Do you believe Plato was less intelligent than Socrates or even Aristotle for his idealistic beliefs?

Question

My Philosophy professor eluded to that in one of his lectures. What do you think?

Answer 1

Well one emerging theory in neuro-psychology would classify each as having different types of consciousness with the consequence being that their senses and cognitive impresions informed each person with different perceptions of reality due to psychological and physiological distinctions.

Also a recent advances in this area are at the crest of a wave of paradigm shifting with regards to the term intelligence.

Where by it is recognized that different areas of the brain contribute to different forms of intelligence, and that the classical battery of IQ testing only deals with a select few of these areas of information processing.

In short the very topic deals with many variables that your questions format seems to exclude.

I think in light of recent discovery in the above mentioned areas would serve to level the playing field in comparative analysis of either philosopher and that the question will remain unresolved do to the fact that both have perished and thus we can not compare them in detail using modern techniques.

Answer 2

one does not need intelligence to make a mark on this world, some of the most infamous people ever were not very bright. those that were/are seen as intelligent or genius do so at the edge of reason. history is filled with very bright people that had no common sense.-blurey

Answer 3

He was not less intelligent. But he developed Platonism; Aristotle developed Aristoteleanism. They are diametrically opposed, so my guess is that your prof. favors Aristotle. Good for him. Learn something by that.

Here is a link with 3 different authors speaking about the differences between the two men. I'll let you decide what your prof meant.

http://www.aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/ar...

Marc: Now, that's what I meant. Good job. But on this subject I disagree 180% with you. Look at the link.

Answer 4

Thy are all realized soul and reached supreme state of total consciousness. They brought out many hidden secrets for the benefit of human beings and hence they need not be put into gradings.

Answer 5

No. Just a hopeless romantic.

Answer 6

As far as anyone knows, Plato and Socrates were the same man.

But i don't think it's a matter of intelligence. Plato/Socrates was better than Aristotle at reducing people's arbitrary beliefs to useless rubble. Aristotle, however, was better at crafting useful rules to live by.

I think healthy doses of both are necessary.

Answer 7

No! -And Socrates and Plato were certainly not the same person, there are other sources witness to Socrates besides his student Plato. The most important difference is the Socrates, while he may not have written anything, was, not only not concerned with writing anything - which we presuppose the motivation for a systematic philosophy, simply inquisitive and skeptical, which is all we can gather from what is written on him.

Plato, on the other hand, developed a systematic philosophy based on Idealism. Socrates cannot be said to have been an Idealist. He was just a Gadfly.

But back to the question at hand; they were all intelligent, just because one philosopher was never developed a system, another was an Idealist, and the third a quasi-rationalist republican, doesn't mean that they weren't all equally intelligent.

Answer 8

I believe the three philosophers will bear out eventually, and not in some small way.  

If Plato invented Socrates, and then discovered him, then he would, in my mind and we've got two more, be by a huge margin the more intelligent.

It was in the twentieth century, a philosopher in his own right (Albert Einstein) said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge."  I normally add "more important, not better."

But I wouldn't presume to misquote such a man and cultural icon as Einstein was.  I do however think that he was close to being a Platonist when he stated that.  He would probably respond with "words are cheap."  Show, don't tell.  Geez, even he made mistakes..

Answer 9

I personally prefer Plato to Aristotle. Aristotle was too square as a philosopher. He categorised everything and believed in rules and different essences for men/women and masters/slaves and Greeks/Barbarians.

Plato was an idealist, yes, but his Republic shows his rather practical side. He was also a romantic in a classical era.

His idealist nature is often jeered at. If he believed in the forms, one should ask this:

"why would such an intelligent man who came up with some of the best philosophy, who taught Aristotle and was Socrates's pupil believe in something so obviously extraordinary?"

Surely he must have had a reason. What made him believe in it. Honestly, we must think on that and then we can pass judgment on his idealist nature.

Answer 10

Socrates was Plato's inspiration. Aristotle was Platos student. They were all highly intelligent by any standard. Read some of Pato and Aristotle and I'm sure you'll agree.

Answer 11

I don't know if there is a measure or scale of intelligence. there is certainly not enough info to determine where these folks would be on that scale, if such a scale exists.

However, most readings concur that Plato invented the writings of Socrates. They are one and the same ideologically, so that would infer their levels of intelligence be identical as well.

Answer 12

Hi. Well, you know, your question has something simplied with which I have to desagree, even though Aristotle is way much more philosopher than any other thinker.

I mean, you say that the degree of intelligence has something to do with idealistic beliefs, implying that these things brings the thinker to a lower level. You see, one can't argue with no fallacy that idealistic propositions are less intelligent than the realistic ones. They're different, alright. But don't mean in any way that doing this or that will end up in being more or less intelligence, understanding this stuff as the ability of overcoming problems (as in J. Piaget definition).

There fore, I don't believe that. Again I say: Aristotle is the greatest mind of all time, no doubt about it...

Ok? Hope you understand my English... second language sux, you know!!!!

Bye.

ieBrazil