Philosopher Profiles
Plato
(c. 424 BC — 347 BC)
Plato set the standard for beards in philosophy for two millennia. It is only in the last hundred years or so that philosophers such as Gottlob Frege and David Lewis managed to set new standards.
Plato had the annoying habit of writing all of his works in dialogues involving Socrates, which makes it very hard to work out who the clever one is: Plato or Socrates? It is now generally believed that Plato was made up by Socrates whilst tripping on hemlock. Although some think that Socrates was the ideal form of Plato.
Plato famously thought that a country ruled by philosopher kings was a good idea (proof, if any were needed, that the man was insane) and that these kings would be 729 times happier than a tyrant. Some of Plato's lesser known views include one claiming that cats are 12.7 times better than dogs and another suggesting that people with excessive nose hair are 4,798 times less likely to get laid.
Written By: Mark Wales
Created: 29th January, 2008 | Last Updated: 31st January, 2008
E-mail Profile | Post to: Digg • FaceBook • StumbleUpon • del.icio.us • reddit • Furl
(Image of Plato is public domain.)
Photograph
Most people don't realise that Plato was made entirely of stone and didn't have a body.
Stats
-
Main Contributions:
The Theory of Forms -
Quotation:
“…if some person begins at the other end and measures the interval by which the king is parted from the tyrant in truth of pleasure, he will find him, when the multiplication is complete, living 729 times more pleasantly, and the tyrant more painfully by this same interval.” -
Key Areas:
General -
Annoying Habits:
His lack of first name made people uncomfortable as they didn't know what to call him at informal events. -
Nicknames:
Old Beardy
Top Trumps
- Beard: 3
- Fame: 5
- Logic: 1
- Readability: 4
- Contribution: 4
