The Practice of Soul-Leading by Means of Rhetoric and Myth in Plato's Phaedrus a Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School Of
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THE PRACTICE OF SOUL-LEADING BY MEANS OF RHETORIC AND MYTH IN PLATO’S PHAEDRUS A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY ALİ NEJAT KANIYAŞ IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY MAY 2018 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts. Prof. Dr. Şeref Halil Turan Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Samet Bağçe Supervisor Examining Committee Members Prof. Dr. Ertuğrul R. Turan (AÜ, Felsefe Bölümü) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Samet Bağçe (METU, PHIL) Asst. Prof. Dr. Aret Karademir (METU, PHIL) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Ali Nejat Kanıyaş Signature : iii ABSTRACT THE PRACTICE OF SOUL-LEADING BY MEANS OF RHETORIC AND MYTH IN PLATO’S PHAEDRUS Kanıyaş, Ali Nejat M.A., Department of Philosophy Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Samet Bağçe May 2018, 87 pages This study aims at explaining the fundamental use or the function of mythic imagery that take place within the Phaedrus dialogue by Plato. The Platonic dialogues have utilized myths and poetic language in many instances, yet Phaedrus constitutes a rather strange case, since the mythic imagery is placed within a section that seemingly has no ties with the rest of the dialogue. The curious case of Phaedrus is that the text can be said to have been divided into two distinct parts. In each part, the theme and the textual structure display certain substantial differences. As it has been observed throughout many generations of scholars, the first half of the dialogue is a series of discussions on the nature of love. The mythic imagery occupies a substantial place within the context of those accounts of love. The second half of the dialogue, however, is almost exclusively reserved for the art of rhetoric. As this study demonstrates there have been numerous attempts at uniting these two halves of the dialogue. This thesis attempts to give another account for the case of a unified dialogue, and argues that the element that bridges the two halves of the dialogue is the notion of “soul-leading”. Keywords: Plato, myth, rhetoric, Eros, unity. iv ÖZ PLATON’UN PHAİDROS’UNDA RETORİK VE MİT YOLUYLA RUHA REHBERLİK PRATİĞİ Kanıyaş, Ali Nejat Yüksek Lisans, Felsefe Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi: Doç. Dr. Samet Bağçe Mayıs 2018, 87 sayfa Bu çalışma Platon’un Phaidros diyaloğunda yer alan mitik imgelerin temel itibariyle nasıl bir işlev ya da kullanım görmüş olabileceğine dair bir açıklama getirmeyi hedeflemektedir. Platonik diyalogların mitik imgelere birçok sefer yer vermiş olduğu bilinmektedir, bununla birlikte Phaidros ilginç bir vaka teşkil etmektedir. Zira, mitik imge diyaloğun geri kalanıyla görünürde bir bağ taşımayan bir bölüm içine yerleştirilmiştir. Phaidros’un ilgi çekici tarafı metnin iki ayrı parçaya bölünmüş gibi görünmesinden ileri gelmektedir. Her bir kısım tematik ve yapısal anlamda bir diğerinden dikkate değer bir şekilde farklılıklar göstermektedir. Nesiller boyunca birçok okurun da gözlemlediği üzere, diyaloğun ilk yarısında aşkın doğası hakkında yürütülen bir dizi tartışma yer almaktadır. Mitik imgeler aşk hakkında yapılan bu tartışmalar bağlamında metinde yer bulmaktadır. Diyaloğun ikinci yarısı ise neredeyse tamamen retorik sanatıyla ilgili tartışmalara ayrılmıştır. Bu çalışmanın ortaya koyduğu üzere diyaloğun bu iki yarısı arasında bir bütünlük bulmak üzere birçok girişimde bulunulmuştur. Bu tez diyaloğun bir bütünlük taşıdığını savunmak adına, diyaloğun iki yarısını bir araya getiren öğenin “ruh rehberliği” fikri olduğunu iddia etmektedir. Tezin temel iddiası şudur ki, diyaloğun ikinci yarısı bir retorikçinin karşısındaki kişiyi v felsefe yoluna girmek konusunda ikna etmek için sahip olması gereken kimi becerileri sıralamaktayken, diyaloğun ilk yarısı bu becerilerin uygulamadaki karşılığını örneklemektedir. Anahtar sözcükler: Platon, mit, retorik, Eros, birlik. