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Plato wanted his dialogues to look like genuine, spontaneous dialogues accurately preserved. How much of these stories and dialogues is fictional? It is hard to tell, but he surely invented a great deal of them. References to traditional myths and mythical characters occur throughout the dialogues. His myths are meant, among other things, to make philosophy more accessible. There are in Plato identifiable traditional myths, such as the story of Gyges Republic d—b , the myth of Phaethon Timaeus 22c7 or that of the Amazons Laws e4.
Sometimes he modifies them, to a greater or lesser extent, while other times he combines them—this is the case, for instance, of the Noble Lie Republic b—d , which is a combination of the Cadmeian myth of autochthony and the Hesiodic myth of ages.
There are also in Plato myths that are his own, such as the myth of Er Republic b8 or the myth of Atlantis Timaeus 26e4. Many of the myths Plato invented feature characters and motifs taken from traditional mythology such as the Isles of the Blessed or the judgment after death , and sometimes it is difficult to distinguish his own mythological motifs from the traditional ones.
The majority of the myths he invents preface or follow a philosophical argument: the Gorgias myth a—a , the myth of the androgyne Symposium d—d , the Phaedo myth c—a , the myth of Er Republic a—d , the myth of the winged soul Phaedrus a—d , the myth of Theuth Phaedrus c—e , the cosmological myth of the Statesman —e , the Atlantis myth Timaeus 21e—26d, Critias , the Laws myth b—b.
Plato refers sometimes to the myths he uses, whether traditional or his own, as muthoi for an overview of all the loci where the word muthos occurs in Plato see Brisson ff. However, muthos is not an exclusive label. The myths Plato invents, as well as the traditional myths he uses, are narratives that are non-falsifiable, for they depict particular beings, deeds, places or events that are beyond our experience: the gods, the daemons, the heroes, the life of soul after death, the distant past, etc.
Myths are also fantastical, but they are not inherently irrational and they are not targeted at the irrational parts of the soul. The Cave, the narrative that occurs in the Republic a—a , is a fantastical story, but it does not deal explicitly with the beyond the distant past, life after death etc.
Strictly speaking, the Cave is an analogy, not a myth. Most argues that there are eight main features of the Platonic myth. Most acknowledges that these eight features are not completely uncontroversial, and that there are occasional exceptions; but applied flexibly, they allow us to establish a corpus of at least fourteen Platonic myths in the Phaedo , Gorgias , Protagoras , Meno , Phaedrus , Symposium , Republic X, Statesman , Timaeus , Critias and Laws IV.
Dorion concludes that the Oracle story is not only a Platonic fiction, but also a Platonic myth, more specifically: a myth of origin. Who invented the examination of the opinions of others by the means of elenchus? We have a comprehensive book about the people of Plato: Nails ; now we also have one about the animals of Plato: Bell and Naas Anyone interested in myth, metaphor, and on how people and animals are intertwined in Plato would be rewarded by consulting it.
They are used to portray not just Socrates [compared to a gadfly, horse, swan, snake, stork, fawn, and torpedo ray] but many other characters in the dialogues, from the wolfish Thrasymachus of the Republic to the venerable racehorse Parmenides of the Parmenides. For Plato we should live according to what reason is able to deduce from what we regard as reliable evidence. This is what real philosophers, like Socrates, do. But the non-philosophers are reluctant to ground their lives on logic and arguments.
They have to be persuaded. One means of persuasion is myth. Myth inculcates beliefs. It is efficient in making the less philosophically inclined, as well as children cf. Republic a ff. In the Republic the Noble Lie is supposed to make the citizens of Callipolis care more for their city.
Philosophy, claims Schofield, provides the guards with knowledge, not with love and devotion for their city. There is some truth in them. But Simmias confesses that he still retains some doubt a—b , and then Socrates tells them an eschatological myth.
The myth does not provide evidence that the soul is immortal. It assumes that the soul is immortal and so it may be said that it is not entirely false. The myth also claims that there is justice in the afterlife and Socrates hopes that the myth will convince one to believe that the soul is immortal and that there is justice in the afterlife. The myth blurs the boundary between this world and the other. To believe that soul is immortal and that we should practice justice in all circumstances, Gonzales argues, we have to be persuaded by what Socrates says, not by the myth of Er.
The philosopher should share his philosophy with others. But since others may sometimes not follow his arguments, Plato is ready to provide whatever it takes—an image, a simile, or a myth—that will help them grasp what the argument failed to tell them.
The myth—just like an image, or analogy—may be a good teaching tool. Myth can embody in its narrative an abstract philosophical doctrine.
In the Phaedo , Plato develops the so-called theory of recollection 72e—78b. The theory is there expounded in rather abstract terms. The Phaedrus myth of the winged soul, however, does. In it we are told how the soul travels in the heavens before reincarnation, attempts to gaze on true reality, forgets what it saw in the heavens once reincarnated, and then recalls the eternal forms it saw in the heavens when looking at their perceptible embodiments.
The Phaedrus myth does not provide any proofs or evidence to support the theory of recollection. Since this theory the myth embodies is, for Plato, true, the myth has pace Plato a measure of truth in it, although its many fantastical details may lead one astray if taken literally. The cosmology of the Timaeus is a complex and ample construction, involving a divine maker assisted by a group of less powerful gods , who creates the cosmos out of a given material dominated by an inner impulse towards disorder and according to an intelligible model.
Plato's answer to that is that choices are many times made from ignorance amathia. The unjust man would realize the woe he is bringing upon himself if only he would listen to his reason and try to learn something. And so we see, truly, that the unexamined life is not worth living. They are the spirits who preside over a person's birth, allotting his or her destiny; they are often personified as three women: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos, who spin out the thread of life, measure it, and finally cut it off.
Atalanta a mythological huntress, who in one story refused to marry any suitor who could not win a footrace against her. Next Socrates. Removing book from your Reading List will also remove any bookmarked pages associated with this title.
Are you sure you want to remove bookConfirmation and any corresponding bookmarks? My Preferences My Reading List. Republic Plato. Summary and Analysis Book X: Section III Summary Socrates announces now in the dialogue that he has demonstrated the superiority of the just life as a life to be lived , whether it include external rewards or not. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
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