participate in them, and there has been no shortage of disagreement. Some scholars advance the view that Forms are paradigms, perfect examples on which the imperfect world is modeled. Others interpret Forms as universals, so that the Form of Beauty, for example, is that quality that all beautiful things share. Yet others interpret Forms as "stuffs," the conglomeration of all instances of a quality in the visible world. Under this interpretation, we could say there is a little beauty in one person, a little beauty in another – all the beauty in the world put together is the Form of Beauty. Plato himself was aware of the ambiguities and inconsistencies in his Theory of Forms, as is evident from the incisive criticism he makes of his own theory in the <i>Parmenides</i>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Evidence_of_Forms">Evidence of Forms</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Evidence of Forms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Human_perception">Human perception</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Human perception"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div><p> In <i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i>, Plato writes:<sup id="cite_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-23"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>23<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></p><blockquote><p>But if the very nature of knowledge changes, at the time when the change occurs there will be no knowledge, and, according to this view, there will be no one to know and nothing to be known: but if that which knows and that which is known exist ever, and the beautiful and the good and every other thing also exist, then I do not think that they can resemble a process of flux, as we were just now supposing.</p></blockquote> <p>Plato believed that long before our bodies ever existed, our souls existed and inhabited heaven, where they became directly acquainted with the forms themselves. Real knowledge, to him, was knowledge of the forms. But knowledge of the forms cannot be gained through sensory experience because the forms are not in the physical world. Therefore, our real knowledge of the forms must be the memory of our initial acquaintance with the forms in heaven. Therefore, what we seem to learn is in fact just remembering.<sup id="cite_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-25"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>25<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Perfection">Perfection</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Perfection"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div><p> No one has ever seen a <a href="/wiki/Perfection" title="Perfection">perfect</a> circle, nor a perfectly straight line, yet everyone knows what a circle and a straight line are. Plato uses the tool-maker's blueprint as evidence that Forms are real:<sup id="cite_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-26"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>26<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></p><blockquote><p>... when a man has discovered the instrument which is naturally adapted to each work, he must express this natural form, and not others which he fancies, in the material ....</p></blockquote> <p>Perceived circles or lines are not exactly circular or straight, and true circles and lines could never be detected since by definition they are sets of infinitely small points. But if the perfect ones were not real, how could they direct the manufacturer? </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Criticisms_of_Platonic_Forms">Criticisms of Platonic Forms</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Criticisms of Platonic Forms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Self-criticism">Self-criticism</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Self-criticism"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>One difficulty lies in the conceptualization of the "participation" of an object in a form (or Form). The young Socrates conceives of his solution to the problem of the universals in another metaphor:<sup id="cite_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-27"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>27<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <blockquote><p>Nay, but the idea may be like the day which is one and the same in many places at once, and yet continuous with itself; in this way each idea may be one and the same in all at the same time.</p></blockquote> <p>But exactly how is a Form like the day in being everywhere at once? The solution calls for a distinct form, in which the particular instances, which are not identical to the form, participate; i.e., the form is shared out somehow like the day to many places. The concept of "participate", represented in Greek by more than one word, is as obscure in Greek as it is in English. Plato hypothesized that distinctness meant existence as an independent being, thus opening himself to the famous <a href="/wiki/Third_man_argument" class="mw-redirect" title="Third man argument">third man argument</a> of Parmenides,<sup id="cite_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-28"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>28<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> which proves that forms cannot independently exist and be participated.<sup id="cite_ref-29" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-29"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>29<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>If universal and particulars – say man or greatness – all exist and are the same then the Form is not one but is multiple. If they are only like each other then they contain a form that is the same and others that are different. Thus if we presume that the Form and a particular are alike then there must be another, or third Form, man or greatness by possession of which they are alike. An <a href="/wiki/Infinite_regress" title="Infinite regress">infinite regression</a> would then result; that is, an endless series of third men. The ultimate participant, greatness, rendering the entire series great, is missing. Moreover, any Form is not unitary but is composed of infinite parts, none of which is the proper Form. </p><p>The young Socrates did not give up the Theory of Forms over the Third Man but took another tack, that the particulars do not exist as such. Whatever they are, they "mime" the Forms, appearing to be particulars. This is a clear dip into <a href="/wiki/Representative_realism" class="mw-redirect" title="Representative realism">representationalism</a>, that we cannot observe the objects as they are in themselves but only their representations. That view has the weakness that if only the mimes can be observed then the real Forms cannot be known at all and the observer can have no idea of what the representations are supposed to represent or that they are representations. </p><p>Socrates' later answer would be that men already know the Forms because they were in the world of Forms before birth. The mimes only recall these Forms to memory.<sup id="cite_ref-30" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-30"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>30<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Aristotelian_criticism">Aristotelian criticism</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Aristotelian criticism"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg/250px-Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg" decoding="async" width="180" height="236" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg/330px-Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg/500px-Sanzio_01_Plato_Aristotle.jpg 2x" data-file-width="804" data-file-height="1052" /></a><figcaption>The central image from Raphael's <i><a href="/wiki/The_School_of_Athens" title="The School of Athens">The School of Athens</a></i> (1509–1511), depicting Plato (left) and Aristotle (right). Plato is depicted pointing upwards, in reference to his belief in the higher Forms, while Aristotle disagrees and gestures downwards to the here-and-now, in reference to his belief in <a href="/wiki/Empiricism" title="Empiricism">empiricism</a>.</figcaption></figure> <p>The topic of Aristotle's criticism of Plato's Theory of Forms is a large one and continues to expand. Rather than quote Plato, Aristotle often summarized. Classical commentaries thus recommended Aristotle as an introduction to Plato, even when in disagreement; the Platonist <a href="/wiki/Syrianus" title="Syrianus">Syrianus</a> used Aristotelian critiques to further refine the Platonic position on forms in use in his school, a position handed down to his student <a href="/wiki/Proclus" title="Proclus">Proclus</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-31" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-31"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>31<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> As a historian of prior thought, Aristotle was invaluable, however this was secondary to his own dialectic and in some cases he treats purported implications as if Plato had actually mentioned them, or even defended them. In examining Aristotle's criticism of The Forms, it is helpful to understand Aristotle's own <a href="/wiki/Hylomorphism" title="Hylomorphism">hylomorphic forms</a>, by which he intends to salvage much of Plato's theory. </p><p>Plato distinguished between real and non-real "existing things", where the latter term is used of substance. The figures that the artificer places in the gold are not substance, but gold is. Aristotle stated that, for Plato, all things studied by the sciences have Form and asserted that Plato considered only substance to have Form. Uncharitably, this leads him to something like a contradiction: Forms existing as the objects of science, but not-existing as substance. Scottish philosopher <a href="/wiki/W.D._Ross" class="mw-redirect" title="W.D. Ross">W.D. Ross</a> objects to this as a mischaracterization of Plato.<sup id="cite_ref-rossXI_32-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rossXI-32"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>32<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Plato did not claim to know where the line between Form and non-Form is to be drawn. As Cornford points out,<sup id="cite_ref-33" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-33"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> those things about which the young Socrates (and Plato) asserted "I have often been puzzled about these things"<sup id="cite_ref-34" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>34<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> (in reference to Man, Fire and Water), appear as Forms in later works. However, others do not, such as Hair, Mud, Dirt. Of these, Socrates is made to assert, "it would be too absurd to suppose that they have a Form." </p><p>Ross<sup id="cite_ref-rossXI_32-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rossXI-32"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>32<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> also objects to Aristotle's criticism that Form Otherness accounts for the differences between Forms and purportedly leads to contradictory forms: the Not-tall, the Not-beautiful, etc. That particulars participate in a Form is for Aristotle much too vague to permit analysis. By one way in which he unpacks the concept, the Forms would cease to be of one essence due to any multiple participation. As Ross indicates, Plato didn't make that leap from "A is not B" to "A is Not-B." Otherness would only apply to its own particulars and not to those of other Forms. For example, there is no Form Not-Greek, only <i>particulars</i> of Form Otherness that somehow <i>suppress</i> Form Greek. </p><p>Regardless of whether Socrates meant the particulars of Otherness yield Not-Greek, Not-tall, Not-beautiful, etc., the particulars would operate specifically rather than generally, each somehow yielding only one exclusion. </p><p>Plato had postulated that we know Forms through a remembrance of the soul's <a href="/wiki/Metempsychosis" title="Metempsychosis">past lives</a> and Aristotle's arguments against this treatment of <a href="/wiki/Epistemology" title="Epistemology">epistemology</a> are compelling. For Plato, particulars somehow do not exist, and, on the face of it, "that which is non-existent cannot be known".<sup id="cite_ref-35" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-35"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>35<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> See <i><a href="/wiki/Metaphysics_(Aristotle)" title="Metaphysics (Aristotle)">Metaphysics</a></i> III 3–4.<sup id="cite_ref-36" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-36"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>36<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Scholastic_criticism">Scholastic criticism</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: Scholastic criticism"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p><a href="/wiki/Nominalism" title="Nominalism">Nominalism</a> (from Latin <i>nomen</i>, "name") says that ideal universals are mere names, human creations; the blueness shared by sky and blue jeans is a shared concept, communicated by our word "blueness". Blueness is held not to have any existence beyond that which it has in instances of blue things.