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Samet Bağçe for his patience, guidance, encouragement and invaluable criticisms throughout this study. His approach to Platonic philosophy has been incredibly inspiring, as well as being refreshing in a discipline that has a tendency to go stale. I would also like to thank Prof. Dr. Ertuğrul R. Turan for his insightful criticisms and suggestions which have helped me develop my outlook on the issue at hand. I also would like to thank Asst. Prof. Dr. Aret Karademir for his invaluable advice on shaping the overall argumentative structure of this thesis, and sharp criticisms. There is no doubt that a study of this caliber cannot possibly do justice to the incredible depth and intricacies of the behemoth that is the Platonic philosophy. Nevertheless, this thesis represents a humble and timid attempt to take the first steps of a life long journey. I would like to thank my parents Halit and Nermin Kanıyaş for their incredible support, unbelievable patience and the truly unconditional love that they have given me. My sole hope is that someday I might honor them with my craft. I also would like to thank Övünç Özbey for his guidance, inspired criticisms and friendship as a true philosopher, and Mert Kireççi for his invaluable support and advice on many ups and downs of such an endeavor, as well as his tremendous help in the final corrections of the thesis. Last but not least, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Neva Çöğendez who has always been there for me. She has given me her love, care and true friendship when I needed her the most. She has helped me in my time of need, and loved me immensely. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM ............................................................................................................. iii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ iv ÖZ ................................................................................................................................. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... vii TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................... viii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 1 2. AN OVERVIEW OF PHAEDRUS .................................................................... 5 2.1 The First Half of Phaedrus ..................................................................................... 6 2.1.1 Lysias’ Speech on Love ............................................................ 7 2.1.2 Socrates’ First Speech on Love ................................................. 9 2.1.3 Socrates’ Second Speech on Love: The Palinode ................... 11 2.2 The Second Half of Phaedrus .............................................................................. 14 2.2.1 Rhetoric and its Soul-leading Capabilities .............................. 15 2.2.2 Guidelines for the Art of Rhetoric ........................................... 16 3. INTERPRETING THE DISUNITY IN PHAEDRUS ...................................... 18 3.1 The Need for Unity ............................................................................................... 20 3.2 Thematic Approach .............................................................................................. 26 3.2.1 Rhetoric as the Primary Theme ............................................... 26 3.2.2 Eros as the Primary Theme ..................................................... 29 3.3 Non-Thematic Approach ...................................................................................... 30 viii 3.3.1 Dramatic Unity ........................................................................ 32 3.3.2 Formal-structural Unity .......................................................... 33 3.4 A Possible Solution: Soul-leading by Means of Rhetoric as the Unifying Element ................................................................................................. 36 4. SOUL-LEADING AS THE UNIFYING ELEMENT ..................................... 41 4.1 On the Rhetorical Skills of Socrates in Phaedrus ................................................ 42 4.1.1 On the Skillful Practice of Rhetoric in Phaedrus ................... 44 4.1.1.1 Knowledge Regarding the Subject Matter ............... 49 4.1.1.2 Knowledge Regarding the Soul of the Interlocutor . 51 4.1.1.3 Organic Composition of the Speech ........................ 53 4.1.2 On the Malpractice of Rhetoric ............................................... 54 4.1.2.1 Lysias’ Speech ......................................................... 55 4.1.2.2 Socrates’ First Speech ............................................. 56 4.2 Skillful Soul-leading in Practice: The Palinode ................................................... 58 4.2.1 The Philosopher’s Practice of Rhetoric .................................. 59