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Plato’s theories of forms

One of the many hats that I get to wear is that of an adjunct instructor. And this semester, I’m teaching a group of PhD students in a course called Counseling for Change. And getting ready for an upcoming lecture, we’re going to touch on Plato’s allegory of the cave. But in getting ready for this lecture, I was also reminded of Plato’s theories of forms. Which basically says the physical things that we see are just partial and imperfect reflections of eternal higher forms or ideals or realities.

And was bought home last night, even as I was reading bedtime stories with my kids, a little girl is three and so reporting to the different images in the book and having her to identify them to name them. And so she was able to say that this is a bumblebee and this is a butterfly. This is a mushroom and this is a flower. This is a dog and this is a cat. This is a boy and this is a girl. And so she’s at an age where she’s able to start grouping things together, start categorizing them together.

And so because she understands the higher ideal, the higher form of each category, she’s able to correctly identify the images, even though she’s never seen them before. And so, for example, she knows what a dog is, and so she’s able to correctly name that this is a dog, even if she’s never met this particular dog. And so that’s what Plato is getting at, is that somehow we have this understanding of a higher form, a higher reality that helps us to make sense and correctly name the particulars…that particulars participate in these higher forms.

Individuals as Particular Men

I think this helps us understand our image of masculinity and manhood as well.

If I’ve had to diagram it, I would put the particular individual men at the bottom of the diagram. And so this is your proverbial butcher, baker, and candlestick maker.

And so each individual man is still a male, so participating in that higher concept of what it means to be a man. And even this weekend, we have some contractors come to our house to do some work and our baby girl was able to brightly rightly identify these as men. And so even though she’s never met these men before, these particular men, she was still able to rightly name that they participate in this concept of what it means to be a man.

Men participating in the larger concept of masculinity

While the individual particulars point to this concept of being a man, I think also our manhood points to a larger concept of masculinity itself…where as men we are not static, but we’re living, breathing, creating. As we engage in the world around us, we’re now representing what I would call just masculinity. There’s something about the way of being a man in the world that’s pointing and gesturing to this higher form of masculinity.

It again has many different unique expressions, but still participating in this reality of what we will call masculinity. We’re in short, for me, masculinity is about life -giving strength and so whatever it looks like, the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker is able to offer life -giving strength through his masculinity and so the baker is no less of a man than the butcher or the candlestick maker just because he expresses his masculinity differently…so that each has…each has a unique expression of masculinity, a particular expression of masculinity, but they all still participate in this reality of what it means to be a man and masculine expressions.

Masculinity participating in the larger theological concepts

Masculinity itself, I think points to higher forms of truth, goodness and beauty…that there’s a truth that masculinity reveals, a goodness that masculinity brings and a beauty that masculinity displays. But again, in pointing to these higher forms of truth, masculinity certainly doesn’t have the corner on truth, the corner on goodness, the corner on beauty. But yes, there’s certain things of masculinity that speaks to those realities, but again, they’re higher forms that there’s a truth, goodness, and beauty in femininity as well, truth, goodness, and beauty and other expressions of life.

Theological concepts pointing to God

But I believe masculinity at least has a part of that that reveals a part of that truth, goodness, goodness and beauty, which ultimately points to God himself, where God is ultimate truth, ultimate goodness and ultimate beauty.

But again, while we can name these as particular expressions, we can’t limit God to any one expression that yes, he’s ultimate truth, but it’s also goodness, and he’s also beauty. Yes, masculinity reflects the divine nature, but it’s not the totality of the divine nature. Yes, an individual man reflects masculinity, but he’s not the totality of masculinity.

And so it helps us to see how these lower forms, these lower particulars, participate in the higher forms…and so that we’re reflections of those higher forms, but again, as Plato would say, we’re only partial and imperfect reflections of these higher forms.

Masculine freedom – Not bound to stereotypes

And so I think thinking through these different forms helps to shed light on how creation reveals a creator and also how we get to do this particularly as men. But I hope it also gives us freedom in the expression of our masculinity that often we make particular expressions of masculinity into a stereotype.

And we make that stereotype, that unique expression, as a universal standard for everyone. That is fine as a true individual expression of masculinity, of manhood, but then we err and we try to make that as a universal standard for all men.

And so for example having a strong physical physique is an expression of masculinity and a very clear expression. I would even argue that it can be iconic expression of masculinity. At the same time, being physically strong is not the totality of what it means to be a man that’s simply being physically strong…there’s men who are physically strong but not displaying masculine strength where it matters in their life and relationships, even though they may be able to bench however much at the gym. And there are others who may not be physically strong but certainly displaying masculine strength throughout their life in relationships in the sense that they’re coming through for others. And so while a strong physique might be an excellent icon of masculinity, masculinity cannot be limited to simply having a strong physique.

A glory to reveal

Even the proverb tells us that the glory of a young man is in his strength, but the glory of an old man is in his gray hairs. Both have a glory to reveal, a masculine glory to reveal, but looks different for each, depending on their stage of life. And this is true when it comes to our different personalities and temperaments, gifts and ability. We all have a masculine glory to reveal, but it looks different depending on how God has uniquely wired and crafted us.

And so I appreciate Plato in articulating his theory of forms and helping me to better understand how we as individual men bear the masculine image, but also how we as men bear the divine image of God.

I hope this has been helpful to you as well. Until next time, take care.