Eros (II)
Eros (II)
This chapter continues the discussion about the relationship between aesthetics and desire, focusing exclusively on Plato’s Republic. Starting with the tenth book of the Republic, the chapter moves gradually backward, its final destination being a section of the third book that so far remains underexplored. Socrates’s explicit and implicit references to the encounter with poetry as being analogous to an affair with a hetaira are explored within a broader context, both Platonic and cultural. More light is shed on Plato’s views on desire in relation to the way mousikê affects the three parts of the soul throughout the Republic. The final section examines in detail the last part of Plato’s discussion about mousikê in the third book. The chapter concludes with a suggestion regarding the great importance of this discussion for understanding Plato’s meditation upon the tension between desire and aesthetic contemplation.
Keywords: aesthetic contemplation, hetaira, Republic, tripartite division of soul
Oxford Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .
