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Plato's Cosmological Medicine in the Discourse of Eryximachus in The LAURA CANDIOTTO | 81 Plato’s cosmological medicine in the discourse of Eryximachus in the Symposium. The responsibility of a harmonic technê Laura Candiotto University of Edinburgh [email protected] ABSTRACT By comparing the role of harmony in the philosopher is also doctor, musician and Eryximachus’ discourse (specifically in demiurges in his harmonizing activity. The Symposium 187 a 1-188 a 1) with other speech of Eryximachus can be approached Platonic passages, especially from the as a Platonic step which is fundamental for Timaeus, this article aims to provide textual establishing the need for a “medicine” to cure evidence concerning Plato’s conception of disorder, with a view to obtaining a cosmos cosmological medicine as “harmonic technê”. ordered according to the harmonic principle. The comparison with other dialogues will enable us to demonstrate how Eryximachus’ Keywords : Plato’s Symposium; Eryximachus; thesis is consistent with Plato’s cosmology — harmony; cosmological medicine; technê; a cosmology which cannot be reduced to a education. physical conception of reality but represents the expression of a dialectical and erotic cosmos, characterized by the agreement of parts. Arguably, Eryximachus’ discourse is expression of the Platonic tendency to translate onto the philosophical plane the implications of a model peri physeôs. Harmonic technê is thus always linked to the theme of moral responsibility: http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/2183-4105_15_5 82 | Plato’s cosmological medicine in the discourse of Eryximachus in the Symposium. The responsibility of a harmonic technê 1. ERYXIMACHUS 2. THE STRUCTURE OF ERYXIMACHUS’ DISCOURSE Eryximachus is a physikos belonging to a family of doctors (his father is Acumenus) Eryximachus’s discourse can be subdivided whose members trace their origin back to As‑ into six sections:5 clepius. As a Platonic character, we find him in — in addition to the Symposium — Protago‑ Prologue: Eryximachus refers to the dis‑ ras 315 c 2, where he questions Hippias about course of Pausanias, saying that it is right nature, astronomy and meteorology. Moreover, to retain a double nature for Eros but that he is cited in Phaedrus 268 a9 as Phaedrus’s such double nature needs to be extended friend.1 An Eryximachus is cited among those to the whole cosmos. who had desecrated the Herms in 415, but it is Section 1: Eros and medicine. The body not clear whether or not he is the Eryximachus manifests Eros’ double nature in the coe‑ that we are concerned with here. xistence of healthy desires and unhealthy In opposition to those who consider Eryxi‑ desires. Medicine is the science of the 2 machus a pedant, whose discourse is refuted erotic tendencies of the body to fill and 3 by Diotima’s discourse, this paper proposes an empty itself. It enables the distinction be‑ interpretation emphasizing literary and philo‑ tween healthy and unhealthy desires. The sophical aspects which enable us to grasp the task of the doctor is to transform the fight positive significance carried by Eryximachus’ between the two Erotes in friendship by 4 discourse within the Symposium. operating on opposites: cold/hot, bitter/ Eryximachus represents temperance or — sweet, dry/humid. we could say on the basis of what will be dem‑ Section 2: Eros and music. Eryximachus onstrated below — the concept of harmony: as comments on Heraclitus’ fragment DK a symposiarch he decides the correct balance 22 b51, interpreting it from a temporal with respect to the proportions of water and perspective: the doctor musician is able wine (176 b 5 ‑e 3), as a doctor he proposes a to create harmony from an initial discord. therapy for Aristophanes’ hiccups (185 c 7 ‑8), He operates thus through a technique as a good musician he establishes the order of which is able to transform the discor‑ discourses and restores it after the disorder dant into concordant. Music is then the generated by Alcibiades’ arrival (214 a 6 ‑b 8). science of love of harmony and rhythm. Arguably, by grasping these aspects, and con‑ It is important to take care of both for‑ necting them to what we will say on the notion ms of Eros, using cautiously that of the of cosmological medicine that emerges from muse Polyhymnia, enjoying its pleasure his (Eryximachus’) speech, it will be possible without falling sick. to question, at least partially, the assumption Section 3: Eros and meteorology and as‑ that Eryximachus’ discourse is pedantic and tronomy. Prosperity and Health happen sophistic. when the opposites find themselves reciprocally united in an ordered love and support each other in harmony and temperate mixture. When excessive Eros prevails (ho meta tês hybreôs Eros), which LAURA CANDIOTTO | 83 leads to imbalance, we