Plato, the great Greek philosopher, further expounds on the procedure of how reason effects will in his books, The Republic and Phaedrus. In the Republic, he makes the case that the person's soul is divided into three parts, the rational, the spirited and the appetitive; all of these have a certain desire that they follow. ... Since it sounds confusing and complicated, Plato uses an allegory to clarify the details. In Phaedrus, Plato explains that the three parts are like parts of a chariot: the charioteer, the white and the black horse. ... Each part has a say in where the chariot goes,...

• Word Count: 2251
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Such questions have plagued philosophy since at least Plato, leading some to privilege mind over matter, and leading others to believe that all that exists is mind idealism, and still others to argue that all that exists are bodies or physical matter materialism. ... In a general sense, the wedge between mind and body can be traced as far back as Plato, and to the sharp distinctions that he drew between the immaterial or eternal parts of ourselves and the decidedly lesser substance that is manifest in bodies or physical matter. Mind, in Plato, connects to the lofty or higher parts of ourselves...

• Word Count: 1471
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Aristotle first trained in medicine, and then in 367 BC, he was sent to study philosophy with Plato in Athens. He studied there for 20 years, until Plato's death in 347, before returning to Macedonia after 20 years. ... Although he studied under Plato, he disagreed with Plato on almost all issues. He did not think about the world in abstract terms like Plato. ... Plato saw reality in ideas that could only be known by thinking and reasoning about them. ...

• Word Count: 2430
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School