Northwestern University Undergraduate Philosophy Society Conference presents Claudia Yau
Friday, May 15, 2026 |
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM CT
Title: Forms as Models in Plato's Republic
Abstract: At the heart of the political project of the Republic is an extraordinary epistemic commitment: knowledge of the Forms enables one to make one's life and political community objectively better. Yet for all of Plato’s confidence in the practical value of knowledge of Forms, he apparently says very little about how one uses knowledge of Forms to make decisions for living and ruling. I argue that the key to understanding the reasoning of Plato's ideal political rulers is to focus on his claim that they use Forms as models (paradeigmata) to form judgments. I reconstruct the rich and philosophically attractive account of model-based reasoning in Republic. I then draw from this account of models to make progress on our understanding of the reasoning of wise political rulers.
Audience
- Faculty/Staff
- Student
- Post Docs/Docs
- Graduate Students
Contact
Emily Berry
(847) 491-3656
Email
Interest
- Academic (general)