<sup id="cite_ref-37" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-37"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>37<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> This concept arose in the Middle Ages,<sup id="cite_ref-38" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-38"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>38<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> as part of <a href="/wiki/Scholasticism" title="Scholasticism">Scholasticism</a>. </p><p>Scholasticism was a highly multinational, polyglottal school of philosophy, and the nominalist argument may be more obvious if an example is given in more than one language. For instance, <a href="/wiki/Colour_term" class="mw-redirect" title="Colour term">colour terms</a> are strongly variable by language; some languages consider blue and green the same colour, others have monolexemic terms for several shades of blue, which are considered different; other languages, like the Mandarin <i>qing</i> denote both blue and black. The German word "Stift" means a pen or a pencil, and also anything of the same shape. The English "pencil" originally meant "small paintbrush"; the term later included the silver rod used for <a href="/wiki/Silverpoint" title="Silverpoint">silverpoint</a>. The German "<a href="/wiki/Lead_(element)" class="mw-redirect" title="Lead (element)">Blei</a>stift" and "<a href="/wiki/Silver" title="Silver">Silber</a>stift" can both be called "Stift", but this term also includes felt-tip pens, which are clearly not pencils. </p><p>The shifting and overlapping nature of these concepts makes it easy to imagine them as mere names, with meanings not rigidly defined, but specific enough to be useful for communication. Given a group of objects, how is one to decide if it contains only instances of a single Form, or several mutually exclusive Forms? </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1184024115">.mw-parser-output .div-col{margin-top:0.3em;column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .div-col-small{font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output .div-col-rules{column-rule:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .div-col dl,.mw-parser-output .div-col ol,.mw-parser-output .div-col ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .div-col li,.mw-parser-output .div-col dd{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}</style><div class="div-col"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Archetype" title="Archetype">Archetype</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Divided_line" class="mw-redirect" title="Divided line">Analogy of the Divided Line</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dmuta" title="Dmuta">Dmuta</a> in Mandaeism</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Exaggerated_realism" class="mw-redirect" title="Exaggerated realism">Exaggerated realism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Form_of_the_Good" title="Form of the Good">Form of the Good</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hyperuranion" title="Hyperuranion">Hyperuranion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Idealism" title="Idealism">Idealism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jungian_archetypes" title="Jungian archetypes">Jungian archetypes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Map%E2%80%93territory_relation" title="Map–territory relation">Map–territory relation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nominalism" title="Nominalism">Nominalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plotinus" title="Plotinus">Plotinus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Problem_of_universals" title="Problem of universals">Problem of universals</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Substantial_form" title="Substantial form">Substantial form</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_solid" title="Platonic solid">Platonic solid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_unwritten_doctrines" title="Plato's unwritten doctrines">Plato's unwritten doctrines</a>, for debates over Forms and Plato's higher, esoteric theories</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Realism_(disambiguation)" class="mw-redirect mw-disambig" title="Realism (disambiguation)">Realism (disambiguation)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/True_form_(Taoism)" title="True form (Taoism)">True form (Taoism)</a></li></ul> </div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Notes">Notes</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Notes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist reflist-columns references-column-width" style="column-width: 30em;"> <ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-1">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Modern English textbooks and translations prefer "theory of Form" to "theory of Ideas", but the latter has a long and respected tradition starting with Cicero and continuing in <a href="/wiki/German_philosophy" title="German philosophy">German philosophy</a> until present, and some English philosophers prefer this in English too. See W. D. Ross, Plato's <i>Theory of Ideas</i> (1951)</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"> The name of this aspect of Plato's thought is not modern and has not been extracted from certain dialogues by modern scholars. However, it is attributed to Plato without any direct textual evidence that Plato himself holds the views of the speakers of the dialogues. The term was used at least as early as <a href="/wiki/Diogenes_La%C3%ABrtius" class="mw-redirect" title="Diogenes Laërtius">Diogenes Laërtius</a>, who called it (Plato's) "Theory of Ideas:" <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">Πλάτων ἐν τῇ περὶ τῶν ἰδεῶν ὑπολήψει</span></span>..., <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite class="citation encyclopaedia cs1 cs1-prop-long-vol">"Plato". <i>Lives of Eminent Philosophers</i>. Vol. Book III. p. Paragraph 15.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Plato&rft.btitle=Lives+of+Eminent+Philosophers&rft.pages=Paragraph+15&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Plato uses many different words for what is traditionally called <i>Form</i> in English translations and <i>Idea</i> in German and Latin translations (Cicero). These include <i>idéa</i>, <i>morphē</i>, <i>eîdos</i>, and <i>parádeigma</i>, but also <i>génos</i>, <i>phýsis</i>, and <i><a href="/wiki/Ousia" title="Ousia">ousía</a></i>. He also uses expressions such as <i>to x auto</i>, "the x itself" or <i>kath' auto</i> "in itself". See Christian Schäfer: <i>Idee/Form/Gestalt/Wesen</i>, in <i>Platon-Lexikon</i>, Darmstadt 2007, p. 157.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">"Chapter 28: Form" of <i>The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World</i> (Vol. II). Encyclopædia Britannica (1952), pp. 526–542. This source states that <i>Form</i> or <i>Idea</i> get capitalized according to this convention when they refer "to that which is separate from the characteristics of material things and from the ideas in our mind". Thus, capitalization of the word "Idea" here is meant to show that it is a special technical term in philosophy, rather than the ordinary English word "idea".</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Meinwald, Constance C. (updated Sept. 2024). "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Plato/Forms-as-perfect-exemplars">Plato: Forms as perfect exemplars</a>". <i>Britannica</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFWatt1997" class="citation book cs1">Watt, Stephen (1997). <span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/republic0000plat">"Introduction: The Theory of Forms (Books 5–9)"</a></span>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/republic0000plat"><i>Plato: Republic</i></a>. London: Wordsworth Editions. pp. <span class="nowrap">xiv–</span>xvi. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-85326-483-0" title="Special:BookSources/1-85326-483-0"><bdi>1-85326-483-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Introduction%3A+The+Theory+of+Forms+%28Books+5%E2%80%939%29&rft.btitle=Plato%3A+Republic&rft.place=London&rft.pages=%3Cspan+class%3D%22nowrap%22%3Exiv-%3C%2Fspan%3Exvi&rft.pub=Wordsworth+Editions&rft.date=1997&rft.isbn=1-85326-483-0&rft.aulast=Watt&rft.aufirst=Stephen&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Frepublic0000plat&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFKraut2017" class="citation cs2">Kraut, Richard (2017), <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/plato/">"Plato"</a>, in Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), <i>The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy</i> (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University<span class="reference-accessdate">, retrieved <span class="nowrap">20 May</span> 2021</span></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Plato&rft.btitle=The+Stanford+Encyclopedia+of+Philosophy&rft.edition=Fall+2017&rft.pub=Metaphysics+Research+Lab%2C+Stanford+University&rft.date=2017&rft.aulast=Kraut&rft.aufirst=Richard&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fplato.stanford.edu%2Farchives%2Ffall2017%2Fentries%2Fplato%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Possibly cognate with Sanskrit <i>bráhman</i>. See Thieme (1952): <i>Bráhman</i>, ZDMG, vol. 102, p. 128.<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation book cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://menadoc.bibliothek.uni-halle.de/dmg/periodical/titleinfo/93820"><i>ZDMG online</i></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=ZDMG+online&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fmenadoc.bibliothek.uni-halle.de%2Fdmg%2Fperiodical%2Ftitleinfo%2F93820&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE36.html">"*bhā-"</a>. <i>American Heritage Dictionary: Fourth Edition: Appendix I</i>. 2000.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=American+Heritage+Dictionary%3A+Fourth+Edition%3A+Appendix+I&rft.atitle=%2Abh%C4%81-&rft.date=2000&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bartleby.com%2F61%2Froots%2FIE36.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFMorabitoSackBhate2018" class="citation book cs1">Morabito, Joseph; Sack, Ira; Bhate, Anilkumar (2018). <i>Designing Knowledge Organizations: A Pathway to Innovation Leadership</i>. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. p. 33. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781118905845" title="Special:BookSources/9781118905845"><bdi>9781118905845</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Designing+Knowledge+Organizations%3A+A+Pathway+to+Innovation+Leadership&rft.place=Hoboken%2C+NJ&rft.pages=33&rft.pub=John+Wiley+%26+Sons&rft.date=2018&rft.isbn=9781118905845&rft.aulast=Morabito&rft.aufirst=Joseph&rft.au=Sack%2C+Ira&rft.au=Bhate%2C+Anilkumar&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Parmenides-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Parmenides_11-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)"><i>Parmenides</i></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Parmenides&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Kidder, D. S. and Oppenheim, N. D. (2006), The Intellectual Devotional, p. 27, Borders Group, Inc, Ann Arbor, <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-60961-205-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-60961-205-4">978-1-60961-205-4</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i> 389: "For neither does every smith, although he may be making the same instrument for the same purpose, make them all of the same iron. The form must be the same, but the material may vary ...."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-14">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">For example, <i><a href="/wiki/Theaetetus_(dialogue)" title="Theaetetus (dialogue)">Theaetetus</a></i> 185d–e: "...the mind in itself is its own instrument for contemplating the common terms that apply to everything." "Common terms" here refers to <i>existence, non-existence, likeness, unlikeness, sameness, difference, unity</i> and <i>number</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:1-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:1_15-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:1_15-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFMamminoCeresoliMaruaniBrändas2020" class="citation book cs1">Mammino, Liliana; Ceresoli, Davide; Maruani, Jean; Brändas, Erkki (2020). <i>Advances in Quantum Systems in Chemistry, Physics, and Biology: Selected Proceedings of QSCP-XXIII (Kruger Park, South Africa, September 2018)</i>. Cham, Switzerland: Springer Nature. p. 355. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-3-030-34940-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-3-030-34940-0"><bdi>978-3-030-34940-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Advances+in+Quantum+Systems+in+Chemistry%2C+Physics%2C+and+Biology%3A+Selected+Proceedings+of+QSCP-XXIII+%28Kruger+Park%2C+South+Africa%2C+September+2018%29&rft.place=Cham%2C+Switzerland&rft.pages=355&rft.pub=Springer+Nature&rft.date=2020&rft.isbn=978-3-030-34940-0&rft.aulast=Mammino&rft.aufirst=Liliana&rft.au=Ceresoli%2C+Davide&rft.au=Maruani%2C+Jean&rft.au=Br%C3%A4ndas%2C+Erkki&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-16">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">The creation of the universe is the creation of time: "For there were no days and nights and months and years ... but when he (God) constructed the heaven he created them also." – <i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i>, paragraph 37. For the creation God used "the pattern of the unchangeable," which is "that which is eternal." – paragraph 29. Therefore "eternal" – <i>to aïdion</i>, "the everlasting" – as applied to Form means atemporal.