Plato's Charges against Poetry

           Plato was a great critic and a philosopher. He believed in ‘Art for life’s shake’. Plato has given remarkable contribution to the field of literary criticism. According to Plato the ideas are true and real. His views on Poets and Poetry were expressed in ‘The republic’. Plato was basically a philosopher and a moralist. He was worried about the good of individual and the state.  According to Plato – “a poet is an ideal singer of an empty day.” Plato believed that the poet’s activities were harmful to the individual as well as to the society. Plato exposes his views on the poets and poetry because they create only illusions.

Plato puts some charges against poets and poetry. They are as under.

1. Poetry is an imitation of an imitation.

       Plato’s fundamental objection against poetry is that it is an imitation of an imitation. Poetry is twice removed from the reality. To explain it he gives very famous example of carpenter’s chair. In ‘The Republic’ Plato says that “ideas are the ultimate reality”. Carpenter first gets an idea to make a chair, then he shapes a chair (it is imitation of idea), then a painter draws that chair (it is imitation of imitation). So poetry is merely an imitation. And when a poet imitates something then he is not aware from real thing. So poetry becomes trivial and worthless thing. It is only the illusion of the idea.  It does not the real truth. Thus poetry is not good for the individual.

2. Poetry deals with the inferior part of the human nature.

      The charge against poetry is that it deals with the basic aspects of human nature. According to the Plato- 'epics and poetry with cunning and lusty heroes and violent Gods should not be taught.' poetry is more about the inferior part of human nature. The poet is imitative and his poetry is not true or real. It does not create good effect on the soul because it is about some baser passions of human nature.

3. There is no poetic justice on Poetry.

Plato was having high moral values. So obviously he demands righteousness in literature and art According to the Plato – ‘a poet deals with the virtue and vice similarly, because of such dealing there is no poetic justice.’  Plato observed in the Greek literature that many evil persons being happy and good persons unhappy. And he say that -“In literature many evil livers are happy and many righteous men are unhappy ; and wrong doing is often profitable while hones dealing is beneficial to one’s neighbor, but damaging to one’s self.”

              As a firm moralist Plato can’t digest such injustice in literature. According to him poetry feeds, waters and nourishes the lower and unhealthy emotions and passions. To maintain morality in mind one should be stable and rational. And it is true that sentimentality and rationality never walks together.   Thus Plato found injustice in poetry and literature. So he raised a charge against poetry is being without Poetic Justice.

4. Poetry is not safe guide for the human being

The fourth charge against poetry is very serious. According to Plato Poetry is not safe guide for the human being. He believes that poetry appeals emotions rather than a reason. Poetry makes the reason prisoner. Poetry feeds and waters the passions instead of drying them up. Thus poetry is not welcomed in an ideal state. 

    Plato was dreaming for strong and ideal state. For it all citizens should have developed mind and intellect. But poetry makes people emotional and it is harmful for good administration.

5. Poet does not write poetry  in conscious  mind

According to the Plato the poet is between a prophet and a mad man. The poet is not an ordinary human being because he is inspired by the muse. This shows that the poet is like a prophet. A poet writes only when he is inspired. This position is between the prophet and a mad man. Such a person is more harmful and its Activities also.

6. Poetry creats very harmful effect on children’s mind.

Plato wrote in ‘The Republic’ that poetry don’t give any contribution in planting morality in children. Instead of it, it puts evil in children. Poetry does very harmful effect on children’s mind.

  When children read poetry, it is misinterpreted by them the hero or the villain can make any effect upon them. So Plato says that Homer’s epic were part of studies. Hero’s of epic were lusty, cunning and cruel. Even gods were portrayed very badly. Gods were shown fighting among themselves. When we teach a children god’s such stories. They find bad effect in their mind.

            Plato says that we should not tell even a word about war to children. They are having strong impression of their teachers. So in the education if teachers say them about war and violence then they get wrong impression in their mind.

