The Republic · ¶4786

Art. [Art, according to the conception of Plato, is not a collection of canons of criticism, but a subtle influence which pervades all things animate as well as inanimate (3. 400, 401). He knows nothing of ‘schools’ or of the history of art, nor does he select any building or statue for condemnation or admiration. [Cp. Protag. 311 C, where Pheidias is casually mentioned as the typical sculptor, and Meno 91 D, where Socrates says that Pheidias, ‘although he wrought such exceedingly noble works,’ did not make nearly so much money by them as Protagoras did by his wisdom.] Plato judges art by one test, ‘simplicity,’ but under this he includes moderation, purity, and harmony of proportion; and he would extend to sculpture and architecture the same rigid censorship which he has already applied to poetry and music (3. 401 A). He dislikes the ‘illusions’ of painting (10. 602) and the ‘false…

Plato · translated by Benjamin Jowett · composite transcription based on the 1888 third edition
Benjamin Jowett, revised third edition (1888), with Stephanus numbering from the 1908 edition; composite transcription, Project Gutenberg #55201
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