Therefore, the ship of Theseus would become such, only when its name furtherly classifies it as a different kind of ship compared to the one we would originally think of.Īfter the initial statement that only the knowledge that the ship of Theseus differs from any other ship because of its name and the story that comes with such legacy, we should consider the question Plato raises when analyzing language and meaning. The image of the ship we see and the image of any ship for that matter, would not differ from the ship of Theseus since they both serve the same function: to float on water. Through Plato’s understanding we could argue that the ship of Theseus is not the actual ship of Theseus when perceived in the realm of the visible matter. Similarly, there are two further subdivisions between an actual concept, such as scientific rules, and concepts that can only be developed through the application of philosophical thought and reasoning.
On the other hand, there is the realm of the invisible matter such as abstract concepts that cannot be physically seen. There is the realm of the visible matter which further divides between tangible objects that can be physically seen, and the image or idea of the objects. According to Plato’s philosophy, we can understand the world through four main subdivisions. The added information that Theseus’ is the ship’s patron does not change the aesthetical aspect of the ship itself, bringing an added value to the vessel only in our understanding of the vessel. According to the information we are given in fact, such ship becomes in our understanding the ship of Theseus. The only factor that discerns this ship from any other, is that just by its name we are introduced to a further understanding of its history. Therefore, we could also logically assume that the primary identity of such object is to be a ship, according to its functionality. We can objectively say that the ship of Theseus, despite being named after a persons’ proper name, serves the function of floating on the ocean carrying either objects or people. Students’ views on the Ship of Theseus thought experiment Liberal Arts students’ views on the Ship of Theseus thought experiment Introduction to Philosophy module, Autumn 2018 Regent’s University London Anna Maffiuletti:
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