       In Short we can say that Plato was an ideal Person and having high moral values. He wanted to create an Ideal state and thus he favored only ideal Activities only. He was not always against poet and poetry, bet he was against imaginative poet and poetry.          

Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy and its Elements:

         It is clearly seen that Aristotle was more interested in tragedy rather than comedy or epic. In his Poetics, he compares tragedy to such other metrical forms as comedy and epic. Aristotle identifies tragedy as the most refined version of poetry dealing with lofty matters He traces a brief and speculative history of tragedy as it evolved from dithyrambic hymns in praise of the god Dionysus. He defines tragedy as – 

“Tragedy then is an imitation of an action, that is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude, the language embellished with each kind artistic ornaments, the several kind being found of in separate part of the play, in form of action not narrative, through the pity and fear, effecting a proper purigation of these harmful emotions…”

       Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy can be divided in to two parts – the first part of the definition deals with the nature of the tragedy which including first three clauses. The first part of the definition discusses the following three aspects:

(i) The Object: The nature of tragedy is defined by what is imitated.

(ii) The Medium: By that in which imitation occurs.

(iii) The manner: How the imitation occurs.

        The second part of the definition describes the function of tragedy. The function of tragedy is ‘Katharsis’ (catharsis), which Aristotle did not care to explain it in detail.

        Aristotle says that tragedy is an imitation of an action. The action of tragedy should be serious and complete and of certain magnitude. The language of tragedy should be embellished (decorated) with the each kind of ornaments. Its various ingredients (components) should be traced separately. The form of tragedy should not be narrative. The tragedy should be presented in such a way that it can arouse pity and fear. It should be capable of effecting proper ‘catharsis’ or a purgation of fear and pity.

        Thus, Aristotle’s definition of tragedy indicated several elements of tragedy. According to him a tragedy consists of six elements. They are as under:

(1) Plot   (2)   Character   (3)   Thought   (4)   Diction   (5) Songs/Melody   (6)   Spectacle

Let’s discuss elements of tragedy in brief:

Plot:

Aristotle has regarded the plot as the most important I tragedy. Plot means the arrangement of the incidents or situation. He says that tragedy is an imitation but not a men but an imitation of action and life, of happiness and misery. And life consists of action, and its end is a mode of activity, not a quality. Without plot there cannot be tragedy.  And so Aristotle says that –

 “Plot is the soul of the tragedy.”

Aristotle goes on to discuss the structure of the ideal tragic plot and spends several chapters on its requirements. He says that the plot must be a complete whole — with a definite beginning, middle, and end — and its length should be such that the spectators can comprehend without difficulty both its separate parts and its overall unity. Moreover, the plot requires a single central theme in which all the elements are logically related to demonstrate the change in the protagonist's fortunes, with emphasis on the dramatic causation and probability of the events. In short plot must contain a powerful appeal to the emotion of pity and fear. The plot is the first principle in tragedy.

Character: 

character determines men's qualities, but it is their action that makes them happy or wretched. The purpose of action in the tragedy, therefore, is not the representation of character: character comes in as contributing to the action. Hence the incidents and the plot are the end of the tragedy; and the end is the chief thing of all. Without action there cannot be a tragedy; there may be one without character. . . . The plot, then, is the first principle, and, as it were, the soul of a tragedy: character holds the second place.

Aristotle has given four types of hero and the characteristics:

 a) A good man-coming to bad end,

 b) A bad man-coming to good end,

 c) A bad man-coming to bad end,

 d) A rather good man-coming to bad end. 

