Essay on Plato's Opinion of Poetry

Platos Republic, Book X starts with the return of Socrates to the theme of imitative poetry. He banished poetry from their State and does not regret. He took the example of a bed to show that phenomena occur at three levels as dictates the theory of forms. The level of God is first and original through the generation of the idea of a bed. Secondly, the carpenter copies God by constructing a bed. Lastly, the poet imitates the carpenter by writing a poem concerning a bed. Hence, a carpenter deals with what is removed from reality three times. Like all imitators, the poet is thrice removed from the king and reality (Plato and Ferguson, 44). Therefore, poetry is a distraction because it takes people one step away from the ideal. Homers case was greatly lamented by Socrates. This is because he imitated what he did not understand. He sang of a cobbler when he did not understand the trade. Socrates believed that he could have been more helpful by taking a political role. Plato was for the opinion that poets invested enough skills to trick simple people and children. Some people are of the opinion that Homer knows all virtues and arts, which is a misconception. He should create and imitate to leave permanent work and not imitation alone. Then he will be able to receive praise, and not just be the giver of tribute. Hence, he will have advantage and honor (Plato and Ferguson, 48). Imitation is compared to a counterfeit product in the market. This dispute both belittles the value of poetry and critiques the expertise of the poet.

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Socrates went to the extent of only allowing praises to prominent men and songs to the gods in his state. Poetry is seen to be pleasurable but does not serve the State nor truth. However, he lifted his spirit and that of his auditors by demonstrating the rewards of good men. He astonished Glaucon by stating that the soul of a human being is immortal. Just like a body full of health, the soul stimulated by good exists eternally (Plato and Ferguson, 56). The soul is only known through reason. It is compensated and honored in the afterlife by gods that observe its quest for god-like virtues. The unjust man grieves in life and gets despised by gods afterward. Any poetry beyond praising famous men and Gods are prohibited. Pleasure and pain are not significant, but reason and law are what should prevail in the State.

Er was an olden hero who was killed in battle, went into the spirit world, and came back again. This challenges the superficial summary except to indicate that each person who arrives in the spirit world is judged for their actions. A dictator is sentenced to the abyss for a thousand years. However, the righteous go to heaven and are told to select their next kind of life. Some come back as athletes, animals, or rulers. For example, Odysseus selected a humble mans life. Lastly, souls take water from the forgetfulness river, develop unawareness, and reappear in the world with new forms. Poetry does not emulate the virtuous part of the soul. The sensible portion of the soul is stable, quiet, and hard to understand and imitate (Plato and Ferguson, 45). Poets mainly emulate the awful parts, which portray characters as passionate and colorful. Therefore, energy gets diverted from the sensible part. Poetry deceives people into empathizing with people who yearn inappropriately, grieve exceedingly, and laugh at base issues.

Roles poetry would play in an ideal city

Socrates concluded that poetry arose emotions, which were thought to indicate an irritating disposition. With the influence of poetry, one would desert rational thinking and allow their actions and decisions to be controlled by emotions. Plato visualized that this would cause instability as emotions replace intellect in an ideal city. Plato advocates for philosophy to educate masses and not poetry. This is because philosophy is the only action that considers the ideal forms. Hence, it is the best in helping to discover the real nature of issues (Plato and Ferguson, 58). Socrates maintains that tragic poets are the main criminals in feeding that portion of the psyche, which is appealed to passionate engagement and conflictive emotions.

One of the argument Plato gives for his position on the role of poetry in an ideal city is its vital role in the shaping of culture and education. The poetry of the ideal city should reflect the understanding of the philosophical rulers. Philosophy should give the citizens of an ideal State the best by shaping their views, nature, and roles. Therefore, Plato may not just be criticizing art, but he is addressing the cultural role of poetry within his society. Probably, it may be parallel to the position philosophy holds in an ideal state. In an ideal state, artistic practices have the main role in mediating the values held by philosophers. As a universal rule, jobs cannot be done well without the guidance of philosophy. To yield pleasure, poets must emulate the unsettled and disturbed character. Hence, they set up a badly ruled state within the soul of each. This harmful effect on an individual corrupts the entire state if done on a large scale(Plato and Ferguson, 45). The emulation deceives senses and is not appealing to reason. Platos criticisms come from the view that poetry should symbolize truth, which is attained through knowledge.

Plato gives the argument that imitation is deceitful in poetry. It has a high potential of bringing corruption. This is through appealing to the part of our minds that challenges our rationality. He demands that poetry meets the needs of philosophy in his state. An imitative poet aiming for popularity is not made by nature nor has he the intention of his art being pleasant nor touch the sensible principle of the soul. Such a poet prefers the disturbed and passionate temper which can be limited with ease. Therefore, failure to admit them in an ideal state is acceptable as he arouses, nourishes, and strengthens feelings but impairs reasoning. Poetry often drives people away from realizing the truth. This makes the ideal city experience many problems because citizens will not understand what would be going on (Plato and Ferguson, 66). Poetry cultivates passion instead of suppressing them. Consequently, passion gets to rule, although it should be controlled, for humanity to increase in virtue and happiness. I agree with this argument against imitation because originality is key to enhancing education and culture. With original poetry, people can change how they listen to the world. It helps an ideal city discover the areas of which they did not know. Without imitation, the artists gain power as they help people engage with the world they had taken for granted. Therefore, poetry in an ideal city plays a significant role in conserving education and culture.

Work cited

Plato and John Ferguson. Republic, Book X. 7th ed. Letchworth: Bradda Books, 2014. Print.