Plato vs. Nietzsche - 1140 Words

Johnny Lee Plato versus Nietzsche The central ideas that two great philosophers, Plato and Friedrich Nietzsche, talked about were the reality and appearance; and what they mainly focused on is where we as humans stand between these two. Of course, regarding the fact that Plato and Nietzsche lived in different time periods, they had their differences that conflict with each other’s theories. But they do have something to agree upon; they both argue that humans live in an illusory world of our own that we think is reality when we actually are not. One important idea they disagree on is their concepts on what is reality and what is truth. Plato’s theory is mostly based on his cave allegory where he explains human’s conditions. I will†¦show more content†¦The basic summary of this poem is that there are â€Å"Twenty men crossing a bridge/ Into a village† (Stevens) and the speaker, Stevens or the Magnifico, is trying to find the meaning behind these twenty crossi ng the bridge. The problem that Stevens had was the words that were used by someone else to describe the twenty men. These twenty men could be perceived as twenty men crossing twenty bridges for each man could experience crossing the bridge very differently. It can also be seen as one man crossing the bridge if they all had the same purpose of why they are crossing the bridge. Ultimately, these men will look like one single man. Stevens could not find the true meaning of his own behind these other people’s descriptions of the twenty men. He starts using words like â€Å"white wall† and â€Å"fruit-trees† to grasp the real meaning of these men crossing the bridge but no matter how hard he tries â€Å"the meaning escapes†(Stevens). This poem perfectly supports Nietzsche’s theory in the sense that, words are only metaphors to describe objects. Words cannot hold concepts for objects do not have real meanings behind them. After all, Stevens and even Nie tzsche would say that it is simply â€Å"Twenty men crossing a bridge/ Into a village† with no concepts attached. Going back to the cave allegory, Plato says that humans think the â€Å"shadows† are the truth behind the objects when they are only appearances. Now if Nietzsche would critique the allegory he would find certain things accurate andShow MoreRelatedExistentialism vs Essentialism23287 Words   |  94 Pages------------------------------------------------- Essentialism vs. Existentialism Essentialism: A belief that things have a set of characteristics that make them what they are, amp; that the task of science and philosophy is their discovery amp; expression; the doctrine that essence is prior to existence While, Existentialism:A philosophical theory or approach, that emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free amp; responsibleRead More Robert Pirsigs Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Essay5286 Words   |  22 Pagesemerges as the relationship between man and his experience. He is a participant in the creation of all things. The measure of all things (Pirsig 368). Rhetorical wholeness Pirsig thus discloses and alters the commonplace or topos of subjects vs. objects, arguing that the two terms are to be interrelated as correlatives, with Quality as the intermediate term. In so doing, he deals with the public crisis of technology by concluding that the real evil isnt the objects of technology but theRead More Buy Essay Online: Comparing Homers Odyssey and Joyces Ulysses2240 Words   |  9 Pagesworth talking about; a world of shadows, of decay.   Homer . . . represents the ghosts [in Hades] as witless.   They gibber meaninglessly until some living man gives them sacrificial blood to drink.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Comparing the style: Objective vs. Existential    Eight months prior to the first publication of Ulysses , Joyce penned: If you want to read Ulysses you had better first get or borrow from a library a translation in prose of the Odyssey of Homer. Joyces recommendation isRead MoreAn Essay on Social Contract Theory3139 Words   |  13 Pagesthe police in to do it). Theorists argue that a combination of positive and negative rights is necessary to create an enforceable contract that protects our interests. History Classical thought Social contract ideas go back to the Greeks; Plato has Socrates make a case for social contract ideas in Crito but criticizes them in The Republic. Epicurus explicitly endorsed social contract ideas; the last fourth of his Principal Doctrines state that justice comes from agreement not to harm eachRead MoreAn Essay on Social Contract Theory3151 Words   |  13 Pagessend the police in to do it). Theorists argue that a combination of positive and negative rights is necessary to create an enforceable contract that protects our interests. History Classical thought Social contract ideas go back to the Greeks; Plato has Socrates make a case for social contract ideas in Crito but criticizes them in The Republic. Epicurus explicitly endorsed social contract ideas; the last fourth of his Principal Doctrines state that justice comes from agreement not to harm eachRead MoreProfessional Ethics10396 Words   |  42 Pagesethics, this is not surprising. Business ethics is an applied discipline, and one would expect it to apply the dominant ethical theories. In Plato and to a lesser extent in Aristotle we read that practical concerns are low and vulgar. It follows that business, as an inherently practical enterprise, is hardly worthy of esteem. Given the place of Plato and Aristotle on the intellectual landscape, we have a partial explanation of the disdain that members of the cultural elite have always exhibitedRead MoreCleanth Brookss Essay Irony as a Principle of Structure9125 Words   |  37 Pageswork is often split up into sections as follows (although other splits have also been suggested):Lines 1 - 37: On unity and harmony. Lines 38 - 72: The writer’s aims. Lines 73 - 118: What the tradition dictates (decorum). Lines 119 - 152: Invention vs. imitation (be consistent if you are original). Lines 153 - 188: On characterization (the four ages of man). Lines 189 - 219: On the gods, chorus and music (in tragic drama). Lines 220 - 250: On style (especially in satyr plays). Lines 251 - 274: OnRead MoreTheology of the Body32011 Words   |  129 Pagesof the body and of sexuality — rather than in considering the body evil as Manicheans do. b) The â€Å"masters of suspicion† — Ricoeur’s term describing Freud, Marx and Nietzsche — judged and accused the human â€Å"heart† by categories similar to the Johannine three forms of lust. Their thought continues to influence contemporary man. Nietzsche accused the human heart of â€Å"pride of life†; Marx of â€Å"lust of the eyes†; Freud, of â€Å"lust of the flesh.† Together they put the heart under continual suspicion, but the