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-17">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Space answers to matter, the place-holder of form: "... and there is a third nature (besides Form and form), which is space (chōros), and is eternal (aei "always", certainly not atemporal), and admits not of destruction and provides a home for all created things ... we say of all existence that it must of necessity be in some place and occupy space ...." – <i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i>, paragraph 52. Some readers will have long since remembered that in Aristotle time and space are accidental forms. Plato does not make this distinction and concerns himself mainly with essential form. In Plato, if time and space were admitted to be form, time would be atemporal and space aspatial.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-18">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">These terms produced with the English prefix a- are not ancient. For the usage refer to <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=a-">"a- (2)"</a>. <i>Online Etymology Dictionary</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Online+Etymology+Dictionary&rft.atitle=a-+%282%29&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.etymonline.com%2Findex.php%3Fterm%3Da-&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span> They are however customary terms of modern metaphysics; for example, see <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFBeck1999" class="citation book cs1">Beck, Martha C. (1999). <i>Plato's Self-Corrective Development of the Concepts of Soul, Form and Immortality in Three Arguments of the Phaedo</i>. Edwin Mellon Press. p. 148. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-7734-7950-3" title="Special:BookSources/0-7734-7950-3"><bdi>0-7734-7950-3</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato%27s+Self-Corrective+Development+of+the+Concepts+of+Soul%2C+Form+and+Immortality+in+Three+Arguments+of+the+Phaedo&rft.pages=148&rft.pub=Edwin+Mellon+Press&rft.date=1999&rft.isbn=0-7734-7950-3&rft.aulast=Beck&rft.aufirst=Martha+C.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span> and see <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFHawley2001" class="citation book cs1">Hawley, Dr. Katherine (2001). <i>How Things Persist</i>. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Chapter 1. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-19-924913-X" title="Special:BookSources/0-19-924913-X"><bdi>0-19-924913-X</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=How+Things+Persist&rft.place=Oxford&rft.pages=Chapter+1&rft.pub=Clarendon+Press&rft.date=2001&rft.isbn=0-19-924913-X&rft.aulast=Hawley&rft.aufirst=Dr.+Katherine&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-19">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">For example, <i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i> 28: "The work of the creator, whenever he looks to the unchangeable and fashions the form and nature of his work after an unchangeable pattern, must necessarily be made fair and perfect ...."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-20">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">"No sensible man would insist that these things are as I have described them..." (<i>Phd.</i> 114d).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-21">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">"there is no Platonic 'elsewhere', similar to the Christian 'elsewhere'." (<a href="/wiki/Iris_Murdoch" title="Iris Murdoch">Iris Murdoch</a>, "Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals" (London, Chatto & Windus 1992) 399).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-22"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-22">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFSilverman2022" class="citation cs2">Silverman, Allan (2022), <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2022/entries/plato-metaphysics/">"Plato's Middle Period Metaphysics and Epistemology"</a>, in Zalta, Edward N.; Nodelman, Uri (eds.), <i>The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy</i> (Fall 2022 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University<span class="reference-accessdate">, retrieved <span class="nowrap">10 February</span> 2023</span></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Plato%27s+Middle+Period+Metaphysics+and+Epistemology&rft.btitle=The+Stanford+Encyclopedia+of+Philosophy&rft.edition=Fall+2022&rft.pub=Metaphysics+Research+Lab%2C+Stanford+University&rft.date=2022&rft.aulast=Silverman&rft.aufirst=Allan&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fplato.stanford.edu%2Farchives%2Ffall2022%2Fentries%2Fplato-metaphysics%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-23"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-23">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i>, paragraph 440.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-24"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-24">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="/wiki/Aristotle" title="Aristotle">Aristotle</a> in <i>Metaphysics</i> Α987a.29–b.14 and Μ1078b9–32 says that Plato devised the Forms to answer a weakness in the doctrine of <a href="/wiki/Heraclitus" title="Heraclitus">Heraclitus</a>, who held that nothing exists, but everything is in a state of flow. If nothing exists then nothing can be known. It is possible that Plato took the Socratic search for definitions and extrapolated it into a distinct metaphysical theory. Little is known of the historical Socrates' own views, and the theory of Forms may be a Platonic innovation.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-25"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-25">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Kidder, D. S. and Oppenheim, N. D, (2006), <i>The Intellectual Devotional</i>, p. 27, Borders Group, Inc, Ann Arbor. <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-60961-205-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-60961-205-4">978-1-60961-205-4</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-26"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-26">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i>, paragraph 389.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-27"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-27">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a></i> 131.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-28"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-28">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">The name is from <a href="/wiki/Aristotle" title="Aristotle">Aristotle</a>, who says in <i>Metaphysics</i> A.IX.990b.15: "(The argument) they call the third man." A summary of the argument and the quote from Aristotle can be found in the venerable <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFGrote1880" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/George_Grote" title="George Grote">Grote, George</a> (1880). "App I Aristotle's Objections to Plato's Theory". <i>Aristotle: Second Edition with Additions</i>. London: John Murray. pp. 559–560 note b.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=App+I+Aristotle%27s+Objections+to+Plato%27s+Theory&rft.btitle=Aristotle%3A+Second+Edition+with+Additions&rft.place=London&rft.pages=pp.+559-560+note+b&rft.pub=John+Murray&rft.date=1880&rft.aulast=Grote&rft.aufirst=George&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span> Grote points out that Aristotle lifted this argument from the <i>Parmenides</i> of Plato; certainly, his words indicate the argument was already well-known under that name.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-29"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-29">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Analysis of the argument has been going on for quite a number of centuries now and some analyses are complex, technical and perhaps tedious for the general reader. Those who are interested in the more technical analyses can find more of a presentation in <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFHales1991" class="citation journal cs1">Hales, Steven D. (1991). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20070926163652/http://www.bloomu.edu/departments/philosophy/pages/content/hales/articlepdf/thirdman.pdf">"The Recurring Problem of the Third Man"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <i>Auslegung</i>. <b>17</b> (1): <span class="nowrap">67–</span>80. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.bloomu.edu/departments/philosophy/pages/content/hales/articlepdf/thirdman.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 26 September 2007<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">26 September</span> 2007</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Auslegung&rft.atitle=The+Recurring+Problem+of+the+Third+Man&rft.volume=17&rft.issue=1&rft.pages=%3Cspan+class%3D%22nowrap%22%3E67-%3C%2Fspan%3E80&rft.date=1991&rft.aulast=Hales&rft.aufirst=Steven+D.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomu.edu%2Fdepartments%2Fphilosophy%2Fpages%2Fcontent%2Fhales%2Farticlepdf%2Fthirdman.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span> and <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFDurham1997" class="citation journal cs1">Durham, Michael (1997). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://swap.stanford.edu/20141110192243/http://philosophy.stanford.edu/apps/stanfordphilosophy/files/wysiwyg_images/durham.pdf">"Two Men and the Third Man"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <i>The Dualist: Undergraduate Journal of Philosophy (Stanford University)</i>. <b>4</b>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://philosophy.stanford.edu/apps/stanfordphilosophy/files/wysiwyg_images/durham.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 10 November 2014<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">23 October</span> 2014</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Dualist%3A+Undergraduate+Journal+of+Philosophy+%28Stanford+University%29&rft.atitle=Two+Men+and+the+Third+Man&rft.volume=4&rft.date=1997&rft.aulast=Durham&rft.aufirst=Michael&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fphilosophy.stanford.edu%2Fapps%2Fstanfordphilosophy%2Ffiles%2Fwysiwyg_images%2Fdurham.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-30"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-30">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Plato to a large extent identifies what today is called <a href="/wiki/Insight" title="Insight">insight</a> with recollection: "whenever on seeing one thing you conceived another whether like or unlike, there must surely have been an act of recollection?" – <i><a href="/wiki/Phaedo" title="Phaedo">Phaedo</a></i>, paragraph 229. Thus geometric reasoning on the part of persons who know no geometry is not insight but is recollection. He does recognize insight: "... with a sudden flash there shines forth understanding about every problem ..." (with regard to "the course of scrutiny") – <i><a href="/wiki/The_Seventh_Letter" class="mw-redirect" title="The Seventh Letter">The Seventh Letter</a></i> 344b. Unfortunately the hidden world can in no way be verified in this world and its otherworldliness can only be a matter of speculation. Plato was aware of the problem: "How real existence is to be studied or discovered is, I suspect, beyond you and me." – <i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus" title="Cratylus">Cratylus</a></i>, paragraph 439.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-31"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-31">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFSyrianus2006" class="citation book cs1">Syrianus (2006). O'Meara, Dominic J.; Dillon, John M. (eds.). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/syrianus-on-aristotle-metaphysics-1314-9781472501455/"><i>On Aristotle's Metaphysics 13–14</i></a>. Bloomsbury Academic Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780801445323" title="Special:BookSources/9780801445323"><bdi>9780801445323</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=On+Aristotle%27s+Metaphysics+13%E2%80%9314&rft.pub=Bloomsbury+Academic+Press&rft.date=2006&rft.isbn=9780801445323&rft.au=Syrianus&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomsbury.com%2Fus%2Fsyrianus-on-aristotle-metaphysics-1314-9781472501455%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-rossXI-32"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-rossXI_32-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-rossXI_32-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Ross, Chapter XI, initial.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-33"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-33">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Pages 82–83.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-34"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-34">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a></i>, paragraph 130c.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-35"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-35">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i><a href="/wiki/Posterior_Analytics" title="Posterior Analytics">Posterior Analytics</a></i> 71b.25.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-36"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-36">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Book III Chapters 3–4, paragraphs 999a ff.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-37"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-37">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFBorghini2018" class="citation web cs1">Borghini, Andrea (22 March 2018). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.thoughtco.com/nominalism-vs-realism-2670598">"The Debate Between Nominalism and Realism"</a>. <i>ThoughtCo</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=ThoughtCo&rft.atitle=The+Debate+Between+Nominalism+and+Realism&rft.date=2018-03-22&rft.aulast=Borghini&rft.aufirst=Andrea&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thoughtco.com%2Fnominalism-vs-realism-2670598&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-38"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-38">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFRodriguez-Pereyra2019" class="citation web cs1">Rodriguez-Pereyra, Gonzalo (2019). