Socrates believed philosophical dialogue should be discussed in the most natural manner possible, meaning it ought to flow and not be written down for fear of revision, leading to tampering. Today we’d call that something of an illegal action, probably. It poses an issue, as everything we know about Socrates is vicarious, through Plato.
Anyways, here’s a crash course on why Socrates didn’t think writing was effective, even though I am unironically doing it right now. And you will be reading written words. Socrates would hate me, though he’s been dead for a while with no known god-like psychokinesis power, so I doubt I’ll levitate suddenly and spontaneously combust due to his conflicting views. Anyways, The Phaedrus, a philosophical work written by Plato around 370 BCE, focuses on rhetoric and channels the supposed reaction of Socrates on why he didn’t believe writing was efficient. Comparing a painter’s work to written work, Socrates argued that “the painter’s products stand before us as though they were alive.” He continues, “But if you question them, they maintain a most majestic silence.”
In other words, paintings cannot talk back to you, neither can the artist. You’ll never know what the intention of the work was; you will only make judgments based on what you’re seeing. The creator is not there to defend their work, anything goes, and much is left, nearly dependent, on the interpretation of your audience. For Socrates, that was the problem with writing, as he spoke, “It is the same with written words. They seem to talk to you as though they were intelligent, but if you ask them anything about what they say from a desire to be instructed, they go on telling just the same thing forever.” And with this, he never published his work.
For more of Oona’s sarcasm and attempted wit, visit her website oonaoffthecuff.com.
Top Image: Louis Joseph LeBrun
Related: The 6 Most WTF Scientific Theories About Existence
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Inside The Bizarre Theory That Socrates Didn’t Exist
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