Can we really trust what is observable by means of our senses? Our senses do not detect the quantum world, though the physicists tell us it is there, and have found ways to "observe" it -- via mathematics, not direct sensation. How much do our senses really report of the actual structure of the universe?
Aristotle spent something like 27 years as a student of Plato at the Academy. Then he left for Asia Minor, later to become tutor to one of the greatest hegemons of all time, Alexander, son of King Phillip II of Macedonia, who ended up being the "undertaker" of decadent Athens....
I don't think Aristotle so much rejected the Platonic speculation (he was as concerned with the metaleptic structure of the soul -- Plato's metaxy -- and its order according to the divine measure as Plato was). But there was a shift of focus or attention away from the Platonic Idea, which dealt with expressing what is common in an entire generic class of objects, to the particularity of objects themselves. (And thus was science born!)
I enjoyed your comments on The Republic. Many people today believe that it ought to be understood as a "prescription" for the "ideal state." That certainly wasn't Plato's intention at all. Perhaps I can flesh out some details in this regard a little later today. But must run to a meeting right now.
Thank you so much for writing, bigcat00.
A great article on the subject: The Curse of Dimensionality (pdf)
Nice thread!