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/nominalism-metaphysics/">"Nominalism in Metaphysics"</a>. <i>The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy</i>. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Stanford+Encyclopedia+of+Philosophy&rft.atitle=Nominalism+in+Metaphysics&rft.date=2019&rft.aulast=Rodriguez-Pereyra&rft.aufirst=Gonzalo&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fplato.stanford.edu%2Fentries%2Fnominalism-metaphysics%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Primary_sources">Primary sources</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Primary sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p><b>Dialogues that discuss Forms</b> The theory is presented in the following dialogues:<sup id="cite_ref-39" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-39"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239549316">.mw-parser-output .refbegin{margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul{margin-left:0}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul>li{margin-left:0;padding-left:3.2em;text-indent:-3.2em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents ul,.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents ul li{list-style:none}@media(max-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul>li{padding-left:1.6em;text-indent:-1.6em}}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .refbegin{font-size:90%}}</style><div class="refbegin refbegin-columns references-column-width" style="column-width: 30em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Meno" title="Meno">Meno</a></i>: 71–81, 85–86: The discovery (or "recollection") of knowledge as latent in the soul, pointing forward to the theory of Forms</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedo" title="Phaedo">Phaedo</a></i></li></ul> <dl><dd>73–80: The theory of recollection restated as knowledge of the Forms in soul before birth in the body,109–111: The myth of the afterlife, 100c: The theory of absolute beauty</dd></dl> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Symposium_(Plato)" title="Symposium (Plato)">Symposium</a></i>: 210–211: The archetype of Beauty.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedrus_(dialogue)" title="Phaedrus (dialogue)">Phaedrus</a></i>: 248–250: Reincarnation according to knowledge of the true, 265–266: The unity problem in thought and nature.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i>: 389–390: The archetype as used by craftsmen, 439–440: The problem of knowing the Forms.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Theaetetus_(dialogue)" title="Theaetetus (dialogue)">Theaetetus</a></i>: 184–186: Universals understood by mind and not perceived by senses.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Sophist_(dialogue)" title="Sophist (dialogue)">Sophist</a></i>: 246–259: True essence a Form. Effective solution to participation problem. The problem with being as a Form; if it is participatory then non-being must exist and be being.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a></i>: 129–135: Participatory solution of unity problem. Things partake of archetypal like and unlike, one and many, etc. The nature of the participation (<a href="/wiki/Third_man_argument" class="mw-redirect" title="Third man argument">Third man argument</a>). Forms not actually in the thing. The problem of their unknowability.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Republic_(Plato)" class="mw-redirect" title="The Republic (Plato)">Republic</a></i></li></ul> <dl><dd><ul><li>Book III: 402–403: Education the pursuit of the Forms.</li> <li>Book V: 472–483: Philosophy the love of the Forms. The philosopher-king must rule.</li> <li>Books VI–VII: 500–517: Philosopher-guardians as students of the Beautiful and Just implement archetypical order, <a href="/wiki/Metaphor_of_the_Sun" class="mw-redirect" title="Metaphor of the Sun">Metaphor of the Sun</a>: The sun is to sight as Good is to understanding, <a href="/wiki/Allegory_of_the_Cave" class="mw-redirect" title="Allegory of the Cave">Allegory of the Cave</a>: The struggle to understand forms like men in cave guessing at shadows in firelight.</li> <li>Books IX–X, 589–599: The ideal state and its citizens. Extensive treatise covering citizenship, government and society with suggestions for <a href="/wiki/Law" title="Law">laws</a> imitating <a href="/wiki/The_Good" class="mw-redirect" title="The Good">the Good</a>, <a href="/wiki/Truth" title="Truth">the True</a>, <a href="/wiki/Justice" title="Justice">the Just</a>, etc. Metaphor of the three beds.</li></ul></dd></dl> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i>: 27–52: The design of the universe, including numbers and physics. Some of its patterns. Definition of matter.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Philebus" title="Philebus">Philebus</a></i>: 14–18: Unity problem: one and many, parts and whole.</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Seventh_Letter_(Plato)" class="mw-redirect" title="Seventh Letter (Plato)">Seventh Letter</a></i>: 342–345: The epistemology of Forms. <i>The Seventh Letter</i> is possibly spurious.</li></ul> </div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Bibliography">Bibliography</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Bibliography"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFAlicanThesleff2013" class="citation journal cs1">Alican, Necip Fikri; Thesleff, Holger (2013). "Rethinking Plato's Forms". <i>Arctos: Acta Philologica Fennica</i>. <b>47</b>: <span class="nowrap">11–</span>47. <a href="/wiki/ISSN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISSN (identifier)">ISSN</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0570-734X">0570-734X</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Arctos%3A+Acta+Philologica+Fennica&rft.atitle=Rethinking+Plato%27s+Forms&rft.volume=47&rft.pages=%3Cspan+class%3D%22nowrap%22%3E11-%3C%2Fspan%3E47&rft.date=2013&rft.issn=0570-734X&rft.aulast=Alican&rft.aufirst=Necip+Fikri&rft.au=Thesleff%2C+Holger&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFAlican2014" class="citation journal cs1">Alican, Necip Fikri (2014). "Rethought Forms: How Do They Work?". <i>Arctos: Acta Philologica Fennica</i>. <b>48</b>: <span class="nowrap">25–</span>55. <a href="/wiki/ISSN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISSN (identifier)">ISSN</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0570-734X">0570-734X</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Arctos%3A+Acta+Philologica+Fennica&rft.atitle=Rethought+Forms%3A+How+Do+They+Work%3F&rft.volume=48&rft.pages=%3Cspan+class%3D%22nowrap%22%3E25-%3C%2Fspan%3E55&rft.date=2014&rft.issn=0570-734X&rft.aulast=Alican&rft.aufirst=Necip+Fikri&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFCornford1957" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/F._M._Cornford" title="F. M. Cornford">Cornford, Francis MacDonald</a> (1957). <i>Plato and Parmenides</i>. New York: The Liberal Arts Press.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato+and+Parmenides&rft.place=New+York&rft.pub=The+Liberal+Arts+Press&rft.date=1957&rft.aulast=Cornford&rft.aufirst=Francis+MacDonald&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFDancy2004" class="citation book cs1">Dancy, Russell (2004). <i>Plato's Introduction of Forms</i>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-521037-18-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-521037-18-1"><bdi>978-0-521037-18-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato%27s+Introduction+of+Forms&rft.pub=Cambridge%3A+Cambridge+University+Press&rft.date=2004&rft.isbn=978-0-521037-18-1&rft.aulast=Dancy&rft.aufirst=Russell&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFFine1993" class="citation book cs1">Fine, Gail (1993). <i>On Ideas: Aristotle's Criticism of Plato's Theory of Forms</i>. Oxford: Oxford University Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-198235-49-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-198235-49-1"><bdi>978-0-198235-49-1</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/191827006">191827006</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=On+Ideas%3A+Aristotle%27s+Criticism+of+Plato%27s+Theory+of+Forms&rft.pub=Oxford%3A+Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=1993&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F191827006&rft.isbn=978-0-198235-49-1&rft.aulast=Fine&rft.aufirst=Gail&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span> Reviewed by <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFGerson1993" class="citation journal cs1">Gerson, Lloyd P (1993). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/1993/1993.05.25/">"Gail Fine, On Ideas. Aristotle's Criticism of Plato's Theory of Forms"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Bryn_Mawr_Classical_Review" title="Bryn Mawr Classical Review">Bryn Mawr Classical Review</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Bryn+Mawr+Classical+Review&rft.atitle=Gail+Fine%2C+On+Ideas.+Aristotle%27s+Criticism+of+Plato%27s+Theory+of+Forms&rft.date=1993&rft.aulast=Gerson&rft.aufirst=Lloyd+P&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbmcr.brynmawr.edu%2F1993%2F1993.05.25%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFFine2003" class="citation book cs1">Fine, Gail (2003). <i>Plato on Knowledge and Forms: Selected Essays</i>. Oxford: Clarendon Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-199245-59-8" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-199245-59-8"><bdi>978-0-199245-59-8</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato+on+Knowledge+and+Forms%3A+Selected+Essays&rft.pub=Oxford%3A+Clarendon+Press&rft.date=2003&rft.isbn=978-0-199245-59-8&rft.aulast=Fine&rft.aufirst=Gail&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFGrabowski2008" class="citation book cs1">Grabowski, Francis A. III (2008). <i>Plato, Metaphysics and the Forms</i>. Continuum Studies in Ancient Philosophy. Continuum.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato%2C+Metaphysics+and+the+Forms&rft.series=Continuum+Studies+in+Ancient+Philosophy&rft.pub=Continuum&rft.date=2008&rft.aulast=Grabowski&rft.aufirst=Francis+A.+III&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li>Matía Cubillo, Gerardo Óscar (2021). "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://revistas.ucr.ac.cr/index.php/filosofia/article/view/46262/46029">Suggestions on How to Combine the Platonic Forms to Overcome the Interpretative Difficulties of the Parmenides Dialogue</a>", <i>Revista de Filosofía de la Universidad de Costa Rica,</i> vol. 60, 156: 157–171.</li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFPatterson1985" class="citation book cs1">Patterson, Richard (1985). <i>Image and Reality in Plato's Metaphysics</i>. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-915145-72-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-915145-72-0"><bdi>978-0-915145-72-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Image+and+Reality+in+Plato%27s+Metaphysics&rft.pub=Indianapolis%3A+Hackett+Publishing+Company&rft.date=1985&rft.isbn=978-0-915145-72-0&rft.aulast=Patterson&rft.aufirst=Richard&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFRodziewicz2012" class="citation book cs1">Rodziewicz, Artur (2012). <i>IDEA AND FORM. ΙΔΕΑ ΚΑΙ ΕΙΔΟΣ. On the Foundations of the Philosophy of Plato and the Presocratics (IDEA I FORMA. ΙΔΕΑ ΚΑΙ ΕΙΔΟΣ. O fundamentach filozofii Platona i presokratyków)</i>. Wroclaw: WUWR.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=IDEA+AND+FORM.+%CE%99%CE%94%CE%95%CE%91+%CE%9A%CE%91%CE%99+%CE%95%CE%99%CE%94%CE%9F%CE%A3.+On+the+Foundations+of+the+Philosophy+of+Plato+and+the+Presocratics+%28IDEA+I+FORMA.+%CE%99%CE%94%CE%95%CE%91+%CE%9A%CE%91%CE%99+%CE%95%CE%99%CE%94%CE%9F%CE%A3.+O+fundamentach+filozofii+Platona+i+presokratyk%C3%B3w%29&rft.place=Wroclaw&rft.pub=WUWR&rft.date=2012&rft.aulast=Rodziewicz&rft.aufirst=Artur&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFRoss1951" class="citation book cs1">Ross, William David (1951). <i>Plato's Theory of Ideas</i>. Oxford: Clarendon Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-837186-35-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-837186-35-1"><bdi>978-0-837186-35-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato%27s+Theory+of+Ideas&rft.pub=Oxford%3A+Clarendon+Press&rft.date=1951&rft.isbn=978-0-837186-35-1&rft.aulast=Ross&rft.aufirst=William+David&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFThesleff2009" class="citation book cs1">Thesleff, Holger (2009). <i>Platonic Patterns: A Collection of Studies by Holger Thesleff</i>. Las Vegas: Parmenides Publishing. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-930972-29-2" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-930972-29-2"><bdi>978-1-930972-29-2</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Platonic+Patterns%3A+A+Collection+of+Studies+by+Holger+Thesleff&rft.pub=Las+Vegas%3A+Parmenides+Publishing&rft.date=2009&rft.isbn=978-1-930972-29-2&rft.aulast=Thesleff&rft.aufirst=Holger&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFWelton2002" class="citation book cs1">Welton, William A., ed. (2002). <i>Plato's Forms: Varieties of Interpretation</i>. