Friday, August 18, 2023
Poets as Teachers
Aristophanes, Frogs 1053-1056 (tr. Stephen Halliwell):
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It did, but still it's the poet's duty to draw a veil over evil
And not to stage or teach such matters. For just as smaller children
Have a teacher who tells them things, so poets are teachers to those who are adults.
We've a serious duty to say what's best.
μὰ Δί᾽, ἀλλ᾽ ὄντ᾽· ἀλλ᾽ ἀποκρύπτειν χρὴ τὸ πονηρὸν τόν γε ποιητήν,
καὶ μὴ παράγειν μηδὲ διδάσκειν. τοῖς μὲν γὰρ παιδαρίοισιν
ἔστι διδάσκαλος ὅστις φράζει, τοῖσιν δ᾽ ἡβῶσι ποιηταί.
πάνυ δὴ δεῖ χρηστὰ λέγειν ἡμᾶς.