      He gives the idea about error of judgment. Just one weakness in the hero's character makes his downfall. That character's misfortune effects the entire people staying round about him. Aristotle terms it as “Hamartia”. Later A.C. Bradley translates it as “Tragic Flaw”. Thus, the character is second important element of tragedy. The character of tragedy must be good and appropriate; character should be real and they may be like reality in action

Thought:

      Concerning Thought, we may assume what is said in the Rhetoric, to which inquiry the subject more strictly belongs. Under Thought is included every effect which has to be produced by speech, the subdivisions being,--proof and refutation; the excitation of the feelings, such as pity, fear, anger, and the like; the suggestion of importance or its opposite. Now, it is evident that the dramatic incidents must be treated from the same points of view as the dramatic speeches, when the object is to evoke the sense of pity, fear, importance, or probability. The only difference is, that the incidents should speak for themselves without verbal exposition; while the effects aimed at in speech should be produced by the speaker, and as a result of the speech. For what were the business of a speaker, if the Thought were revealed quite apart from what he says?

Diction:

       Next, as regards Diction. One branch of the inquiry treats of the Modes of Utterance. But this province of knowledge belongs to the art of Delivery and to the masters of that science. It includes, for instance,--what is a command, a prayer, a statement, a threat, a question, an answer, and so forth. To know or not to know these things involves no serious censure upon the poet's art. For who can admit the fault imputed to Homer by Protagoras,--that in the words, 'Sing, goddess, of the wrath,' he gives a command under the idea that he utters a prayer? For to tell some one to do a thing or not to do it is, he says, a command. We may, therefore, pass this over as an inquiry that belongs to another art, not to poetry.

Songs/Melody:

       Song is one of these embellishments. Aristotle says that the chorus should have importance like the actor. They should integrate into the play like an actor. It should have contribution to the plot of the play. Its purpose is also to evoke or intensify the emotion of the audience.  It was a necessary part in Greek drama.

Spectacle:

       The spectacle is the pleasure of tragedy. Spectacle is the overall visual appearance of the stage and the actor. ''the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the port.''  It is related with the stage performance. But he also says that those who rely on spectacle create a sense which is not of the terrible, but only of the monstrous effect.

Character Sketch of Mr. Uttersen in 'DR. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde',

             Except for the last two Chapters, most part of the novel is seen through the eyes of Mr. Utterson, In the novel Mr. Uttersen  functions as the "eyes" of "conscience" through which we can evaluate most of the novel.Therefore We can say that - 

              'if Utterson is deceived in his opinion of some event, then the reader is likewise deceived. This is because Utterson is such a fine, objective narrator who represents a highly moral and upright person; thus, we believe all that he says, and since he is a man of such prominence and integrity, we cannot doubt his explanation or his view of any event.'

            Utterson is a strange case of opposites. We first hear that he has a fond of wine but mortifies himself with gin instead. This, at first, sounds weird for a moral narrator, but then we are told that he is not censorious — that is, he is not anxious to judge and condemn his fellow man. This allows many people of differing degrees to come to him to seek advice, and it allows him to be privy to the secrets of the great and the less great. Yet, he also possesses an intense loyalty to his friends and is constantly concerned for their welfare. This attribute allows him to be deeply distressed over Dr. Jekyll's relationship with Mr. Edward Hyde. That is, Utterson is a shrewd judge of character, and he sees in Edward Hyde an immoral and evil person, and he is deeply concerned for his friend's (Dr. Jekyll's) well-being.

       For example, when he is convinced that Edward Hyde has injured Dr. Jekyll, he is quick to take action and break down the door to the laboratory in order to come to his friend's aid.

         Utterson is also the type of person who inspires trust — and deservedly so. When his friend Dr. Lanyon leaves a note not to be opened until Dr. Jekyll's death or disappearance, he is tempted to read it in order to see if there is any information which will assist Dr. Jekyll. Yet his honor forces him to store the document away without reading it.

       Ultimately, we do not know how Utterson is affected by the revelation found in Dr. Lanyon's and Dr. Jekyll's confessions, but from the horror of seeing Dr. Jekyll at the window, when Dr. Jekyll apparently began changing into Hyde, we can assume that Utterson was deeply affected, but due to his objective control over life and its vicissitudes — as a lawyer he has seen all types of criminals — we can assume that, unlike Dr. Lanyon, Utterson was able to survive.