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7391-0514-6" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-7391-0514-6"><bdi>978-0-7391-0514-6</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Plato%27s+Forms%3A+Varieties+of+Interpretation&rft.pub=Lanham%3A+Rowman+%26+Littlefield&rft.date=2002&rft.isbn=978-0-7391-0514-6&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1235681985">.mw-parser-output .side-box{margin:4px 0;box-sizing:border-box;border:1px solid #aaa;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em;background-color:var(--background-color-interactive-subtle,#f8f9fa);display:flow-root}.mw-parser-output .side-box-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output .side-box-text{padding:0.25em 0.9em}.mw-parser-output .side-box-image{padding:2px 0 2px 0.9em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .side-box-imageright{padding:2px 0.9em 2px 0;text-align:center}@media(min-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .side-box-flex{display:flex;align-items:center}.mw-parser-output .side-box-text{flex:1;min-width:0}}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .side-box{width:238px}.mw-parser-output .side-box-right{clear:right;float:right;margin-left:1em}.mw-parser-output .side-box-left{margin-right:1em}}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1237033735">@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .sistersitebox{display:none!important}}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sistersitebox img[src*="Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg"]{background-color:white}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sistersitebox img[src*="Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg"]{background-color:white}}</style><div class="side-box side-box-right plainlinks sistersitebox"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg/40px-Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg/60px-Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg/80px-Wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="512" /></a></span></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist">Look up <i><b><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%CE%B5%E1%BC%B6%CE%B4%CE%BF%CF%82" class="extiw" title="wiktionary:εἶδος">εἶδος</a></b></i> in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.</div></div> </div> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation encyclopaedia cs1"><span class="cs1-ws-icon" title="s:1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Form"><a class="external text" href="https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1911_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Form">"Form" </a></span>. <i><a href="/wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica_Eleventh_Edition" title="Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition">Encyclopædia Britannica</a></i> (11th ed.). 1911.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Form&rft.btitle=Encyclop%C3%A6dia+Britannica&rft.edition=11th&rft.date=1911&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFCohen2006" class="citation web cs1">Cohen, Marc (2006). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://faculty.washington.edu/smcohen/320/thforms.htm">"Theory of Forms"</a>. <i>Philosophy 320: History of Ancient Philosophy</i>. University of Washington Philosophy Department.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Philosophy+320%3A+History+of+Ancient+Philosophy&rft.atitle=Theory+of+Forms&rft.date=2006&rft.aulast=Cohen&rft.aufirst=Marc&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Ffaculty.washington.edu%2Fsmcohen%2F320%2Fthforms.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://home.comcast.net/~icuweb/c02403.htm">"Lesson Three: Plato's Theory of Forms"</a>. International Catholic University.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Lesson+Three%3A+Plato%27s+Theory+of+Forms&rft.pub=International+Catholic+University&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fhome.comcast.net%2F~icuweb%2Fc02403.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFRuggiero2002" class="citation web cs1">Ruggiero, Tim (July 2002). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.philosophicalsociety.com/Archives/Plato%20And%20The%20Theory%20Of%20Forms.htm#I.%20Theory%20of%20Forms">"Plato And The Theory of Forms"</a>. <i>philosophical society.com</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=philosophical+society.com&rft.atitle=Plato+And+The+Theory+of+Forms&rft.date=2002-07&rft.aulast=Ruggiero&rft.aufirst=Tim&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.philosophicalsociety.com%2FArchives%2FPlato%2520And%2520The%2520Theory%2520Of%2520Forms.htm%23I.%2520Theory%2520of%2520Forms&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFSilverman" class="citation encyclopaedia cs1">Silverman, Allan. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/plato-metaphysics/">"Plato's Middle Period Metaphysics and Epistemology"</a>. In <a href="/wiki/Edward_N._Zalta" title="Edward N. Zalta">Zalta, Edward N.</a> (ed.). <i><a href="/wiki/Stanford_Encyclopedia_of_Philosophy" title="Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy">Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Plato%27s+Middle+Period+Metaphysics+and+Epistemology&rft.btitle=Stanford+Encyclopedia+of+Philosophy&rft.aulast=Silverman&rft.aufirst=Allan&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fplato.stanford.edu%2Fentries%2Fplato-metaphysics%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222" /><cite id="CITEREFBalaguer" class="citation encyclopaedia cs1">Balaguer, Mark. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/platonism/">"Platonism in Metaphysics"</a>. In <a href="/wiki/Edward_N._Zalta" title="Edward N. Zalta">Zalta, Edward N.</a> (ed.). <i><a href="/wiki/Stanford_Encyclopedia_of_Philosophy" title="Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy">Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Platonism+in+Metaphysics&rft.btitle=Stanford+Encyclopedia+of+Philosophy&rft.aulast=Balaguer&rft.aufirst=Mark&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fplato.stanford.edu%2Fentries%2Fplatonism%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ATheory+of+forms" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236075235">.mw-parser-output .navbox{box-sizing:border-box;border:1px solid #a2a9b1;width:100%;clear:both;font-size:88%;text-align:center;padding:1px;margin:1em auto 0}.mw-parser-output .navbox .navbox{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .navbox+.navbox,.mw-parser-output .navbox+.navbox-styles+.navbox{margin-top:-1px}.mw-parser-output .navbox-inner,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup{width:100%}.mw-parser-output .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-title,.mw-parser-output .navbox-abovebelow{padding:0.25em 1em;line-height:1.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .navbox-group{white-space:nowrap;text-align:right}.mw-parser-output .navbox,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup{background-color:#fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-list{line-height:1.5em;border-color:#fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-list-with-group{text-align:left;border-left-width:2px;border-left-style:solid}.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-group,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-image,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-list{border-top:2px solid #fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-title{background-color:#ccf}.mw-parser-output .navbox-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-title{background-color:#ddf}.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-abovebelow{background-color:#e6e6ff}.mw-parser-output .navbox-even{background-color:#f7f7f7}.mw-parser-output .navbox-odd{background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td dl,.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td ol,.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td ul,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist ul{padding:0.125em 0}.mw-parser-output .navbox .navbar{display:block;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .navbox-title .navbar{float:left;text-align:left;margin-right:0.5em}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .navbox-image img{max-width:none!important}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .navbox{display:none!important}}</style></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Metaphysics343" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks hlist mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231" /><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Metaphysics" title="Template:Metaphysics"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Metaphysics" title="Template talk:Metaphysics"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Metaphysics" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Metaphysics"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Metaphysics343" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Metaphysics" title="Metaphysics">Metaphysics</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Theories</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Abstract_object_theory" title="Abstract object theory">Abstract object theory</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Action_theory_(philosophy)" title="Action theory (philosophy)">Action theory</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anti-realism" title="Anti-realism">Anti-realism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Determinism" title="Determinism">Determinism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mind%E2%80%93body_dualism" title="Mind–body dualism">Dualism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Enactivism" title="Enactivism">Enactivism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Essentialism" title="Essentialism">Essentialism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Existentialism" title="Existentialism">Existentialism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Free_will" title="Free will">Free will</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Idealism" title="Idealism">Idealism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Libertarianism_(metaphysics)" title="Libertarianism (metaphysics)">Libertarianism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Liberty" title="Liberty">Liberty</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Materialism" title="Materialism">Materialism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Meaning_of_life" title="Meaning of life">Meaning of life</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Monism" title="Monism">Monism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Naturalism_(philosophy)" title="Naturalism (philosophy)">Naturalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nihilism" title="Nihilism">Nihilism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Phenomenalism" title="Phenomenalism">Phenomenalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophical_realism" title="Philosophical realism">Realism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Physicalism" title="Physicalism">Physicalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Relativism" title="Relativism">Relativism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scientific_realism" title="Scientific realism">Scientific realism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Solipsism" title="Solipsism">Solipsism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Spiritualism_(philosophy)" title="Spiritualism (philosophy)">Spiritualism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subjectivism" title="Subjectivism">Subjectivism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Substance_theory" title="Substance theory">Substance theory</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Theory of forms</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Truthmaker_theory" title="Truthmaker theory">Truthmaker theory</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Type_theory" title="Type theory">Type theory</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Concepts</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Abstract_and_concrete" title="Abstract and concrete">Abstract object</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anima_mundi" title="Anima mundi">Anima mundi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category_of_being" class="mw-redirect" title="Category of being">Category of being</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Causality" title="Causality">Causality</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Causal_closure" title="Causal closure">Causal closure</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Cogito,_ergo_sum" title="Cogito, ergo sum">Cogito, ergo sum</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Concept" title="Concept">Concept</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cosmos" title="Cosmos">Cosmos</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Embodied_cognition" title="Embodied cognition">Embodied cognition</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Entity" title="Entity">Entity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Essence" title="Essence">Essence</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Existence" title="Existence">Existence</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Experience" title="Experience">Experience</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hypostatic_abstraction" title="Hypostatic abstraction">Hypostatic abstraction</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Idea" title="Idea">Idea</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Identity_(philosophy)" title="Identity (philosophy)">Identity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Importance" title="Importance">Importance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Information" title="Information">Information</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Data" title="Data">Data</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Insight" title="Insight">Insight</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Intelligence" title="Intelligence">Intelligence</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Intention" title="Intention">Intention</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Linguistic_modality" class="mw-redirect" title="Linguistic