AS Philosophy - The Form of the Good

What is a Form?

Plato says that everything has a Form, which is how we know that a chair is a chair, a tree is a tree, a human is a human. Any time we see something, according to Plato, we associate that thing with the most perfect version of that object—its Form—and therefore are able to distinguish it from everything else. 

Plato's Form of the Good

• Plato said that most things have a Form, but things like number and evil don't.
• He said that some Forms are greater than others too.
• Ideal Forms all have the presence of Good.
• This is the reason why Good is the most important Form.
• It is the ideal of these ideal forms.
• In the cave, the sun was a Form which was stronger than the others. This represents the Good as it helped the escaped prisoner see the real world.
• Forms such as Beauty and Truth are aspects of this goodness.
• The Good shines a light on everything,…