I realize that Plato is not saying "Beauty is Truth, Truth Beauty. . .". He is cagier than that
BobW
Yoshie Furuhashi <critical.montages at gmail.com> wrote:
On 8/28/07, Robert Wrubel wrote:
>
> Yoshie Furuhashi wrote:
>
> > "Older men, through their erotic engagement with beautiful
> > young men, aspired to be one with Truth, and young men,
> > in turn, were to be philosophically instructed by their older
> > male admirers. "
>
> I think you meant "aspired to be one with Beauty". Who would
> ever think a young man had any connection to wisdom? Plato
> certainly doesnt portray them that way.
What was the pedagogical profit of pederasty? For a young man, it was an opportunity to learn to live up to the way of life of a free man of a free state. to prefer to die honorably defending his country than to live dishonorably in subjection to a tyrant.* For the lover of a young man, the object was to embark upon the path of attaining the knowledge of divine essence of beauty through a philosophical process that begins with the love of earthly beauties, especially of fair youths.**
*
For I know not any greater blessing to a young man who is beginning life than a virtuous lover, or to the lover than a beloved youth. For the principle which ought to be the guide of men who would nobly live—that principle, I say, neither kindred, nor honour, nor wealth, nor any other motive is able to implant so well as love. Of what am I speaking? Of the sense of honour and dishonour, without which neither states nor individuals ever do any good or great work. And I say that a lover who is detected in doing any dishonourable act, or submitting through cowardice when any dishonour is done to him by another, will be more pained at being detected by his beloved than at being seen by his father, or by his companions, or by any one else. The beloved too, when he is found in any disgraceful situation, has the same feeling about his lover. And if there were only some way of contriving that a state or an army should be made up of lovers and their loves (compare Rep.), they would be the very best governors of their own city, abstaining from all dishonour, and emulating one another in honour; and when fighting at each other's side, although a mere handful, they would overcome the world. For what lover would not choose rather to be seen by all mankind than by his beloved, either when abandoning his post or throwing away his arms? He would be ready to die a thousand deaths rather than endure this. Or who would desert his beloved or fail him in the hour of danger? The veriest coward would become an inspired hero, equal to the bravest, at such a time; Love would inspire him. That courage which, as Homer says, the god breathes into the souls of some heroes, Love of his own nature infuses into the lover.
** And the true order of going, or being led by another, to the things of love, is to begin from the beauties of earth and mount upwards for the sake of that other beauty, using these as steps only, and from one going on to two, and from two to all fair forms, and from fair forms to fair practices, and from fair practices to fair notions, until from fair notions he arrives at the notion of absolute beauty, and at last knows what the essence of beauty is.
-- Yoshie
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