modality">Linguistic modality</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophy_of_matter" title="Philosophy of matter">Matter</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Meaning_(existential)" title="Meaning (existential)">Meaning</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mental_representation" title="Mental representation">Mental representation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mind" title="Mind">Mind</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Motion" title="Motion">Motion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nature_(philosophy)" title="Nature (philosophy)">Nature</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Metaphysical_necessity" title="Metaphysical necessity">Necessity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Object_(philosophy)" class="mw-redirect" title="Object (philosophy)">Object</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ontology" title="Ontology">Ontology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pattern" title="Pattern">Pattern</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Perception" title="Perception">Perception</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Physical_object" title="Physical object">Physical object</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Principle" title="Principle">Principle</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Property_(philosophy)" title="Property (philosophy)">Property</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Qualia" title="Qualia">Qualia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Quality_(philosophy)" title="Quality (philosophy)">Quality</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Reality" title="Reality">Reality</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Relations_(philosophy)" class="mw-redirect" title="Relations (philosophy)">Relation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Self" title="Self">Self</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Soul" title="Soul">Soul</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subject_(philosophy)" class="mw-redirect" title="Subject (philosophy)">Subject</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Substantial_form" title="Substantial form">Substantial form</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thought" title="Thought">Thought</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Time" title="Time">Time</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Truth" title="Truth">Truth</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Type%E2%80%93token_distinction" title="Type–token distinction">Type–token distinction</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Universal_(metaphysics)" title="Universal (metaphysics)">Universal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Unobservable" title="Unobservable">Unobservable</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Value_(ethics)" title="Value (ethics)">Value</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Index_of_metaphysics_articles" title="Index of metaphysics articles">more ...</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/List_of_metaphysicians" title="List of metaphysicians">Metaphysicians</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Parmenides" title="Parmenides">Parmenides</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato" title="Plato">Plato</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aristotle" title="Aristotle">Aristotle</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lucretius" title="Lucretius">Lucretius</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Proclus" title="Proclus">Proclus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plotinus" title="Plotinus">Plotinus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Avicenna" title="Avicenna">Avicenna</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Duns_Scotus" title="Duns Scotus">Scotus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thomas_Aquinas" title="Thomas Aquinas">Aquinas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Francisco_Su%C3%A1rez" title="Francisco Suárez">Suárez</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_Descartes" title="René Descartes">Descartes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Baruch_Spinoza" title="Baruch Spinoza">Spinoza</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/John_Locke" title="John Locke">Locke</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nicolas_Malebranche" title="Nicolas Malebranche">Malebranche</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Isaac_Newton" title="Isaac Newton">Newton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gottfried_Wilhelm_Leibniz" title="Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz">Leibniz</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christian_Wolff_(philosopher)" title="Christian Wolff (philosopher)">Wolff</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thomas_Reid" title="Thomas Reid">Reid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/George_Berkeley" title="George Berkeley">Berkeley</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/David_Hume" title="David Hume">Hume</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Immanuel_Kant" title="Immanuel Kant">Kant</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Georg_Wilhelm_Friedrich_Hegel" title="Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel">Hegel</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Arthur_Schopenhauer" title="Arthur Schopenhauer">Schopenhauer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bernard_Bolzano" title="Bernard Bolzano">Bolzano</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/S%C3%B8ren_Kierkegaard" title="Søren Kierkegaard">Kierkegaard</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hermann_Lotze" title="Hermann Lotze">Lotze</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Peirce</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Friedrich_Nietzsche" title="Friedrich Nietzsche">Nietzsche</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alexius_Meinong" title="Alexius Meinong">Meinong</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Henri_Bergson" title="Henri Bergson">Bergson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alfred_North_Whitehead" title="Alfred North Whitehead">Whitehead</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bertrand_Russell" title="Bertrand Russell">Russell</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/G._E._Moore" title="G. E. Moore">Moore</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/R._G._Collingwood" title="R. G. Collingwood">Collingwood</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ludwig_Wittgenstein" title="Ludwig Wittgenstein">Wittgenstein</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Martin_Heidegger" title="Martin Heidegger">Heidegger</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rudolf_Carnap" title="Rudolf Carnap">Carnap</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gilbert_Ryle" title="Gilbert Ryle">Ryle</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jean-Paul_Sartre" title="Jean-Paul Sartre">Sartre</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Willard_Van_Orman_Quine" title="Willard Van Orman Quine">Quine</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Donald_Davidson_(philosopher)" title="Donald Davidson (philosopher)">Davidson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/P._F._Strawson" title="P. F. Strawson">Strawson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/G._E._M._Anscombe" title="G. E. M. Anscombe">Anscombe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gilles_Deleuze" title="Gilles Deleuze">Deleuze</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Michael_Dummett" title="Michael Dummett">Dummett</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/David_Malet_Armstrong" title="David Malet Armstrong">Armstrong</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hilary_Putnam" title="Hilary Putnam">Putnam</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga" title="Alvin Plantinga">Plantinga</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Saul_Kripke" title="Saul Kripke">Kripke</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/David_Lewis_(philosopher)" title="David Lewis (philosopher)">Lewis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jean_Baudrillard" title="Jean Baudrillard">Baudrillard</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Derek_Parfit" title="Derek Parfit">Parfit</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/List_of_metaphysicians" title="List of metaphysicians">more ...</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Notable works</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Sophist_(dialogue)" title="Sophist (dialogue)">Sophist</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 350 BC)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 350 BC)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Ny%C4%81ya_S%C5%ABtras" title="Nyāya Sūtras">Nyāya Sūtras</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 200 BC)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/De_rerum_natura" title="De rerum natura">De rerum natura</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 80 BC)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Metaphysics_(Aristotle)" title="Metaphysics (Aristotle)">Metaphysics</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 50)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Enneads" title="Enneads">Enneads</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 270)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Daneshnameh-ye_Alai" class="mw-redirect" title="Daneshnameh-ye Alai">Daneshnameh-ye Alai</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(c. 1000)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Meditations_on_First_Philosophy" title="Meditations on First Philosophy">Meditations on First Philosophy</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1641)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Ethics_(Spinoza_book)" class="mw-redirect" title="Ethics (Spinoza book)">Ethics</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1677)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/A_Treatise_Concerning_the_Principles_of_Human_Knowledge" title="A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge">A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1710)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Monadology" title="Monadology">Monadology</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1714)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Critique_of_Pure_Reason" title="Critique of Pure Reason">Critique of Pure Reason</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1781)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Prolegomena_to_Any_Future_Metaphysics" title="Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics">Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1783)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Phenomenology_of_Spirit" title="The Phenomenology of Spirit">The Phenomenology of Spirit</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1807)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_World_as_Will_and_Representation" title="The World as Will and Representation">The World as Will and Representation</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1818)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Concluding_Unscientific_Postscript_to_Philosophical_Fragments" title="Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments">Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1846)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Being_and_Time" title="Being and Time">Being and Time</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1927)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Being_and_Nothingness" title="Being and Nothingness">Being and Nothingness</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1943)</span></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Simulacra_and_Simulation" title="Simulacra and Simulation">Simulacra and Simulation</a></i> <span style="font-size: 85%;">(1981)</span></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related topics</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Axiology" class="mw-redirect" title="Axiology">Axiology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cosmology" title="Cosmology">Cosmology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Epistemology" title="Epistemology">Epistemology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Feminist_metaphysics" title="Feminist metaphysics">Feminist metaphysics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Interpretations_of_quantum_mechanics" title="Interpretations of quantum mechanics">Interpretations of quantum mechanics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mereology" title="Mereology">Mereology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Meta_(prefix)" title="Meta (prefix)">Meta-</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Phenomenology_(philosophy)" title="Phenomenology (philosophy)">Phenomenology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophy_of_mind" title="Philosophy of mind">Philosophy of mind</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophy_of_psychology" title="Philosophy of psychology">Philosophy of psychology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophy_of_self" title="Philosophy of self">Philosophy of self</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Philosophy_of_space_and_time" title="Philosophy of space and time">Philosophy of space and time</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Teleology" title="Teleology">Teleology</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="2"><div> <ul><li><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span title="Category"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/16px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png" decoding="async" width="16" height="16" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/23px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/31px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="180" data-file-height="185" /></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Category:Metaphysics" title="Category:Metaphysics">Category</a></li> <li><span class="nowrap"><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/18px-Socrates.png" decoding="async" width="18" height="28" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/27px-Socrates.