witness epidemics, According to Eryximachus, nature is com‑ disease and destruction. posed of opposite forces whose dynamics create Section 4: Eros and religion. Friendship movement and transformation. The doctor qua between men and Gods happens by se‑ good physicist and knower of the cosmos must conding ordered Eros. know the erotic tendencies of elements in order Epilogue: Eryximachus concludes by to help them to come together in relations of saying that Eros possesses a universal mutual friendship. In Eryximachus’ discourse, power and that happiness comes from which inherits Pausanias’ conception of double that Eros which aims at the good with Eros, Empedocles’ two cosmic forces — philia justness and moderation. He then passes and neikos — assume an immanent character the baton to Aristophanes, inviting him as forces that compose nature in ordered and to fill the gaps in his speech. disordered forms. Equilibrium is dynamic: in Empedoclean terms, it is possible to maintain that the predominance of philia over neikos does not cancel out neikos but shapes it in the 3. THE CONCEPT OF HARMONY right proportion. Eryximachus thus transforms IN ERIXYMACHUS’ PHYSICS the Empedoclean perspective which defines the starting point of his discourse by emphasizing By focusing on the relationship between the necessary coexistence of the two forces.8 philosophy and physics — particularly Hera‑ Such coexistence will not be conflictual as in clitus and Empedocles’ physics — it is possible Heraclitus, but it will unfold in harmonic pro‑ to individuate more clearly the Platonic posi‑ portion. Subsequently Eryximachus transforms tion present in Eryximachus’ discourse. This Heraclitus’ own maxim (DK 22, b51) to his own position differs from the pre ‑Socratic approach, advantage. and can be considered as Plato’s particular in‑ terpretation of Greek medicine. In fact, medi‑ [...] perhaps Heracleitus intends as much cine and philosophy emerge from the same by those perplexing words, ‘The One at cultural and professional substratum, with variance with itself is drawn together, ample and persistent reciprocal influences.6 like harmony of bow or lyre.’ Now it is Hippocrates is Plato’s contemporary, albeit perfectly absurd to speak of a harmony younger. It is therefore easy to think that Plato, at variance, or as formed from things still through Eryximachus, presents his interpreta‑ varying. Perhaps he meant, however, that tion of medical theory, establishing a dialogical from the grave and acute which were va‑ relation with the Hippocratic Corpus.7 This ap‑ rying before, but which afterwards came proach is consistent with the method employed to agreement, the harmony was by mu‑ by Plato against tradition or against the domi‑ sical art created. For surely there can be nant doctrines of his time: Plato develops his no harmony of acute and grave while still positions starting from these doctrines, but he at variance: harmony is consonance, and rewrites them to his advantage, giving them a consonance is a kind of agreement; and different interpretation. As discussed below, agreement of things varying, so long as a clear example of this method is the Platonic they are at variance, is impossible.9 (trad. interpretation of Heraclitus. H. N. Fowler) 84 | Plato’s cosmological medicine in the discourse of Eryximachus in the Symposium. The responsibility of a harmonic technê This is one of the most commented ‑on pas‑ together (syn + pherô) what is not together: the sages of Eryximachus’ speech, especially be‑ elements are held together by something else cause it can be considered as one of the sources (the middle ‑passive form is used). In other frag‑ for reconstructing the Platonic interpretation ments, however, we find the same sympheretai of Heraclitus. In the context of this article, I attributed to Heraclitus (DK 8), and this may would like to highlight the concept of harmony suggest a general equivalence of the two terms that is expressed here through a shift in the in our author. However, in terms of the Pla‑ meaning of Heraclitus’ utterance. Harmony is tonic reception, it is interesting to underline not realized by discordant things but by trans‑ that Plato interprets Heraclitus according to the forming discordant things into concordant sympheretai paradigm, and thus according to a ones. For Eryximachus, Heraclitus intended process that holds together what is not together, to say that harmony is realized by things that namely the opposites. were previously discordant and that, thanks to In this way, Eryximachus emphasizes the medical praxis, become concordant. Harmony role of technique and of human action in the is in fact both consonance (symphônia), and universe. Such a role consists of creating a dy‑ agreement (homologia). namic equilibrium by transforming discordant The word homologia
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