1. Classical Literary Criticism
In the Name of Allah,
the Merciful, the Compassionate,
and Praise be to God!
Classical Literary Criticism
Dr Gehan M. Anwar Deeb Lecturer of English Literature & Translation October 6 University

2. Classical Period Ancient Greece
Political & Intellectual Background
By the end of this lecture, you are expected to learn about:
Historical & Intellectual Context in the Classical Period
Plato’s Early Works The Apology (Plato & Socrates)
Plato’s Later Works The Republic: The Allegory of the Cave
Plato’s Objection to Art (Poetry). What are his objections?
What is his Theory of Mimesis?
What is his Theory of Forms?

3. During Plato’s time in the 4th century:
Confusion prevailed in all spheres of life – intellect, moral, political and education.
There was political instability.
Women were regarded inferior human beings – slavery was wide spread.
Education was in sorry state.
Best time of Greek literature was over. (corruption of literature).
The poets added fuel to the fire. (Plato regarded poets as breeders of falsehood, and poetry as mother of lies).

4. Plato’s Historical Context
The Peloponnesian War ( BC):
An ancient Greek war fought by Athens and
its empire against the Peloponnesian League
led by Sparta.
The war lasted 27 years,
The result of the war was:
Sparta defeated Athens.
The end of Athenian maritime empire.

5. Who was Plato? (429-347 BC) Philosopher, thinker and critic
student of Socrates,
teacher of Aristotle.
Lived 24 years during the Peloponnesian War, a conflict that affected many areas of his thought.

6. Plato’s Earlier Works Plato’s earliest works ……… Socrates.
We know about Socrates from Plato’s writings.
The Apology:
A series of dialogues in which Plato is not a speaking character.
Socrates is the principal speaker in these dialogues that are still appreciated for their beauty and wisdom.
Socrates taught by asking questions, a technique known as the Socratic method, or Socratic dialogue.

7. Plato, Socrates and the Dialogue
Socrates wanted people to question their beliefs and look for knowledge.
Socrates convinces the city that his philosophy is not corrupting, but holy and virtuous.
He was arrested and condemned to death for corrupting the young and neglecting the gods.
After Socrates’ execution, Plato left Athens in disgust and travelled widely.
Plato founded the “Academy” as the first known school of philosophy in Athens, where Aristotle was one of his students.
Plato and Aristotle followed Socrates in their pursuit/quest/ search for knowledge and deeper understanding.

8. Plato’s Works - Continued
Plato’s middle to later works provide his own philosophy.
His most famous work was The Republic, which featured The Allegory of the Cave
Tension
City (polis) Philosopher (mad)
The Republic
Harmony
Socrates was sentenced to death by the city.
The philosopher is likely to be perceived as mad not a savior.
What is an Allegory?

9. He had 3 critical theories about poets and poetry; i.e,
Plato & Theology: Plato was the first to use the term ‘theology’: a rational conception of the divine as opposed to poetic myths about the gods.
He had 3 critical theories about poets and poetry; i.e,
a-inspiration b- imitation c- forms
a- Inspiration:
1- The poet is a possessed creature by the Muses.
2- The poet uses a divine language different from this used by ordinary human beings.
3- The poet is either a prophet or a mad man and sometimes both together
Muses: were nine goddisses

10. The Cave Analogy, The Allegory of the Cave From the Republic, Book VII.
What is the Story About?
[Socrates:]  … let me show in a figure how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened: --Behold! Human beings living in an underground den, which has a mouth open towards the light and reaching all along the den; here they have been from their childhood, and have their legs and necks chained so that they cannot move, and can only see before them, being prevented by the chains from turning round their heads. Behind them a fire is blazing at a distance, and between the fire and the prisoners there is a raised way; and you will see, if you look, a low wall built along the way, like the screen which marionette players have in front of them, over which they show the puppets.
[Glaucon:]  I see.

11. The Allegory of the Cave - From the Republic, Book VII.
The Story – Continued.
And do you see, I said, men passing along the wall carrying all sorts of vessels, and statues and figures of animals made of wood and stone and various materials, which appear over the wall? Some of them are talking, others silent.
You have shown me a strange image, and they are strange prisoners.
Like ourselves, I replied; and they see only their own shadows, or the shadows of one another, which the fire throws on the opposite wall of the cave?
True, he said; how could they see anything but the shadows if they were never allowed to move their heads?

12. The Allegory of the Cave - From the Republic, Book VII.
The Story – Continued.
And of the objects which are being carried in like manner they would only see the shadows?
Yes, he said.
And if they were able to converse with one another, would they not suppose that they were naming what was actually before them? …
No question, he replied.
To them, I said, the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images.
That is certain.

13. The Allegory of the Cave How does Plato’s thought experiment work?
Sketch your own interpretation of the cave
In Drawing, or
With perspective

14. In The Allegory of the Cave:
Plato likens people to prisoners chained in a cave, unable to turn their heads. All they can see is the wall of the cave. Behind them burns a fire. Between the fire and the prisoners there is a parapet, along which puppeteers can walk. The puppeteers, who are behind the prisoners, hold up puppets that cast shadows on the wall of the cave. The prisoners are unable to see these puppets, the real objects, that
pass behind them. What the prisoners see and hear are shadows and echoes cast by objects that they do not see.