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Socrates.png/36px-Socrates.png 2x" data-file-width="326" data-file-height="500" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Portal:Philosophy" title="Portal:Philosophy">Philosophy portal</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235" /></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Idealism31" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231" /><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Idealism" title="Template:Idealism"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Idealism" title="Template talk:Idealism"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Idealism" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Idealism"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Idealism31" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Idealism" title="Idealism">Idealism</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Forms</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Absolute_idealism" title="Absolute idealism">Absolute</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/British_idealism" title="British idealism">British</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Actual_idealism" title="Actual idealism">Actual</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Canadian_idealism" title="Canadian idealism">Canadian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/German_idealism" title="German idealism">German</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Italian_idealism" title="Italian idealism">Italian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Monistic_idealism" class="mw-redirect" title="Monistic idealism">Monistic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Epistemological_idealism" title="Epistemological idealism">Epistemological</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_idealism" class="mw-redirect" title="Platonic idealism">Platonic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subjective_idealism" title="Subjective idealism">Subjective</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Objective_idealism" title="Objective idealism">Objective</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Transcendental_idealism" title="Transcendental idealism">Transcendental</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hindu_idealism" class="mw-redirect" title="Hindu idealism">Indian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kashmir_Shaivism" title="Kashmir Shaivism">Monistic (Shaivism)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Novalis" title="Novalis">Magical (thaumaturgic)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Buddhist_philosophy" title="Buddhist philosophy">Buddhist (consciousness-only)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Practical_idealism" title="Practical idealism">Practical</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Political_idealism" class="mw-redirect" title="Political idealism">Political</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related topics</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Metaphysics" title="Metaphysics">Metaphysics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Idea" title="Idea">Idea</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Plato's Theory of Ideas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anti-realism" title="Anti-realism">Anti-realism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Consciousness-only" class="mw-redirect" title="Consciousness-only">Consciousness-only</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rationalism" title="Rationalism">Rationalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Panpsychism" title="Panpsychism">Panpsychism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Phenomenalism" title="Phenomenalism">Phenomenalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Idealistic_pluralism" title="Idealistic pluralism">Idealistic pluralism</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Idealistic_Studies" title="Idealistic Studies">Idealistic Studies</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235" /></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Plato135" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374" /><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231" /><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Plato_navbox" title="Template:Plato navbox"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Plato_navbox" title="Template talk:Plato navbox"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Plato_navbox" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Plato navbox"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Plato135" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Plato" title="Plato">Plato</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Works</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Apology_(Plato)" title="Apology (Plato)">Apology</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Charmides_(dialogue)" title="Charmides (dialogue)">Charmides</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Clitophon_(dialogue)" title="Clitophon (dialogue)">Clitophon</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Cratylus_(dialogue)" title="Cratylus (dialogue)">Cratylus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Critias_(dialogue)" title="Critias (dialogue)">Critias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Crito" title="Crito">Crito</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Euthydemus_(dialogue)" title="Euthydemus (dialogue)">Euthydemus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Euthyphro" title="Euthyphro">Euthyphro</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/First_Alcibiades" title="First Alcibiades">First Alcibiades</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Gorgias_(dialogue)" title="Gorgias (dialogue)">Gorgias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hippias_Major" title="Hippias Major">Hippias Major</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hippias_Minor" title="Hippias Minor">Hippias Minor</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Ion_(dialogue)" title="Ion (dialogue)">Ion</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Laches_(dialogue)" title="Laches (dialogue)">Laches</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Laws_(dialogue)" title="Laws (dialogue)">Laws</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Lysis_(dialogue)" title="Lysis (dialogue)">Lysis</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Menexenus_(dialogue)" title="Menexenus (dialogue)">Menexenus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Meno" title="Meno">Meno</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Parmenides_(dialogue)" title="Parmenides (dialogue)">Parmenides</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedo" title="Phaedo">Phaedo</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Phaedrus_(dialogue)" title="Phaedrus (dialogue)">Phaedrus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Philebus" title="Philebus">Philebus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Protagoras_(dialogue)" title="Protagoras (dialogue)">Protagoras</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Republic_(Plato)" title="Republic (Plato)">Republic</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Sophist_(dialogue)" title="Sophist (dialogue)">Sophist</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Statesman_(dialogue)" title="Statesman (dialogue)">Statesman</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Symposium_(Plato)" title="Symposium (Plato)">Symposium</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Theaetetus_(dialogue)" title="Theaetetus (dialogue)">Theaetetus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Timaeus_(dialogue)" title="Timaeus (dialogue)">Timaeus</a></i></li></ul> </div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th id="Of_doubtfulauthenticity27" scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Of doubtful<br />authenticity</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Axiochus_(dialogue)" title="Axiochus (dialogue)">Axiochus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Definitions_(Plato)" title="Definitions (Plato)">Definitions</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Demodocus_(dialogue)" title="Demodocus (dialogue)">Demodocus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epigrams_(Plato)" title="Epigrams (Plato)">Epigrams</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epinomis" title="Epinomis">Epinomis</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Epistles_(Plato)" title="Epistles (Plato)">Epistles</a></i> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Seventh_Letter" title="Seventh Letter">Seventh Letter</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Eryxias_(dialogue)" title="Eryxias (dialogue)">Eryxias</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Halcyon_(dialogue)" title="Halcyon (dialogue)">Halcyon</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hipparchus_(dialogue)" title="Hipparchus (dialogue)">Hipparchus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Minos_(dialogue)" title="Minos (dialogue)">Minos</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/On_Justice" title="On Justice">On Justice</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/On_Virtue" title="On Virtue">On Virtue</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Rival_Lovers" title="Rival Lovers">Rival Lovers</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Second_Alcibiades" title="Second Alcibiades">Second Alcibiades</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Sisyphus_(dialogue)" title="Sisyphus (dialogue)">Sisyphus</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Theages" title="Theages">Theages</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Platonism" title="Platonism">Philosophy</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Euthyphro_dilemma" title="Euthyphro dilemma">Euthyphro dilemma</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_love" title="Platonic love">Platonic love</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cardinal_virtues" title="Cardinal virtues">Cardinal virtues</a> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Sophrosyne" title="Sophrosyne">Sophrosyne</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_epistemology" title="Platonic epistemology">Platonic epistemology</a> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Anamnesis_(philosophy)" title="Anamnesis (philosophy)">Amanesis</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Peritrope" title="Peritrope">Peritrope</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Divine_madness" title="Divine madness">Theia mania</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Theory of Forms</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Form_of_the_Good" title="Form of the Good">Form of the Good</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_theory_of_soul" title="Plato's theory of soul">Theory of soul</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_political_philosophy" title="Plato's political philosophy">Plato's political philosophy</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Philosopher_king" title="Philosopher king">Philosopher king</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_solid" title="Platonic solid">Platonic solid</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Anima_mundi" title="Anima mundi">Anima mundi</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Demiurge" title="Demiurge">Demiurge</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Hyperuranion" title="Hyperuranion">Hyperuranion</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Allegorical_interpretations_of_Plato" title="Allegorical interpretations of Plato">Allegories<br />and metaphors</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Atlantis" title="Atlantis">Atlantis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_of_Gyges" title="Ring of Gyges">Ring of Gyges</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Allegory_of_the_cave" title="Allegory of the cave">The Cave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Analogy_of_the_divided_line" title="Analogy of the divided line">The Divided Line</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Analogy_of_the_Sun" title="Analogy of the Sun">The Sun</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ship_of_State" title="Ship of State">Ship of State</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Myth_of_Er" title="Myth of Er">Myth of Er</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Life_of_Plato" title="Life of Plato">Life</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Platonic_Academy" title="Platonic Academy">The Academy in Athens</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Socratic_problem" title="Socratic problem">Socratic