HOW PLATO’S PROBLEM OF

“SAVING THE
APPEARANCES”
CONSTRAINED GREEK
MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE

Group 4
4. Plato (427-347 B.C.)
 4. Plato (427-347 B.C.)
• Plato was a student of Socrates. He is responsible for nearly all
of our knowledge of Socrates. Much of Plato's writings consist
of dialogues with Socrates. They dialogues themselves may be
fiction, but there is little doubt that they reflect Socrates' ideas
and not Plato's.
• Although we owe much to Plato's philosophy, his impact on
physical science came primarily from three areas. One is the
synthesis of a coherent and sensible philosophy which combined
Pythagorean numerology and Socratic philosophy. Second is the
allegory of the cave which provides an interesting model of
reality and defines the role of the philosopher as interpreter of
appearances. The third is what we refer to as Plato's question,
which fixed the circular paradigm as the standard for heavenly
motion in western philosophy for two thousand years.
 4.1. bold creative thinker
• Plato himself was a bold, creative thinker. His
intellect ranks among greatest geniuses of all time
• He was a a renaissance man and a mystic. He was
interested in everything, and wrote about it. He
was not only a philosopher, but also a teacher,
poet, dramatist, prophet, aristocrat, and mystic.
When he wasn't writing about the nature of reality,
or relating the dialogues of Socrates, he was
writing about political theory or some other
subject.
• 4.1.1. philosopher, teacher, poet,
dramatist, prophet, aristocrat, mystic
 4.2. Socratic philosophy & Pythagorean
mysticism
• How brilliant to have been able to find
complementary elements is the mysticism
of Pythagoras and the moral philosophy of
Socrates. Here's what Plato did:
• He popularized the ideas of Pythagoras and
used that to synthesize a mathematical
philosophy in which geometry played a
central role. He generalized the idea of
spherical perfection into a circular model of
planetary motion, the first model that was
consistent with facts.
• Plato thought that it was details which held
the truth, not general principles and
inherited a low opinion of the physical world
from Socrates.
• He thought that reality is ideas, while the
things that the ideas represent are
transitory. A particular object, like a chair, is
built, used, and eventually falls apart.
Meanwhile the concept or idea of a chair
exists containing the set of all possible
chairs. Therefore, according to Plato, the
idea represents the greater reality while
individual chairs are only transitory objects
and serve to illustrate examples of the
category, chair.
4.2.1. popularized ideas of Pythagoras
• Plato popularized the ideas of the Pythagoreans
concerning the mystical nature of numbers and shapes.
Because of his association with Socrates and his moral
philosophy, the idea of perfection was a particularly
appealing one to Plato whether it be physical or moral
perfection. The Pythagorean ideals and the perfection of
the polygons stimulated Plato to extend the concept into
three dimensions with his discussion of what we now
call the Platonic solids. These are shapes such as the
sphere and cube which are made out of the plane
polygons. The sphere is made by rotating a circle, the
cube is made from six squares, joined at their edges on
three perpendicular planes. These platonic solids will
return to play a role in Kepler's analysis of planetary
motion in the seventeenth century, more than two
millennia later.
4.2.2. created "mathematical philosophy"

• Plato adopted the Pythagorean ideas

and ideals, but took it quite a bit
further, introducing what might be
called a mathematical philosophy.
Combining the logical discourse and
moral philosophy of Socrates with the
mathematical mysticism of the
Pythagoreans created for Plato a new
world view, more encompassing than
ever before.
 4.2.3. geometry enters science
• It is with Plato that geometry truly enters
science. The mystical nature of shapes
and numbers which occupied the
Pythagoreans had progressed by Plato's
time to a desire to explain the common
occurrence of geometric shapes in nature.
Questions such as, "Why do numbers
have certain properties," and "Why does
nature mimic geometric shapes," were
answered by Plato in moral terms by
applying the Pythagorean concept of
perfection.
 4.2.4. spherical perfection --> circular orbits

• Plato was really the first to insist on the

perfection of the heavens. At least he
was the first to leave massive written
records that had intellectual clout.
• Plato reasoned that the most perfect orbit
of a planet would be circular and at a
constant speed, like the stars. The
constant speed idea comes from the idea
that motion is a constant, while change in
motion is not constant.; unchanging
heavens would not change speeds.
 4.2.5. first model consistent with facts
• Plato's model of the heavens was the
first that was consistent with the facts
known at that time, and also consistent
with the moral principles of Socrates.
Recall that although the Pythagoreans
had structured the universe into three
concentric spherical sections, there was
no hint in that model as to how the
planets might actually move within the
cosmos, nor that the motions of the
planets themselves were circular and
perfect.
 4.3.1. ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE

