Plato, Poetry, And Censorship Of Poetry

Homer is one of the greatest epic poets and his legendary status was well established by the time of Classical Athens. He composed two major works, the Iliad and the Odyssey; which were originally in oral form before it was later converted to a written format. Though there were other works that were attributed to him but were disputed. Homer acts as a major source of information for the Greeks and their gods. Homer is the earliest poet in Western culture whose works have survived.

In his philosophical text, The Republic, Plato argues that justice can only be realized by the moderation of the soul, which he claims reflects as the moderation of the city. He engages in a debate, via the persona of Socrates, with Ademantus and Gaucon on the benefit, or lack thereof, for the man who leads a just life. I shall argue that this analogy reflecting the governing of forces in the soul and in city serves as a sufficient device in proving that justice is beneficial to those who believe in, and practice it. I shall further argue that Plato establishes that the metaphorical bridge between the city and soul analogy and reality is the leader, and that in the city governed by justice the philosopher is king.

Many have deemed Homer and Hesiod the “founding fathers” of Greek epic poetry and philosophical writings. Both writers’ careers flourished around 8th century B.C, and were immense influences in the world of Greek philosophy. Hesiod focuses on more traditional origins of life for his stories and ensures that the creation of the world and its rulers are embodied in his works. Homer has been considered one of the most influential philosophical writers for centuries by recognized philosophers. He wrote about principles in battle, governance, counsel, sports, the home and life in general that the Greeks looked to in praise. While both of the authors were similar in writing style, they differ vastly in the messages of their poems.

Now let us take a look into the background of the story. Plato gives his ideals on a perfect society and everything it should include. He basically implies that justice is rightness, and rightness is whatever he feels it should be. He breaks society down into guardians, wage earners, and auxiliaries. Wage earners are people such as surgeons or shoemakers.

Plato’s Republic focuses majorly on the search to find justice, but also gives a lot of attention to education and how the quality of education dictates how just a person and a society will become. Socrates spends time creating the Kallipolis in order to disprove Thrasymacus’ claim that justice is the advantage of the stronger. However, through the methodology used by Socrates to educate the citizens of the Kallipolis, he supports the claim Thrasymacus makes.

Homer had a way of illustrating the natural world in exquisite detail. To him, the irregular shapes and bold colors that surrounded him told stories only he could fathom. No one could have guessed that Homer was blind. Every reader makes a choice to either read the top layer of his work and visualize what their brain desires, or absorb the creativity and stand in the middle of his flamboyant visions, not realizing that they have been changed forever. John Keats expresses how Homer’s writing had a way of healing his own ignorance, and changing his life from the moment he read it. Keats writes about how he was most definitely not the same person he was before his exposure to Homer. The poem, “To Homer” by John Keats explicates the idea that although Homer was physically blind, he enabled a man blind with ignorance (Keats), to see the world through his literature.

Homer is remembered as one of the greatest individuals to have ever lived and the present day society contains a great deal of concepts that he discussed. His poems have served as inspiration for many individuals who succeeded him and continue to trigger intense feelings in people who come across them. Although the time period that he lived in made it difficult for historians to get actively involved in discussing his life, there are numerous accounts regarding the man's existence. It is actually impossible for one to relate to the poet's life without addressing several stories concerning his background and the attitudes that he adopted.

of Homer’s literary skill and of the impressions he intends to leave with us. This is clear even in the

In the Republic, Plato proposes the complete censorship of imitative poetry from his ideal city, arguing that it corrupts individuals’ souls and therefore has a negative effect on society, resulting in injustice within the city. Although seemingly trivial at first, when considered within its proper context, the censorship of imitative poetry from the city would result in severe consequences. Throughout this essay I will discuss the political and psychological implications of its censorship, and will also refute Plato’s argument, showing how it lacks soundness: notably, through a criticism of his epistemology. Regarding the political implications of the censorship of poetry, I will draw from the ideas of Karl Popper, who argued Plato to be one of the most influential philosophers on the emergence of totalitarian regimes in the 20th century, laying the foundations for their very existence (K. Popper, 1945). I will also show how poets themselves have an important political role within cities, in that they enable the general population to hold the state accountable for their actions. To discuss the psychological implications of poetry’s censorship, I will compare the contrasting views of Plato and Aristotle regarding its effect on the soul, whereby Aristotle claims that poetry actually has beneficial, cathartic effects. Following these criticisms, it will become apparent that Plato’s proposed ban of imitative poetry is indefensible.

In “Book 1” of Plato’s The Republic, Socrates asks Cephalus about the difficulty of old age, as Cephalus has reached “the threshold of death” and is therefore suited to speak upon age. Cephalus explains that older people tend to be more peaceful because youthful desires like sex, partying, and drinking constrain many people to temporal pleasure, but age releases them from those shackles. These youthful desires are later treated as shackles that constrain many people to temporal pleasures. By introducing these metaphorical shackles in the first discussion of The Republic, Plato foreshadows and parallels the cave allegory that appears in “Book 7” (Plato 3).

The traditional subject and formulaic style of Homers poems explain in large measure the fact that the texts as we have them contain a mix of social and political data spanning the entire period from the time stated, the Mycenaean age, through the so called Dark Age down to the final, monumental poets own period, 750-700 B.C. Beyond this confusion of actual social and political material from several distinct historical periods, we cannot exclude the possibility of social and political practices which show the poets wishful inventions.

Homer, an ancient Greek epic poet, influenced many writers in the ancient Greek and Roman culture, particularly Virgil. Virgil, most famous for his epic poem The Aeneid demonstrates Homer’s influence through similar characters, mythology, and ideals. Homer in both his most famous works the Iliad and The Odyssey weaves poetry based on centuries worth of oral stories handed down and uses a sophisticated style of writing that is still recognized today. Although the tragic hero is defined slightly differently in modern text than ancient Greek and Roman works, Aristotle defined a tragic hero in his work Poetics as “the character between these two extremes,-that of a man who is not eminently good

Plato's Republic is often read as a political work, as a statement of some sort on government, society, and law. This is certainly not a rash reading of the dialogue; it is called the Republic, and over half of it is devoted to the construction of a city through speech, a city complete with a government structure, a military, an economic system, and laws. However, I believe that to read the Republic as a political statement is inaccurate. Although Socrates and his companions construct a city out of speech as they attempt to define justice, the dialogue repeatedly frames justice as something that cannot be established through a fixed system of morality, let alone through a rigid

The ancient Greeks and Romans contributed to western civilization in many different forms of literature and architecture. Both of these cultures produced a variety of literary works which are still studied today. One of the biggest contributions to literature was from the author known as Homer. Homer was known for two of ancient Greece’s most epic poems, The lliad and The Odyssey. Both of these poems have had a profound impact on western literature and continue to influence teachers and authors today. “The lliad and The Odyssey have provided not only seeds but fertilizer for almost all the other arts and sciences in

Socratic moral philosophy is important in poetry because it engages poets in rational thinking when making poems. Poetry is mostly communicated through written texts; it can be used to expand one’s knowledge of himself or herself and the world. However, philosophers disparage poetry by its composition and senses such as imitation, representation, fiction, and expression. On this note, Socrates used philosophical explorations to criticize the role of poetry in the world. Many poets engage in imitation and imagination in their poetic works, which limits the chances of poetry enhancing knowledge in the society. The branch points between poets and Socrates are imitation versus and imagination versus reason.