Central Theme and Symbolism in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

The Duality of Human Nature

         Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde centers upon a concept of humanity as dual in nature,  we  does not find this theme in the begininig  but, when we read the complete story , at the end of the story  the Jekyll-Hyde relationship is revealed. There the theme of The Duality of Human Nature emerges, We conformely find the theory of a dual human nature explicitly only after having witnessed all of the events of the novel, including Hyde’s crimes and his ultimate eclipsing of Jekyll. The novel is not only the dipiction of  duality of human nature but it also forces uf to think about the hight of this duality.

        Jekyll claims that “man is not truly one, but truly two,” and he imagines the human soul as the battleground for an “angel” and a “demon,” and  they were struggling for mastery. But his potion id different and he try to purify each element, but he  succeeds only in bringing the dark side into being.  Once unleashed, Hyde slowly takes over, until Jekyll ceases to exist. If man is half angel and half demon, one wonders what happens to the “angel” at the end of the novel.

       Perhaps the angel gives way permanently to Jekyll’s devil. Or perhaps Jekyll is simply mistaken: man is not “truly two” but is first and foremost the primitive creature embodied in Hyde, brought under tentative control by civilization, law, and conscience. According to this theory, the potion simply strips away the civilized veneer, exposing man’s essential nature. Certainly, the novel goes out of its way to paint Hyde as animalistic—he is hairy and ugly; he conducts himself according to instinct rather than reason; Utterson describes him as a “troglodyte,” or primitive creature.

       Yet if Hyde were just an animal, we would not expect him to take such delight in crime. Indeed, he seems to commit violent acts against innocents for no reason except the joy of it—something that no animal would do. He appears deliberately and happily immoral rather than amoral; he knows the moral law and basks in his breach of it. For an animalistic creature, furthermore, Hyde seems oddly at home in the urban landscape. All of these observations imply that perhaps civilization, too, has its dark side.

        Ultimately, while Stevenson clearly asserts human nature as possessing two aspects, he leaves open the question of what these aspects constitute. Perhaps they consist of evil and virtue; perhaps they represent one’s inner animal and the veneer that civilization has imposed. Stevenson enhances the richness of the novel by leaving us to look within ourselves to find the answers.

The Importance of Reputation

          For the characters in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, preserving one’s reputation emerges as all important. The prevalence of this value system is evident in the way that upright men such as Utterson and Enfield avoid gossip at all costs; they see gossip as a great destroyer of reputation. Similarly, when Utterson suspects Jekyll first of being blackmailed and then of sheltering Hyde from the police, he does not make his suspicions known; part of being Jekyll’s good friend is a willingness to keep his secrets and not ruin his respectability. The importance of reputation in the novel also reflects the importance of appearances, facades, and surfaces, which often hide a sordid underside. In many instances in the novel, Utterson, true to his Victorian society, adamantly wishes not only to preserve Jekyll’s reputation but also to preserve the appearance of order and decorum, even as he senses a vile truth lurking underneath.

SYMBOLISM

      Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

Jekyll’s House and Laboratory

       Dr. Jekyll lives in a well-appointed home, characterized by Stevenson as having “a great air of wealth and comfort.” His laboratory is described as “a certain sinister block of building … [which] bore in every feature the marks of profound and sordid negligence.” With its decaying facade and air of neglect, the laboratory quite neatly symbolizes the corrupt and perverse Hyde. Correspondingly, the respectable, prosperous-looking main house symbolizes the respectable, upright Jekyll. Moreover, the connection between the buildings similarly corresponds to the connection between the personas they represent. The buildings are adjoined but look out on two different streets. Because of the convoluted layout of the streets in the area, the casual observer cannot detect that the structures are two parts of a whole, just as he or she would be unable to detect the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde.