In book VII of The Republic, Plato relates an allegory which defines a

relationship between perception and reality similar to that which we
covered in program 3. The story has come to be known as the Allegory
of the Cave, or simply as The Cave.
4.3.1.1. slaves chained in cave, see
only shadows of reality
• A group of slaves are chained in a cave
facing a wall with their backs to the cave
entrance, having lived there their whole
lives with no hope of ever escaping and
seeing the world beyond. They can not
see out of the cave but can see shadows
cast on the wall by movements outside.
• They have developed a culture complete
with myths about what the shadows
mean and what sorts of activities they
represent.
 4.3.1.2. one slave escapes, sees reality

• Plato speculates on what might

happen if one of the slaves could
escape and visit the outer world,
the method of his escape is
irrelevant. What would be the
reaction to suddenly gaining
access to the information behind
the myths?
 4.3.1.3 the light hurts his eyes

• The light hurts his eyes at first and he can

see only shadows. Eventually his eyes
adjust and he can see. In the bright light he
sees a completely different reality, quite
different from that he and his fellow cave
dwellers had imagined from the shadows.
 4.3.2. The Dilemma

• Now what happens. Is the slave happy in

his new found enlightenment. Does he want
to stay and experience the wonders of this
previously unimagined world. Of course he
does. But he can't do it.
 4.3.2.1. sense of duty compels his
return
• The escapee feels a moral obligation to return to
the cave to share his knowledge with the others
although he knows that they will not easily accept
what he knows, and knowing that he will be
rechained and will probably never have another
opportunity to escape.
• This brings to mind Socrates, who likewise would
be compelled to reveal a truth he had discovered
despite the fact that it was not the what people
wanted to hear. Recall that Socrates would later
stand up for his own ideas, and would eventually
died for them.
 4.3.3. The Heresy

• 4.3.3.1. relates things never seen by

others
• When the escapee tells the others what he
has seen they think that he damaged his
eyes in the light and can no longer see
clearly, and that his mind might have
become a little tainted by the experience.
 4.3.3.2. ideas are heretical, seen as
threat
• His ideas are seen as disruptive, heretical,
threatening, and dangerous to the stability
of the society. The others express their
sympathy for the trauma he has suffered
and would kill him if he tried to drag them
into the light to experience the horror that
he has known.
 4.4. Task of philosopher

• Using the cave allegory, Plato and Socrates

go on to discuss the meaning of it. What
emerges from the dialogue is a working
definition of what it is that makes a
philosopher a philosopher, a politician a
politician, and how it is the duty of every
philosopher to become a politician in order
to change society and government for the
better.
ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE
4.4.1. Determine Truth Behind
Appearances

The true shape of the sculpture is

hidden in its shadow.
• Once you have the distinction between truth and
reality under control, then comes the problem of
finding the relationship between the shapes and
the shadows, or between reality and truth.
• Plato called this the "truth behind the
appearances."
• Using the shadows as an example, suppose you
look at shape on the wall which looks like a
rabbit's head. Does this mean there is a rabbit
nearby?
• Not necessarily. It might be someone doing
shadow tricks with their hands. We've all done it.
• So the appearance is that of a rabbit, the truth
behind the appearances is that there are other
shapes which can cast shadows that look like
rabbits.
 4.4.1.1. "Save the Appearances"

• When Plato speaks of "saving the

appearances" he means to understand our
perceptions of reality by somehow
transforming it into what we know to be true
without violating any known principles.
What we know to be true has been
discovered by the Socratic method. So the
job of the philosopher is to save the
appearances by logically connecting reality
with truth.
• This is easy for the case of the rabbit shadow
because we have to know how its done before we
can do it. Unlike shadow figures, as far as the
physical universe is concerned, we are seeing the
shadow first and trying to figure out what it
really is a shadow of. Keep in mind, in the case
of the rabbit shadow, there might be many
different objects which could cast a shadow
which looks like a rabbit.
• It does seem like magic, doesn't it. A good magic
trick is an illusion which is impossible to figure
out but reasonably simple to perform. The reality
is what we observe to happen, the truth is the
way the trick is performed.
 4.4.1.2. model of perfection must somehow
yield what we observe to be true

• In the case of planetary motion, any

geometrical model of perfection must
somehow yield the motions that we see
against the celestial sphere. Reality is the
motions of the heavenly objects. The
diurnal motion of the stars, the daily and
monthly movements of the moon, the daily
and yearly motions of the sun, and the
erratic retrograde motions of the planets.
The truth behind the appearances must be
circular motion at a constant speed which is
forever unchanging.
• According to Plato, we must know truth by
using logical arguments based upon the
reality of planetary motions, geometry,
logic, and moral principles.
• He differs from Socrates in assigning equal
importance to the observed motions. In
Plato's view the senses cannot be
completely ignored. Although unreliable and
not very accurate, they certainly are
registering some aspect of the truth.
 4.4.2. APPEARANCE: erratic motions of sun,
moon and planets are less than perfect

• In this scheme, the motion of the planets

presents a problem.
• On one hand they are heavenly and
therefore must be perfect.
• On the other hand they move in uneven
paths across the fixed star background,
occasionally doing irregular and
nonrepeating retrograde loops. So how do
you explain that perfect things like planets
behave imperfectly?
• Plato thought this to be "an offense that
must be explained away" by saving the
appearance through discourse and logic.

