Poetry and the Pursuit of Truth: Plato's Argument Against Poetry

In Book X of The Republic, Plato establishes a debate regarding the usefulness and potentially negative effects of poetry. Within this dialogue, he asserts that "all poetical imitations are ruinous to the understanding of the hearers...hymns to the gods and praises of famous men are the only poetry which ought to be admitted into our State" (Plato 29, 36). He goes on to explain that this is because "poetry feeds and waters the passions instead of drying them up; she lets them rule, although they ought to be controlled, if mankind are ever to increase in happiness and virtue" (Plato 36). These statements offer a rather atypical viewpoint of poetry, and they therefore carry the potential to incite a critical situation in the reader. (A critical situation can be understood as any instance where one is forced to reexamine a commonly held or ingrained belief.) Hearing Plato's condemnation of poetry acts against the more common sentiment that poetry is one of the many tools at our disposal for learning. Confronted with these contrary views, the resultant tension forces the reader to scrutinize the nature of poetry and its purpose. However, these concepts are abstract, and as such cannot be addressed directly. Instead, the nature and purpose of poetry have to be examined through the only means available, namely concrete examples of the very poetry Plato critiques. Therefore, using Homer's epic poem The Odyssey, Plato's assertions can begin to be evaluated.

Before making judgments about Plato's argument as a whole, it is necessary to examine his fundamental reasoning. Inspecting Plato's argument more closely, one of his most ardent reasons for opposing poetry is that it incites and plays upon people's emotions. He argues further that emotions cause people to think and act irrationally. If truth can only be attained through rational, ordered thought, poetry necessarily hinders one's quest towards knowledge (Plato 36). The active, engaged reader must necessarily evaluate this claim. Human beings are undeniably composed of two parts-reason and emotion. But these two entities are not separated in our everyday lives. Instead, one constantly informs the other. Indeed, to be human is to struggle with these two opposing but interacting counterparts. Yes, it would be infinitely more simple if humans were not chained to their emotions. If we didn't have to deal with love or hate or jealousy or anger and we lived only according to rational, ordered thoughts, our lives would be nicely compartmentalized and understandable. But would we really want to live that kind of life? A life devoted and executed solely through the principles of reason is simply not enough to sustain a fully developed human. Even Plato himself was subject to this rule. He makes it very clear that poetry devoted to the gods should still be allowed in the State (Plato 36). The reader can derive from this exception to his argument that he places great weight and value on the gods and their role in Greek society. Being a devout man, Plato could appreciate that reason does not provide the answers to all of our questions. He put his faith in a body that he would never see, touch or experience with any of his senses. Every reasonable faculty tells us not to believe in god (by whatever name or form we attribute to that entity). So why then do so many people deny their rational impulses and believe in a higher power? The answer for many is because it enriches their lives in some way or another. And this argument can be extended to poetry as well. Just because something, such as a poem, complicates your worldview or tangles your orderly thought process does not mean it is harmful. Quite the opposite, living by Plato's law is the more potentially harmful method. His advice denies a crucial aspect of humanity and promotes an oversimplified, incomplete view of the world, which the poets sought to remedy.

Let us next examine Plato's argument through Homer's work specifically. Firstly, according to Plato's argument, The Odyssey constitutes the type of poetry that he promotes banishing. The text is not a hymn to the gods nor is it praise of famous men, and it certainly plays upon the reader's emotions. After all, Odysseus is depicted as brave, noble and valiant. The gods even revere him highly enough to address him as "godlike Odysseus,/Who stands out among mortals for thought, and for the sacrifices/He has given the immortal gods..." (Homer 6). By establishing such a hero, it is likely the reader will feel sympathy, anger or any multitude of emotions when he is made to wander from his home for years. It is therefore an emotionally charged scene when Poseidon says, "I would hide their [Phaeacian] city round with a great mountain" (Homer 9) for simply helping Odysseus return home. In light of Odysseus' characterization and the circumstances of the incident, the reader is likely to question Poseidon's reasoning and the fairness of his actions. Once that question is asked, the reader is presented with a critical situation. He/she is questioning the actions of the gods and siding with a mortal, even though the prevailing commonplace clearly indicates that gods are all-knowing and mortals are necessarily fallible. As stated, Homer establishes this situation and incites questioning largely through the skillful manipulation of emotion. Pushing these difficult questions, especially those that rattle deep-set commonplaces, is inherently uncomfortable. But it does not follow that the questions themselves are harmful. Even though emotional tactics are used, they do not preclude the reader from questioning. Granted, the thought process will not be rigidly ordered and logical such as Plato promotes, but it cannot be said that Homer's work stifles thought. On the contrary, his collection provides a rich and interesting springboard to ask truly baffling but ultimately enriching questions.

Plato also attacks emotional poetry for its uselessness in society. To that end, he even goes so far as to assert that "Homer never did any public service..." (Plato 32). He concludes by saying "what a poor appearance the tales of poets make when stripped of the colours which music puts upon them, and recited in simple prose" (Plato 32). (The colours he refers to being meter, harmony and rhythm.) In essence, Plato claims that these colours allow an author to speak in a pleasing manner and are therefore capable of fooling a reader into believing the author also speaks with truth. But if we are to imagine Homer's tale without the literary embellishments of epic poetry, it still retains its messages, underlying themes and ability to incite thought. After all, Homer's work deals in controversial and timeless issues such as justice, loyalty, struggle and mortality, all of which Homer's contemporaries grappled with in their time. And even more telling, that debate continues today. Homer seeks truth through the proposing of thorny, problematic questions and the necessary involvement of the reader. Plato seeks truth through "the arts of measuring and numbering and weighing [which] come to the rescue of the human understanding" (Plato 34). But what Plato seems to overlook in his argument is that both methods are different means to the same end.

Literature has been the hallmark of progressive civilizations throughout history, and a substantial part of that history has been through the medium of poetry. For Plato to decry poetry as potentially harmful is a bold assertion which any active reader must necessarily evaluate. Accepting Plato's argument in large part means accepting the idea that reason alone is sufficient to attain truth. Being an abstract ideal, truth is an elusive and often frustrating goal. Therefore, by virtue of its very nature, there is no concrete way to confirm any conclusion of truth one makes. But that does not mean we are condemned to Plato's solution. Poetry and emotion do not need to be viewed as hindrances to our quest for knowledge. Instead, they can be considered just one of the many ways we seek meaning and answers to our unanswerable questions.

Works Cited

Homer. "The Odyssey." English 202: Introduction to the Study of English Language and Literature Autumn Quarter: 2006. Ed. Leroy Searle. University of Washington: 2006. 4-10.

Plato. "The Republic." English 202: Introduction to the Study of English Language and Literature Autumn Quarter: 2006. Ed. Leroy Searle. University of Washington: 2006. 29-53.