Whitehead on Plato

19 October 2023

Whitehead on Plato

“The safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato.”

(Whitehead, Alfred North, Process and Reality, The Free Press, New York, 1978, page 39, ISBN: 978029345702)

1.  If I were forced to pick a single book of philosophy from the twentieth century to preserve for the future it would be Whitehead’s Process and Reality.  It was originally published in 1929 just as the analytic tradition was gaining a firm hold on the anglosphere.  Anti-metaphysical views, going back to David Hume, were prominent at the time.  In England the British Idealists were being overthrown by materialists and positivists of various types.  One of the leaders in this new movement was Bertrand Russell, a close friend of Whitehead.

These swirling critiques of the very idea of metaphysics seem to have had no impact on Whitehead and he simply went ahead and wrote his essay on classical metaphysics without any apology.  I find that refreshing and inspiring.

2.  The above quote has been cited countless times.  I think that is because it rings true and makes sense.  Even very modern philosophers like Lloyd Gerson and Richard Rorty  accept the truth of this statement.

3.  I remember reading a story about a young Tibetan Lama who wanted to understand the West.  Tutors were hired.  One of the tutors told the young Lama that in order to understand the West he would have to read Plato.  I can just see the young Lama turning the pages of the Dialogues; it’s an intriguing picture.

4.  It’s interesting that Whitehead refers to the ‘European philosophical tradition’ in the above quote.  That is certainly true, but I think it is too limited.  Plato’s influence extends beyond Europe.  For example, the impact of Plato on Eastern Orthodoxy is of great significance for that tradition.  And Plato’s impact on Islamic philosophy and theology is also extensive.

5.  As readers of this blog know, I tend to look at Platonism as a Dharmic tradition; by that I mean that the main features of Platonism are more aligned with the Dharmic traditions of India, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, than they are with philosophy as it is presented today.  From this perspective, Platonism is more intimately related to Indian traditions than it is to what Western philosophy has become.  From this perspective, one could say that Platonism is no longer a European artefact. Instead, I would say Platonism is a representative of, or an instantiation of, philosophy as a salvific path that leads to spiritual realization.

6.  Whitehead also wrote that Plato’s writings are an ‘inexhaustible mine of suggestion.’ (Ibid, page 39.) I tend to use the metaphor of a well where clear water can always be drawn; Plato’s writings are a well of understanding and insight that is inexhaustible and nourishes our spirit in its long journey to wisdom and understanding.

7.  Whitehead identified with the Platonic tradition.  Many of his ideas are controversial, but that can also be said of Platonic sages down through the ages.  I see Process and Reality as a contribution to the great inquiry known as the Platonic tradition.

8.  “The things which are temporal arise by their participation in the things which are eternal.”  (Ibid, page 40)