Hyde’s Physical Appearance

           According to the indefinite remarks made by his overwhelmed observers, Hyde appears repulsively ugly and deformed, small, shrunken, and hairy. His physical ugliness and deformity symbolizes his moral hideousness and warped ethics. Indeed, for the audience of Stevenson’s time, the connection between such ugliness and Hyde’s wickedness might have been seen as more than symbolic. Many people believed in the science of physiognomy, which held that one could identify a criminal by physical appearance. Additionally, Hyde’s small stature may represent the fact that, as Jekyll’s dark side, he has been repressed for years, prevented from growing and flourishing. His hairiness may indicate that he is not so much an evil side of Jekyll as the embodiment of Jekyll’s instincts, the animalistic core beneath Jekyll’s polished exterior.

Characteristics of The Pre Raphaelite Poetry

         The Victorian period is remarkable because of its various trends. The Pre Raphaelite movement was started by D. G. Rossetti in mid ninetieth century. It was originally not a literary but an artistic movement. Rossetti himself was a painter. He felt that contemporary painting has become a formal and unrealistic. He wanted to go back to the realism, sensuousness and devotion to detail. There were features of art of Indian painter before a Raphael. Rossetti and other member of the group were both the poet and painter. Thus the Pre Raphaelite poetry came in to existence in poetry. The movement was against contemporary poetry of Tennyson and others. According to him contemporary poetry is deals with the problems of society. The wanted to write poetry based on aesthetic pleasure.

       Pre Raphaelite poetry was influenced by several poets of thirteenth century of Italy. The group of poet was inspired by Spencer’s symbolism and sensuousness of Keats and mysticism of Shelly in the Pre Raphaelite poetry.

Let us discuss the remarkable feature of the Pre Raphaelite Poetry.

Break With Tradition:

       Pre Raphaelite poetry was revolt against the set tradition of the poet like Tennyson. The Pre Raphaelites opposed the over concern of poets like Tennyson and those poets were depicting contemporary social and political problems. The Pre Raphaelite poets escaped from the realism of such poetry. They took shelter in a dream world of their own.

Medievalism:

        The middle age influenced many poets before Raphael. The Romantic poet like Keats, Coleridge, and Scott under such influenced. D. G. Rossetti and Morris has special urge for medievalism. They were attracted to the Romantic chivalry, mystery and supernaturalism of the Middle Ages. Rossetti’s poem ‘The Blessed Damozel’ and ‘Sister Hallen’ are full of spirit of Middle Ages. Most work of Morris like the ‘Earthly Paradise’ and so connected with the spirit.

Devotion to Detail:

            The Pre Raphaelites were connected more about particular in their painting and in their poetry. The devotion to detail purely visual in both painting and poetry. The detail of poetry was both auditory as well as visual. Every Pre Raphaelite poet had this tendency. D. G. Rossetti’s ‘The Blessed Damozel’ is devoted to detail.

Sensuousness:

           Like Rossetti most Pre Raphaelite poets were painter as well as poet. We find the element of sensuousness in their poetry. The poets of group were more devoted to detail. Whenever he described human body or physical passion, they deal it in detail. The result was the poetry becomes sensuous. The poem ‘Silent Moon’, and ‘The Blessed Damozel’ have a quality. Because of the sensuousness the Poetry of The Pre Raphaelite is also blamed to the flaccid.  

Art for Art’s sake:

           The Pre Raphaelites were the advocate of the theory of art for art’s sake. They aimed to give perfect and finish to their poetry. Like Dryden and Pope the movement was artistic. It revolted against didacticism and philosophy of Tennyson and Morris. Morris himself calls him – ‘an idle singer of an empty day’. He advised to the moral and spiritual issues from the poetry.

Music and Melody:

        The Pre Raphaelite poetry is rich in music. The Pre Raphaelite poet cultivated it with special efforts. The poetry has the quality of the wave of the Melody. The poetry of Swinburne is indeed musical and melodious. His ‘The Garden of Proserpine’ is musical having electoral and rhyme.

Picturesqueness:

        The Pre Raphaelite poetry was strongly pictorial because of those writes who wrote a natural work. They were mostly a painter also. The aim of those poets was to create the landscape painting in poetry. This poetry is notable for its word picture like –

“The blessed damozel leaned out,

From the gold bar of heaven”.

