Parallel between White Castle and Phaedo

I thought this quote was similar to an idea in the White Castle. "Whenever someone, on seeing something, realizes that that which he now sees wants to be like some other reality, but falls short and cannot be like that other since it is inferior, do we agree that the one who thinks this must have prior knowledge of that to which he says it is like, but deficiently so? I thought this quote related to how Hoja saw that the narrator was like a better model of him. He looked just like Hoja. However, if you compared Hoja and the narrator you would see that the narrator is not only better educated but also had a natural talent for learning. Hoja envied this throughout the story.