Techne

In Ancient Greek philosophy, techne (tékhnē; tékhnɛː, ˈtexni) is a philosophical concept that refers to making or doing. Many Ancient Greek philosophers, such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, had difficulty coming up with a single definition for techne and there is differentiation between the ways that these philosophers used the term. Today the modern definition and use of the term practical knowledge is similar to the Ancient Greek definition of techne. The word techne comes from the Greek word for art. The modern-day English word technology comes from the prefix techne and the suffix ology; both words are of Greek origin combined to mean "the practical application of knowledge". Techne in Ancient Greece was thought of as dangerous in its virtues by many philosophers, including Plato. Arts such as paintings and sculptures were particularly thought to be unvirtuous because of their "third-hand [representation] of "true" reality and absolute beauty". Other philosophers, such as Aristotle, believed that techne was virtuous because it uses natural materials "to create objects unknown in nature" and therefore it "completes nature". The Ancient Greek philosopher Xenophon wrote down conversations he had with Socrates in the Socratic works Memorabilia and Oeconomicus. In both of these works, Socrates uses episteme and techne interchangeably. Crafts that Socrates classifies as techne include harp playing, flute playing, dancing, wrestling, medicine, carpentry, ruling, generalship, housebuilding, running a household, farming, and mathematics. The Ancient Greek Philosopher Plato often used episteme and techne interchangeably, much like Socrates. This is because Plato was a student of Socrates and also wrote Socratic works. Plato's works define techne as activities such as medicine, geometry, politics, music, shipbuilding, carpentry, and generalship. Plato's dialogues introduce the idea of a practitioner connected to a craft, such as a physician with medicine. Plato introduced the idea of techne as a way to explain aspects of life such as virtue.