Love of Symbolism:

          Another remarkable characteristic of movement was its love of symbolism. This is Medieval note and Rossetti learnt it from Dante. William Morris and A C Swinburne  also obediently used symbolism.

Kinship with the Romantic Literature:

       The Pre Raphaelite poetry is very close to Romantic Poetry. It has some characteristics which Romanticism have. They derived the love of aesthetic pleasure by Scott, Coleridge and Keats. Pictorial quality and melody by Keats and Coleridge, supernaturalism from Coleridge. Of all Romantic Poets Keats made great input on Pre Raphaelites. Rossetti and Morris called the worshiper of beauty. It was truly called by Rickets. The Pre Raphael movement was the logical development of Romanticism.

Conclusion:

         In short, The Pre Raphaelite movement was entirely a new one. It may be considered to be direct and legitimate development of Romantic Revival in England.

Character Sketch of Dr. Jekyll in 'DR. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'

             Dr. Jekyll is the  prominent character of ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’. He is  popular  scientist of London, who is well known for his dinner parties. Jekyll is a large hearted, and very handsome man of perhaps fifty. He is owner of a large estate and has recently drawn up his will, leaving his immense fortune to a man whom Jekyll's lawyer, Utterson, thoroughly disapproves of.

       Jekyll's own story of his life is recorded in his "Statement," which comprises the entirety of Chapter 10.

      "He was born to a good family, had a good education, and was respected by all who knew him. As a youth, he thinks that perhaps he was too light-hearted. He confesses to many youthful indiscretions, which he says that he enjoyed very much — indiscretions which he was very careful to keep secret. However, there came a time when he realized that his professional career could be ruined if one of these indiscretions were to be exposed, and so he repressed them."

         Now, however, When  he is middle-aged, he has been fascinated with the theory that man has a "good" side and a "bad" side, and he has decided to investigate the theory. His investigations were successful; he compounded a potion that could release the "evil" in a person in the form of an entirely different physical person, one who would take over one's own body and soul. Then one could commit acts of evil and feel no guilt; furthermore, one could drink the same potion and be transformed back into one's original self.

       Jekyll's evil dimension took the form of Edward Hyde, a man who committed any number of crimes and performed acts of sexual perversion; seemingly, his most serious crime is the vicious murder of Sir Danvers Carew, a Member of Parliament.

          Jekyll's fascination with his "other" self became so obsessive that he was finally no longer able to control the metamorphosis process, and Edward Hyde began appearing whenever he wanted to — and not at the command of Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll became, therefore, a frightened recluse, trying desperately to control Hyde, but successively failing, especially whenever he would doze off. Finally, crazed by anxiety and a lack of sleep, he hears Utterson and Poole, his butler, breaking down his private study door and, in desperation, he commits suicide, but just as he loses consciousness, Hyde appears, and it is the writhing body of the dying Hyde which Utterson and Poole discover.

Symbolism in The Bishop's Candlesticks

          After being released from the Prision after nineteen years, Jean Valjean (convict) cannot imagine how to lead his life in any other way than through theft and concealment. When the Bishop shows kindness towards him by giving him dinner and a room for the night, Valjean is shock and overwhelmed, but is still unable to prevent himself from stealing the Bishop’s ornate silver candlesticks and running away in the middle of the night. 

        When Jean Valjean (convict)  is brought back by the police, the Bishop exclaims that the candlesticks were a gift to Valjean, and that the policemen should let him go. The candlesticks thus symbolize the mercy shown to Valjean by the Bishop, as well as humility and goodness in the Bishop’s lack of interest in beautiful possessions and wealth. The candlesticks also reappear at various moments throughout the novel, as Valjean keeps them close to him as a reminder of the man and the act that began his transformation. That he nearly throws them into the fire at one point reveals just how closely Valjean equates the candlesticks with the Bishop’s system of morality and mercy—by keeping them rather than throwing them out, Valjean recommits himself to the new path he’s chosen.