Plato's concept of ἀνάμνησις in the Phaidon

Abstract

This paper considers some central aspects of the characterization of ἀνάμνησις in the Phaedo 72e-77a. It analyses the intrinsically evocative nature of ἀνάμνησις and the λήθη factors affecting this evocation. The Phaedo shows 1) that ἀνάμνησις makes it possible for us to have an access to determinations which go beyond our many and various αἰσθήσεις, viz. to the αὐτά, 2) that our whole experience is rooted in these determinations and 3) that experience tends to be confused with the αὐτά themselves. The result of all this is a link with the αὐτά and, at the same time, a complex λήθη phenomenon concealing them (and, thus, concealing the true meaning of ἀνάμνησις).