The Philosopher King, the poet, tells us about the true form of beauty, that is, the Good. In this world, light and the sun are examples of this good. We learn about the three divisions of philosophy:
1) Ontology – the principles of the nature of reality.
2) Epistemology – the principles of the nature of knowing.
3) Metaphysics – the first principles that cannot be proven but are self-evident, like the law of noncontradiction.
Sufficient reason is the reason for everything, which states that from nothing nothing comes. These are how we understand:
1) Inductive reasoning – probability versus universal reasoning/truth of being a bridge to reality.
2) Deductive reasoning – for example, the argument (syllogism) shows that if a major premise is true, and the minor premise is true, then its conclusion is true (an immediate inference). For example:
a) God is the greatest that can be conceived.
b) Existence is greater than non-existence.
c) Existing God must be greater than non-existing God.
3) Dialectical reasoning is not based on proofs, and must be intelligible (look at it this way).
4) Informal fallacies. For example:
a) Ad hominem
b) Straw man
c) Correlation -> causation
How to handle disputations:
Pose a question -> State your objections -> Then state the contrary -> Then give your reasons -> And then reply to objections.
In the well-known parable of the cave, Plato represents those famous prisoners in the cave being subject to the imagemakers behind them.
The Good:
a) The useful
b) The pleasurable
c) The beautiful
The rational soul is a living entity, a directing process for understanding reality. As we ingest food and make it part of us, through intellect we can understand what is outside of us and make it part of us as knowledge, which is spiritual. Using logic we can get to right reasoning.
The ultimate good of Happiness comes from the complete way of a full life. Virtue arises from the practice of perfecting one’s character. Through excellence, we can grasp the good and create the moral life, which is beauty. The moral life is the mean between excess and deficiency; God-like contemplation–or magnanimity–is the most important thing.
The prime mover is the final cause. It elicits love and exists for itself. (From nothing, nothing comes.) But beyond being just the prime mover, God is the Creator with interest in creation. The providential, personal God is being in itself: the IAM, the judge, Providence and nature’s God. This law of nature gives us the moral law.