Artificial intelligence raises questions about the nature of thinking and intelligence, particularly among students in writing and rhetoric courses. Philosophers, notably Plato, have provided frameworks to differentiate between these concepts. Plato's divided line illustrates a hierarchy of understanding: 'noesis' stands at the top as intuitive knowledge, followed by 'dianoia' which reflects reasoning. Lower forms include 'pistis', based on belief influenced by experience, and 'eikasia', representing false perception. This hierarchy informs contemporary discussions about AI's capabilities and limitations in relation to human intellect and thinking.
Plato uses the analogy of a 'divided line' separating higher and lower forms of understanding, outlining a hierarchy of mental capacities from intuition to imagination.
Plato referred to the highest form of understanding as 'noesis', an intuitive knowledge beyond reason, which he considered a property of the soul.
Dianoia, or reasoning, is a higher form than belief, which is termed 'pistis', but still relies on critical examination influenced by experience.
In Plato's view, eikasia represents baseless opinion rooted in false perception, categorizing it as the lowest form of understanding in his hierarchy.
Collection
[
|
...
]