Phaedrus

Rhetoric, Socrates continues, is the art of influencing the soul, and therefore an orator must know the particular traits of the particular soul he is trying to influence. Just as different medicines work with different bodies, so different techniques of persuasion will work on different types of souls.

If we want to discuss anything clearly, Socrates continues, we must ask whether or not the topic or thing is part of a whole (“complex”) or singular (“simple”). If it belongs to a larger group (for example, a single soul among many, or a single body among many), one must determine the “essential nature” of the object. Socrates asserts that this is the only true way to discuss anything “scientifically”; any other method falls short of this goal and is of no value. Socrates reminds Phaedrus that they still haven’t discussed the relationship of written to spoken speeches, and he proposes to tell one more myth to help him begin this final topic.

Socrates states that Thoth, an Egyptian god, came before the Egyptian king to present his inventions. One of these was writing, which Thoth described as a way for humans to increase both their wisdom and their memory. The king, while accepting the worthiness of Thoth’s other inventions, rejected the gift of writing, predicting that it would have the opposite effect on his people: it would make them more forgetful and less wise.

Concluding the myth, Socrates raises a further objection to writing: one cannot question written words the way one can question a living speaker. In this way written words are similar to painting. Furthermore, written words can be read by both the informed and the uninformed, whereas a living speaker would choose different words for different audiences.

Socrates contrasts all of these shortcomings of writing with words that are “written on the soul of the hearer” (98). An idea that is remembered by the one who hears it, together with knowledge of the subject being discussed, is the best and most effective form of “writing” to Socrates. He admits that there are some limited uses for writing. A wise man might use it to help him remember important ideas when old age causes him to forget things, but such writings should never be used as a primary source of information. Writing for its own sake can be an amusing “pastime,” but never a serious pursuit on the same level as making speeches.