Dialogues · Chapter
§ VII explained
Plato's theory of sensation is explored, describing sight as a combination of internal and external light, color as variations in light particles, and other senses like smell, taste, and hearing as mechanical processes involving contraction
What happens
Plato's theory of sensation is explored, describing sight as a combination of internal and external light, color as variations in light particles, and other senses like smell, taste, and hearing as mechanical processes involving contraction, dilation, and transmission through the body. The chapter also notes Plato's views on the sensitivity of body parts and the limitations of human knowledge in understanding sensory phenomena.
Themes in this chapter
Knowledge and Ignorance
Plato acknowledges the limits of human knowledge regarding the proportions of colors, attributing such understanding to the gods.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“The eye is the aperture through which the stream of vision passes, the ear is the aperture through which the vibrations of sound pass.”
Plato describes the eye and ear as openings that allow visual and auditory stimuli to enter, rather than as complex organs that process sensation.
Highlights Plato's rudimentary view of sensory organs as passive passages.
“When the light of the eye meets the light of the sun, and both together meet the light issuing from an external object, this is the simple act of sight.”
Sight occurs when internal light from the eye combines with sunlight and light from an object.
Summarizes Plato's three-element theory of vision.
“Plato himself tells us that he does not know in what proportions they combine, and he is of opinion that such knowledge is granted to the gods only.”
Plato admits ignorance about the exact mixtures of colors, believing only gods possess that knowledge.
Reflects Plato's humility and epistemological stance.