• 4.4.2.1. do not move at a constant rate

• 4.4.2.2. irregular retrograde loops

• 4.2.2.3. "an offense that must be

explained away"
 4.4.3. TRUTH: true motions of sun, moon, and
planets is uniform and circular

• The Pythagorean truth of perfect circles is

not simply taken for granted by Plato. He
derived it by discourse just as Socrates
taught. Like Socrates, Plato also believed,
that truth could be attained by logic, but he
added the idea of the reality of geometry
and numbers, and the reality of the
observed planetary motions. Here is an
outline of the logic, in condensed form, that
leads to this concept of the truth of uniform
circular motion in the heavens.
 4.4.3.1. reality is geometry and numbers

• The logical steps that follow have more to

do with truth than with reality, but it is truth
(what we believe) that is attainable. Reality
is geometry and numbers if you are a
Pythagorean like Plato. It doesn't take much
observation to see that relationships do
exist between number and between
numbers and shapes. Likewise the
appearance of the common geometric
forms in everything from crystals to spider
webs guarantees they play some important
role.
 4.4.3.2. numbers and geometry are
perfect
• Since perfect numbers and mystical
relationships are known to exist, and the
polygons form the basis for all shapes, and
they have certain hints of perfection in their
symmetry, and the circle is the perfect
polygon, it seems only logical to conclude
that if numbers and geometry are perfect
and truth is geometry and numbers, then
truth must be perfect.
 4.4.3.2.1. if mathematics is perfect and truth is
mathematics then truth must be perfect
4.4.3.3. heavens are perfect

• So the heavens are perfect, as the

Pythagoreans believed. Although the planets
appear to move erratically in retrograde
motion, they are nonetheless perfect. This was
a major problem, and we'll come back to it in a
few minutes.
• As for imperfection here on earth and how that
fits into a perfect universe, we'll save the
problem of imperfection here on earth for
Aristotle to solve. He solved it very well, but
with his solution he created just a few more
small problems.
4.4.3.4. circle is most perfect shape

• If the heavens are perfect, and the

circle is perfect, then the logical
conclusion is that the heavens are
circular.
 4.4.3.4.1. if heavens are perfect and the circle is
perfect then heavens are circular
4.4.3.5. heavens are circular

• So if the heavens are somehow

circular because they are perfect, then
their motion must also be unchanging
and circular.
 4.5. Plato's Question

• Plato himself could not explain away the

offense and save the appearances. He
simply recognized that it needed to be in
order to have a logically integrated universe
and left it to his students and posterity to
reconcile. Here we see an excellent
example of the power of an idea. With
virtually no evidence in support of his ideas,
other than the logic of discourse. Plato
influenced a hundred generations of
scholars, thinkers, and philosophers.
• How might we explain away this quandary?
How do perfect things be made to behave
imperfectly. Consider shadows, like those
seen by the slave in the cave. Isn't it
possible that shadows of perfect things
might be stretched out of proportion in the
right light? The shadow of a sphere need
not be a circle. Try it with a flashlight and a
marble. What do you see?
• So seeing both the marble and the
flashlight we can easily see how the
shadow tells us the shape of the object only
after we understand the concept of the
shadow and the light, but not before. But
suppose we saw only the shadow and
knew nothing of the shape of a sphere or
the properties of light?
• That is the position that we find ourselves in
here on earth starting out at the blackness
of space and the pinpoints of light we know
as the stars and planets.
 4.5.1. Plato could not solve the problem.

• Although Plato could not solve the problem, he did

pose the question in a way which might lead to an
answer. We will call this Plato's question. The
search for a solution to this problem by Plato's
students Exodus and Aristotle established the
circular paradigm as the world view of the West.
Although the reasons were forgotten or ignored by
Ptolemy's time in the second century A. D., the
magic of the circle continued to influence the
cosmology of Western thought until the sixteenth
century. It will turn out that breaking the circular
paradigm was even more difficult than abandoning
geocentrism.
 4.5.2. PLATO'S QUESTION: What uniform and ordered
circular motion must be assumed for each of the planets
to account for its apparently irregular yearly paths?

• Here is the question which influenced

Western thinking and physical science
probably more than any single idea until
Newton's gravity.:
• What uniform and ordered circular
motion must be assumed for each of the
planets to account for its apparently irregular
yearly paths?
• PLATO’S PROBLEM OF THE “SAVING
THE APPEARANCES” BECAME AN
OBSTACLE TO THE GREEK’S
MODELS OF THE UNIVERSE AS
PLATO GAVE A CHALLENGE TO
AUSTRONOMERS TO EXPLAIN THE
NON-REGULAR MOTIONS
(COMBINATION OF CIRCULAR
MOTIONS) OF PLANETS, SUN, AND
MOON. IN THIS PARTICULAR, THIS
CHALLENGE OR TASK IS
CONSIDERED TO BE A
CUMBERSOME CONTRAPTION.