2. Background

Traditional history estimates Plato's birth was around 428 B.C., but more modern scholars, tracing later events in his life, believe he was born between 424 and 423 B.C. Both of his parents came from the Greek aristocracy. Plato's father, Ariston, descended from the kings of Athens and Messenia. His mother, Perictione, is said to be related to the 6th century B.C. Greek statesman Solon.
As with many young boys of his social class, Plato was probably taught by some of Athens' finest educators. The doctrines of Cratylus and Pythagoras as well as Parmenides probably helped develop the foundation for Plato's study of metaphysics (the study of nature) and epistemology (the study of knowledge).

Plato's father died when he was young, and his mother remarried her uncle, Pyrilampes, a Greek politician and ambassador to Persia. Plato is believed to have had two full brothers, one sister and a half brother, though it is not certain where he falls in the birth order. Often, members of Plato's family appeared in his dialogues. Historians believe this is an indication of Plato's pride in his family lineage.

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