Republic, Plato’s 7th letter and the concept of Δωριστὶ ζῆν

If we accept the 7th letter as authentic and reliable, a matter that we will not be addressing in this paper, the text that we have in front of us is “an extraordinary autobiographic document”, an autobiography where the “I” as a subject becomes “I” as an object, according to Brisson. The objective of the paper is to examine how we could approach and interpret the excerpt from Plato’s 7th letter regarding the Doric way of life (Δωριστὶ ζῆν). According to Plato, the Sicilian life (Σικελικὸν βίον) that was allegedly a blissful life (βίος εὐδαίμων) would never allow anyone to become virtuous with all these excesses on behalf of the appetitive part of the soul (ἐπιθυμητικόν). In contrast to this specific type of life that is presented as prevalent in the 7th Letter, only Dion used to live virtuously above pleasure and luxury. The “therapy” for this φλεγμαίνουσαν πόλιν of Syracuse is the return to Δωριστὶ ζῆν κατὰ τὰ πάτρια, the return to the Doric way of the forefathers. The phrase Δωριστὶ ζῆν in its context in the 7th Letter is an important one, because it probably shows the significance of adopting the Doric way of life, in order to create the appropriate conditions for a political reform. Examining the guardians who are the ἄριστοι of the ideal city, a class that constitutes the platonic idea of aristocracy in the Republic, we can understand that they receive many important traits from the Doric ideal (especially the educational program). Combining the concept of Δωριστὶ ζῆν with the Doric ideal, we suggest that the Doric model is quite important for the Athenian philosopher functioning as the cornerstone of reform

Philosophy and gymnastike in classical Greek philosophy

L’objectif de cette thèse est d’étudier le rôle et la fonction de la gymnastique dans la tradition de la pensée classique. En établissant le contexte, dans lequel Platon et Aristote travaillent et développent leur avis sur la gymnastique, on comprend qu’il y a trois types de gymnastique dans la tradition grecque. Ces trois types sont la gymnastique militaire, qui s’associe aux épopées homériques, la gymnastique athlétique, qui s’associe aux odes pindariques et la gymnastique médicale, qui s’associe au corpus hippocratique. Platon et Aristote reprennent les catégories déjà existantes, en élaborant le concept de chaque catégorie reprise. Platon incorpore la gymnastique dans le programme éducatif, mais il rejette la gymnastique athlétique. Hippocrate influence la pensée du philosophe athénien, qui utilise bien des éléments de la gymnastique médicale. La gymnastique possède le pouvoir de fortifier le thymique. Platon condamne chaque excès à propos de la gymnastique, parce que ce manque de modération cultive le thymique, provoquant des déséquilibres psychologiques et civiques. La gymnastique joue un rôle essentiel dans le processus vers la Forme du Beau, dans la mesure où elle s’associe directement à la beauté corporelle qui déclenche ce processus d’ascension vers l’Idée du Κάλλος. Aristote incorpore aussi la gymnastique dans le programme de formation de « la cité la meilleure ». Aristote prend grand soin de la condition corporelle des enfants, montrant en quelque sorte les résultats négatifs de la gymnastique immodérée. Il critique ainsi la gymnastique athlétique, tandis qu’il souligne que la gymnastique militaire excessive conduit à la détérioration sociopolitique.The purpose of this thesis is to study the role and the function of gymnastike in the tradition of Classical Greek thought. Studying the context in which Plato and Aristotle developed their ideas concerning gymnastike, we comprehend that there are three types of gymnastike in Greek tradition, the military gymnastike (related to the Homeric epics), the athletic gymnastike (related to the Pindaric odes) and the medical gymnastike (related to the Hippocratic corpus). Plato and Aristotle revisit and elaborate these categories. Plato incorporates gymnastike into his educational program, but he rejects the athletic gymnastike. Hippocrates influences Plato, who seems to utilize many elements of this type (medical gymnastike). It seems that gymnastike has the ability to fortify the thymic part of the soul, nevertheless, Plato condems every excessive use of gymnastike, since this lack of moderation cultivates the thymic part, provoking psychological and civic imbalances. Gymnastike is an important factor regarding the “ascension” towards the Form of Beauty (Κάλλος). Equally, Aristotle incorporates gymnastike in his educational program. He takes great care to protect children’s physical condition, indicating in a way the negative aspects of immoderate gymnastike. Thus, he criticizes the athletic gymnastike. Aristotle underlines that the excessive use of military gymnastike leads to a socio-political deterioration