Φίλοι,
Attached is the reading that is to be completed by our final class session on May 8.
Earlier in the dialogue, Plato establishes the realm of the Forms to be “the place beyond heaven– none of our earthly poets has ever sung or will sing its praises enough!” (247c) and notes that poets and myth writers are much lower souls than philosophers. Yet, after a lengthy discussion of rhetoric, Plato ends the dialogue with a myth. Today, we will ask: What is the role of classical Greek and Egyptian religion in Platonic philosophy? How can myth help us understand Truth, and how does it fall short? We will conclude with some larger thoughts on Platonic philosophy and its importance in the classical canon.
Required:
Plato, The Phaedrus, 258a-279c.
Optional:
Griswold Charles. “Excursus: Myth in the Phaedrus and the Unity of the Dialogue” in Self-Knowledge in Plato’s Phaedrus, 138-156. (PDF)
Derrida, Jacques. “Plato’s Pharmakon” in Literary Theory: An Anthology, 429-450. (Web)
Phaedrus 258a-279c captures the final portion of the dialogue in which Socrates and Phaedrus offer their final thoughts on rhetoric and love. Despite Socrates' reservations about poets, the dialogue concludes with a myth (Thamus and Theuth). Yet, Plato's choice to end dialogues this way is not unique to the Phaedrus; indeed, it is common for dialogues to end in aporia (a non-conclusion) while also ending with a myth that submits positive definitions. These myths often contain that function as a microcosm of previous discussions in the dialogue. Ask yourselves: What is the role of ancient myth for Plato? What is the significance of the god of writing? Is Socrates finally giving us a definition of good rhetoric and good lovin'..... or is this just another joke at Phaedrus' expense?
*optional* Charles Griswold, scholar of rhetoric and ancient philosophy, investigates the function of myth in "Excursus: Myth in the Phaedrus and the Unity of the Dialogue."
*optional* In the initial part of the dialogue, Socrates notes that Phaedrus has charmed him into the countryside with a sort of pharmakon. Recall that this word can translate into many different words: potion, poison, spell, drug, etc. In this seminal piece, French philosopher Jacques Derrida deconstructs this double-meaning and considers its greater role in the conclusion of the dialogue.
-S