15. YouTube - The Allegory of the Cave
YouTube - The Allegory of the Cave

16. Symbolism Within the Story
Inside the Cave = The Physical World
Objects casting shadows = Objects
Shadows on the wall = Images
What do the symbols mean?
Inside the cave, the prisoners mistake appearance for reality. They believe that the images they are seeing on the wall are actually real, they do not know that there are objects making these images.
If a prisoner says “That’s a book” he thinks that he is talking about a “book,” when really he is talking of a shadow. To see it, he would have to turn his head around.

17. Plato’s point: Plato asks us to imagine…
…that men believe the shadows are real.
Suppose now that one of the men escaped, and got out of the cave, and saw what real people looked like, and real trees and grass. If he went back to the cave and told the other men what he had seen, would they believe him, or would they think he was crazy?
When the prisoners are released, they can turn their heads and see the real objects. Then they realize their error.
YouTube - The Allegory of the Cave

18. In the Cave: what are the “shadows”?
Plato’s theory of images images = what “appears” (our world) images = Art forms = what “is” (ideal world)
In the Cave:
what are the “shadows”?
a) what we see in the world around us
b) what appears in art

19. The Philosopher’s Task:
Get out of the Cave of appearances/images, “see” the world of Forms, then go back into the Cave…
His goal is to help us understand the real world better, by finding ways to predict it even without being able to see it.

20. Solution: Find/Make another reality
Since what we thought was “Real” is only appearance…
Therefore, we should think of the Ideal/the “Forms” which is the new Real. (A standard form for imitation)
Forms = what “is” or “what ought to be” (ideal world)
2 Worlds????

21. Plato II From Plato we get the Theory of Forms, according to which:
the world we know through the senses is only an imitation of the pure, eternal, and unchanging world of the Forms.
Beauty is an example of Forms or Ideals.
The beauty of a Flower is an imperfect imitation of Beauty itself.

22. Plato’s Forms The world of Forms is rational and unchanging;
The world of physical appearances is irrational and changeable, and it succeeds in imitating the Forms.
The mind or soul belongs to the ideal world; the body and its passions to the physical world.
The best human life is one that strives to imitate the Forms as closely as possible. That life is the life of the mind, the life of the philosopher

23. Art and the Forms
A carpenter makes a bed for use in accordance with the form or idea of bed.
A carpenter’s bed is a copy of the form/ideal of bed. He does not make the form itself.
Plato calls an instance of a form or universal an ‘imitation’ of that form in being a copy of the original.

24. THE FORM BED BEDS: Art and the Forms
Vincent Van Gogh’s painting
of his bed, excerpted from his
painting Bedroom at Arles, 1888.
For Plato, a painting of a bed
represents an imitation of an
imitation.
A carpenter’s bed. For Plato, such a bed is an imitation of
the form bed.

25. Therefore, What is meant by Plato’s theory of imitation?
He states in the Republic that
art imitates physical things, which in turn imitates the Forms. Art is always a copy of a copy, takes us away from the truth and toward illusion. Art is dangerous.
Plato says:
The imitator or maker of the image knows nothing of true existence; he knows appearance only ….

26. In your opinion, which one does Plato favor more: the poet or the carpenter? Why?
Plato condemns all poets: POETS SHOULD BE BANISHED except for CELEBRATING THE VICTORS
In his Ideal State, there is no place for poets such as Homer. The poet should be banished/removed from reality, because he is like the painter who does not know the reality of the chair. While the carpenter who manufactures this chair knows its reality.
POETS ARE MERELY IMITATING AN IMITATION
(WRITING ABOUT ANY OBJECT IN THE MATERIAL WORLD)
Poets = Imitators of mere shadows
Poetic Art = COPY of a COPY
Poets = Irrational, Untrustworthy, Damned

27. The Mimetic Theory of Art: “Art is essentially an imitation of Nature
Plato is the first critic who originates the idea of imitation in literary criticism.
For him, art is:
(1) useless and
(2) potentially dangerous.
And so the chief reasons for objecting poets were:

28. Plato’s View: Art is Essentially Mimesis
Art was useless:
It serves no useful purpose in society.
As an "Imitation of Nature" it added no knowledge or intellectual value.
Art was potentially dangerous:
Art was essentially deceptive.
Art was mainly concerned with sensual pleasure.
Art was psychologically de-stabilizing (for the individual).
Art leads to immorality.
Art was politically dangerous (threat to the common good)

29. Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs)
Choose the right option:
Plato wrote Socrates’ thoughts in the form of: a. Dialogues b. Paragraphs c. Poetry d. Story telling
Say whether the following statement is true or false:
According to Plato, poetry is better than philosophy.
a. True b. False c. Cannot say

30. • Study Questions
1. Compare between the world of appearances and the world of forms according to Plato.
2. Why did Plato feel literature and art to be a dangerous social and political force?
3. Discuss the Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and its symbolism.
4. Define Plato’s theory of Mimesis?