Plato’s Divided Line Analogy
Plato’s Divided Line is usually presented as an account of four levels of knowledge or cognition. It is created using the lowest level of cognition.
The following extract sets out the structure of the Divided Line before considering that problem.
Dividing the Line
The Divided Line Analogy is intended to represent varying degrees of epistemic clarity. There are two metaphors at play: a development of the visible and intelligible realms, and an imaginary line whose sections of varying length represent the varying degrees of epistemic clarity. The whole analogy may be summarized and conflated as follows. Of the imaginary line, the two shorter sections represent the visible realm, and the two longer sections represent the intelligible realm. The shortest section of the line corresponds with shadows or reflections of visible objects and represents eikasia (‘likening’); next is a longer section corresponding with visible objects, and this represents pistis (‘conviction’); the next section, already in the intelligible realm, corresponds with visible images used in the service of activities such as geometry, and this represents dianoia (‘intending,’ where objects are understood to represent abstracts); the longest section corresponds with the eidē (interestingly not the ideai) themselves, and this represents noēsis (‘intelligizing’).
Extract from Chapter 6, ‘The Digression’, in Ivor Ludlam (2014), Plato’s Republic as a Philosophical Drama on Doing Well, pp. 189–190.
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