Plato's Self-Corrective Development of the Concepts of Soul, Forms and Immortality in Three Arguments of the Phaedo (Studies in the History of Philosophy)

This study argues that the overall purpose of the "Phaedo" is to prese nt a number of possible arguments for the soul's immortality in a philosophically systematic way, and that both Plato and Socrates were aware of the flaws in the proofs. Only three of the arguements for immortality include a discussion of the forms. This study argues that the view of forms, soul and immortatlity in each arguement is internally consistant. Each arguement contains three significantly different views of souls, form and immortatlity and each is a refinement of the previous view, rather than a rejection of it. Even the "Phaedro"'s last arguement is shown, however, to be inadaqute. and is shown as a dialectical philosophical converstaiton about immortality of the soul.