problem</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_speakers_in_Plato%27s_dialogues" title="List of speakers in Plato's dialogues">List of speakers in Plato's dialogues</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Legacy</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_unwritten_doctrines" title="Plato's unwritten doctrines">Unwritten doctrines</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_manuscripts_of_Plato%27s_dialogues" title="List of manuscripts of Plato's dialogues">List of manuscripts of Plato's dialogues</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cultural_influence_of_Plato%27s_Republic" class="mw-redirect" title="Cultural influence of Plato's Republic">Cultural influence of Plato's <i>Republic</i></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Neoplatonism_and_Gnosticism" title="Neoplatonism and Gnosticism">Neoplatonism and Gnosticism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Platonism_in_the_Renaissance" title="Platonism in the Renaissance">Platonism in the Renaissance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Middle_Platonism" title="Middle Platonism">Middle Platonism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Commentaries_on_Plato" title="Commentaries on Plato">Commentaries</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Neoplatonism" title="Neoplatonism">Neoplatonism</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Neoplatonism_and_Christianity" title="Neoplatonism and Christianity">and Christianity</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oxyrhynchus_Papyri#Greek" title="Oxyrhynchus Papyri">Oxyrhynchus Papyri</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Papyrus_Oxyrhynchus_23" title="Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 23">23</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Papyrus_Oxyrhynchus_24" title="Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 24">24</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Papyrus_Oxyrhynchus_228" title="Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 228">228</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Papyrus_Oxyrhynchus_229" title="Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 229">229</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plato%27s_Dream" title="Plato's Dream">Plato's Dream</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Poitier_Meets_Plato" title="Poitier Meets Plato">Poitier Meets Plato</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-39"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-39">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">See "Chapter 28: Form" of <i>The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World</i> (Vol. II). Encyclopædia Britannica (1952), pp. 536–541.</span> </li> </ol></div>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?useformat=desktop&type=1x1&usesul3=0" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&oldid=1278087398">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&oldid=1278087398</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Help:Category" title="Help:Category">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Idealism" title="Category:Idealism">Idealism</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Platonism" title="Category:Platonism">Platonism</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Theories_in_ancient_Greek_philosophy" title="Category:Theories in ancient Greek philosophy">Theories in ancient Greek philosophy</a></li></ul></div><div id="mw-hidden-catlinks" class="mw-hidden-catlinks mw-hidden-cats-hidden">Hidden categories: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_containing_Ancient_Greek_(to_1453)-language_text" title="Category:Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text">Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:CS1:_long_volume_value" title="Category:CS1: long volume value">CS1: long volume value</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_short_description" title="Category:Articles with short description">Articles with short description</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Short_description_matches_Wikidata" title="Category:Short description matches Wikidata">Short description matches Wikidata</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Use_dmy_dates_from_January_2025" title="Category:Use dmy dates from January 2025">Use dmy dates from January 2025</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_needing_additional_references_from_November_2021" title="Category:Articles needing additional references from November 2021">Articles needing additional references from November 2021</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:All_articles_needing_additional_references" title="Category:All articles needing additional references">All articles needing additional references</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_articles_incorporating_a_citation_from_the_1911_Encyclopaedia_Britannica_with_Wikisource_reference" title="Category:Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference">Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 28 February 2025, at 12:00<span class="anonymous-show"> (UTC)</span>.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_4.0_International_License" title="Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License</a>; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms_of_Use" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms of Use">Terms of Use</a> and <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy policy">Privacy Policy</a>. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/">Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.</a>, a non-profit organization.</li> </ul> <ul id="footer-places"> <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About">About Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimers"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:General_disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-contact"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us">Contact Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-wm-codeofconduct"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Universal_Code_of_Conduct">Code of Conduct</a></li> <li id="footer-places-developers"><a href="https://developer.wikimedia.org">Developers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-statslink"><a href="https://stats.wikimedia.org/#/en.wikipedia.org">Statistics</a></li> <li id="footer-places-cookiestatement"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Cookie_statement">Cookie statement</a></li> <li id="footer-places-mobileview"><a href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Theory_of_forms&mobileaction=toggle_view_mobile" class="noprint stopMobileRedirectToggle">Mobile view</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://www.wikimedia.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><picture><source media="(min-width: 500px)" srcset="/static/images/footer/wikimedia-button.svg" width="84" height="29"><img src="/static/images/footer/wikimedia.svg" width="25" height="25" alt="Wikimedia Foundation" lang="en" loading="lazy"></picture></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><picture><source media="(min-width: 500px)" srcset="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki.svg" width="88" height="31"><img src="/w/resources/assets/mediawiki_compact.svg" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" lang="en" width="25" height="25" loading="lazy"></picture></a></li> </ul> </footer> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-header-container vector-sticky-header-container"> <div id="vector-sticky-header" class="vector-sticky-header"> <div class="vector-sticky-header-start"> <div class="vector-sticky-header-icon-start vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" aria-hidden="true"> <button class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-sticky-header-search-toggle" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="ui.vector-sticky-search-form.icon"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </button> </div> <div role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box"> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="vector-sticky-search-form" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia"> <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-header-context-bar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-sticky-header-toc" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-sticky-header-toc vector-sticky-header-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-sticky-header-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-sticky-header-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-sticky-header-toc-label" for="vector-sticky-header-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-sticky-header-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div class="vector-sticky-header-context-bar-primary" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="mw-page-title-main">Theory of forms</span></div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-header-end" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="vector-sticky-header-icons"> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-talk-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="talk-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-speechBubbles mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-speechBubbles"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-subject-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="subject-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-article mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-article"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-history-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="history-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-history mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-history"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only mw-watchlink" id="ca-watchstar-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="watch-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-star mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-star"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-edit-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="wikitext-edit-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikiText mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-wikiText"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-ve-edit-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="ve-edit-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-edit mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-edit"></span> <span></span> </a> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only" id="ca-viewsource-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="ve-edit-protected-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-editLock mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-editLock"></span> <span></span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-header-buttons"> <button class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet mw-interlanguage-selector" id="p-lang-btn-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-wikimedia-language"></span> <span>32 languages</span> </button> <a href="#" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive" id="ca-addsection-sticky-header" tabindex="-1" data-event-name="addsection-sticky-header"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-speechBubbleAdd-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-speechBubbleAdd-progressive"></span> <span>Add topic</span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-header-icon-end"> <div class="vector-user-links"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="mw-portlet mw-portlet-dock-bottom emptyPortlet" id="p-dock-bottom"> <ul> </ul> </div> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgHostname":"mw-web.codfw.main-7b4fff7949-sp8zh","wgBackendResponseTime":186,"wgPageParseReport":{"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.825","walltime":"1.010","ppvisitednodes":{"value":4370,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":134280,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":3147,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":16,"limit":100},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":6,"limit":500},"unstrip-depth":{"value":1,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":161192,"limit":5000000},"entityaccesscount":{"value":0,"limit":400},"timingprofile":["100.00% 876.096 1 -total"," 25.23% 221.011 1 Template:Reflist"," 14.96% 131.099 14 Template:Lang"," 10.40% 91.118 4 Template:Navbox"," 10.28% 90.052 1 Template:Platonism"," 10.09% 88.425 19 Template:Cite_book"," 9.53% 83.489 1 Template:Metaphysics"," 8.18% 71.623 1 Template:Short_description"," 8.05% 70.495 1 Template:Cite_encyclopedia"," 4.88% 42.727 1 Template:Unreferenced_section"]},"scribunto":{"limitreport-timeusage":{"value":"0.532","limit":"10.000"},"limitreport-memusage":{"value":21546233,"limit":52428800}},"cachereport":{"origin":"mw-web.codfw.main-7b4fff7949-hw96g","timestamp":"20250326151415","ttl":21600,"transientcontent":true}}});});</script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","name":"Theory of forms","url":"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Theory_of_forms","sameAs":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q1068658","mainEntity":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q1068658","author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Contributors to Wikimedia projects"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.wikimedia.org\/static\/images\/wmf-hor-googpub.png"}},"datePublished":"2005-06-04T23:20:34Z","dateModified":"2025-02-28T12:00:23Z","headline":"philosophical theory attributed to Plato"}</script> </body> </html>