Monthly Archives: September 2014

Plato’s Republic, Book IV

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Book IV of Plato’s republic discusses specifically the city ‘Kallipolis’. Adeimantus begins by arguing that the ruler of the city will be unhappy, given that they are not afforded certain luxuries, such as being allowed to own property, amass any private wealth, or have a mistress. Socrates however responds to this overall argument by saying that the goal of the city is not to make any single person happy, but rather the city happy as a whole, and inso doing, making the individuals happy anyways. Socrates also argues against the use of money in a society, instead suggesting that the the rulers should insure that no one exists at any extreme end of the spectrum, because wealth inspires laziness, and poverty inspires rebellion. Adeimantus argues that this city would not be able to protect itself from outside danger and influence without money, however as usual, Socrates has an answer to that as well. [I find that Socrates spends all of his time refuting arguments, and very little time providing in-depth solutions, if any at all…]

The discussion then turns to the virtues of the city. These virtues are meant to achieve/reflect justice, and are parallel with the sense of justice within the individual, in the form of reason, spirit, and appetite. In the context of the city, they are represented by specific peoples. Wisdom is the virtue exemplified by the ruler(s), as their intricate knowledge of how the city should be run should theoretically always make for a better city. [This is also where the argument against everyone having a say comes into play] Courage is the virtue exemplified by the auxiliaries, and it is a virtue of the city because they are supposed to have the best possible outcome for the city as their sole goal. Moderation is the virtue that is represented by the producers, as a just society takes into account the good of the city above all else.

The idea of moderation is perhaps most important. Balanced and harmonious individuals are what the Kallipolis are attempting to create in the first place.

The Odyssey

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In reading The Odyssey, I admittedly did not spend as much time as I probably should have analyzing the themes, noting the recurring motifs, and keeping track of the symbols for later review. I often found myself so utterly enthralled by the narrative that I lost track of time, and I (regretfully) only took about three days to read through the entire thing. I guess, in a way, that seems to be a bizarre echoing of the timelessness of the work itself.

[I must preface my next comment by saying that I unfortunately I was not able to get a hold of the recommended edition of the text (instead I used one translated by Martin Hammond), and therefore I am only hoping that this holds true.] One thing that struck me in my reading of the Odyssey (this being the first time), just like in my reading of Genesis (also, for the first time), was its abiding quality, purely as a work of literature. The language in the Odyssey is vividly descriptive, which is perhaps one of the reasons that it has been enjoyed so faithfully over the last two millennia. I echo Bonney’s blog post on the Odyssey, in which she stated that her understanding of the text might have been different had she heard it performed orally, and wish only that there was some way of experiencing that for myself.

I was familiar with some of the stories of the Odyssey, as many of Odysseus’ individual exploits are main story lines in the literature which I read as a younger reader (namely, the works by Rick Riordan often incorporate stories such as that of the lotus flower that makes one forget one’s home, the controlling witch, Circe, and the Sirens). I did, however, thoroughly enjoy hearing our guest lecturer, Dr. Marshall, an expert on the subject, provide his insights. What I gained from the lecture, that I had not at all garnered when reading the text myself, included, among others, the importance of the theme of ‘xenos’ in Greek culture, and how much that was not just a part of the Odyssey.

If I were to ever read the Odyssey again (which, given the passion of Dr. Marshall, I now feel compelled to do), I hope to read it with more of an attentive mind on the themes, motifs, and symbols, which I might have missed the first time. It would seem to me that the unfathomable efforts of the hero, Odysseus, deserve at least that much.

Me.

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Reflection is a task that I find to be simultaneously both intensely invigorating, and acutely enervating, and it is a task whose importance I often seem to under-value until having completed it. This is my first attempt at completing this task this year, so please bear with me…

For as long as I can remember, writing has been a medium through which I have felt comfortable expressing myself. In my opinion, there is no single tool more powerful. I find that the opportunity to think through every choice of vocabulary, construct every sentence, and build every paragraph allows a ubiquitous control that is completely unique to writing. J.R.R. Tolkein, Louis Sachar, and Daniel Handler are all among those who have influenced my writing style the most, although I say this with the utmost humility for the superiority of their artistic and literary talent. A few of my own works of which I am most proud include my faithful adaptation of “The Hobbit” into a five-and-a-half-hour play (of which my seventh grade class performed the first hour, or so), and my Alexander Pope-esque mock epic that enraptured all of my waking hours for a period of about five months (I’ll be uploading it as soon as I figure out how to do so).

Perhaps the most easily-identifiably reason for my enthusiasm in Arts One is my love of reading (I’m gonna go out on a limb here, and assume that this is relatively common among people in Arts One). When other children were playing their gameboys, tamagotchi’s, or whatever happened to be the fad at the time, I was begging my mother for the next Hardy Boys’ adventure, the latest novel by Cornelia Funke, or of course, the new Harry Potter book. One of my earliest memories is the moment of profound epiphany that I experienced when I realized that ‘erised’ is simply the word ‘desire’ spelled backwards…

In my short 16 years, I have lived in ‘the Golden State’ of California, the ‘Salmon Capital of the World’, Campbell River, ‘The Harbour City’, Sydney, Australia, and Prince George, BC. Were it not for the Arts One program, I would definitely have accepted the offer of another university and lived elsewhere instead, but I felt like this was an opportunity that I simply could not let slip away, lest I forever regret it. I hope that through the reading and discussion of the texts, I can gain a broader understanding of many different perspectives on the world, while at the same time concretizing opinions and perspectives of my own. I genuinely look forward to doing this with all of you in the coming eight months.

Thank you for bearing with me,

Ryan Miller