Ifwe examine Plato's works with reference to the first ofthese:'Tiscertainhedoesnotatfirstdash
distinctly
propose the Question on which he treats.
Plato - 1701 - Works - a
And'tisonlybyhimthatwecanattainaLife of Bliss.
Inthe Letter he wrote,to Tdermias, Erasm, and^MrVr Corifcm to exhort 'em to live in Peace, he fays. Ton. 3. You must readmy Letter all three together ; and that
you may profit by it, you ought to implore the Assist' anceofGod the SoveraignLordofallthingsthatei ther are or Jhallbe; and the Father of thisSoveraign, whoistheCauseofBeings. IfwearetrulyPhiloso
phersweshallknowthisGod asclearlyasBlessedMen arecapable of knowing him.
Does notPlatointhismanifestlyfollowtheOpi
nionoftheHebrews? Forwhencecould hereceive this knowledg of God, the Father, and the Lord ? ,E^-
ofGod thecauseofBeings>, butfromtheirWri-J2J; tings, w h o taught him to give the Son the name of xi. i<s. Lord, of which none of the Greeks before him had everheard, orhadtheleastIdea?
Nor isitonlypretended,thathehadsomeknow-piatohad ledg of the Word, the Eternal Son of God, but/>>>><<W<< of some farther maintain, that he had some discovery ^. ^oly of the Holy Spirit-, and so had a certain Idea of rmy'
the most Holy Trinity :For thus he writes to young Dionysus, ImustdeclaretoArchedemus, thatwhichLetUrIt is m u c h m o r e p r e c i o u s a n d d i v i n e ; a n d w h i c h y o u h a v e Torn. 3, avery ardentdesiretoknow;sinceyousentexpress lytome onthatAicount. forasfarasIunderstand byhimyoudon'tbelieve Ihavesufficientlyexplain'd.
what I think of the Nature of thefirst Principle; I
must writeofthistoyouinEnigmas, thatifmyLet
ter
? ? 140
The Life osPhto. ,
terJhoulibeinterceptedbySeaorLand, bethatreads itmaynotbeabletocomprehendanything. Allthings are round about their King ; they exist by him, and he alone is the cause of good things^ Secondforse condthings, andthirdforthird.
In his Epinomis, and elsewhere, he establishes for Principles, the firstGood, the Word, or Under standing,orSoul. ThefirstGoodisGod-,andwhen hecallsGod, Goodness, orthefirstGood, hehad an Idea of this Truth, that Good isnothing but the NatureofGod,andhisInfiniteGoodness. This Good he explains in Terms very well worth the reading. As the Sun (fays he) gives to visible things,notonlythefacuityofbeingseen, butalso, their Birth, Nourishment and Growth, jujlso this
Bm^vrofGood, notonlymakesintelligiblethingsknowable,but btxKepub. aij0giVes 'em being, although that isnot EssenceJ>ut om. 2. jomg ot^gr fang fat infinttely surpasses Essence by
its Power and Majesty. TheWordorUnderstandingistheSon ofthe
first Good, who hath begotten him like himself A n d t h e S o u l w h i c h is t h e T e r m b e t w e e n t h e F a t h e r and the Son, isthe Holy Spirit.
I don't know whether without having recourse to these great Truths, w e could by Plato's Philosophy , explain these Passages which seem so strange, so as to give 'em another sense that should be natural, andagreeabletohisPrinciples. Imustfay,Ivery muchdoubtit. Nay,Iamperswadeditwouldbe verygreatTemerity, orratherImpiety, tointerpret
. . 'emafteranyothermanneraftertheDecisionof*so stau- manyFatnersoftheChurchandEcclesiastickWriters, gufiin, F? rtheytellusinexpressTerms,thatPlatohadthis
I St. Jcrom,knowledgoftheFatherandtheSon,andofhim that St. Cyril, proceedsfromthemboth,namelytheHolySpirit.
Theodo-' Origenisnotcontenttoassureusof the. fame ret,st. ck- thing, but accuses Celsus for having purposely over man, &c. look'd the Passage of the 6th Letter, because Jesus
Christisplainlyspoken ofinit. Which proves, that the ( hristtans were not the only Persons who- found
? ? 7he Life os Plato. ' 141
found these great Mysteries in Plato's Writings-, but thatthe Enemies of Christianity found 'em thereas well as. they, and were uneasy at the light of 'em.
Let us not by our Darkness cast a ihade over those Rays of Light which proceed from the Foun tain of Light it self-, but let. us acknowledge that Tlato not only knew all that Natural Reason could discoverconcerning God toaPhilosopher; but was
illuminatedbysupernaturalReasontoo. Havingbeen
instructedintheBooksoftheHebrews, inthoseof theProphets,andintheTraditionsoftheEgyptians, ?
hebecame favourablydispos'dtoreceivetheSeeds of t h e s e E t e r n a l T r u t h s ? , a n d w a s a s s i s t e d b y G r a c e , f o r
St. Augustin asserts, that Jesus Christ revealed 'em to him. Thatwhichisdeplorableisthathehascorrupted Howplat0
5embyhisReasonings. ForhespeaksoftheThreeJJJgJgg Persons ofthe Deity as of Three Gods,and Three dis- roitbwhich
ferentPrinciples. ThuswhilethesupremeReason en-bewasi/u- lighten'dhimononefide, Philosophyseduc'dhim? &"***by
ontheother:Thecommon unhappinefsofthosewho merely by Humane Reason go about to explain the MysteriesofGod, which arenot to beknown but from himself, and from those he has truly inipir'd.
That Plato had a particular knowledg of the Sacred Writings appears by many Passages in his W o r k s , a n d b y h i s E r r o r s t h e m s e l v e s ? , f o r t h e g r e a
testpart of his most erroneous Opinions proceed in some sort from that Source ofLight which daz zled him, and on which he has spread so much Darkness. This severalhaveobservedbeforenow.
That of theCreationofSoulsbeforeBodiesseems
tohave had no other Foundation than that Passage ofJeremiahs where God fays to this Holy Prophet. T BeforeIformedthee inthebellyIknewthee, This"'"'*'5" Philosopher notunderstandingthatGod callsthings
that are not as if they were ; and that he knows net only all that is,but also all that shall ever be, builtonthisTextthatErrorofhis, thatSoulsex istedbefore Bodies.
From the iame Divine Writings he extracted all the
? ? 141 A IheLifeofPlato. -
the greatTruths which he teaches, as when he fays theName ofGod ishethatisforthere'snonebut Godthattrulyis. ThisNameofGod,asSt. Au-
gustin observes, is not found in any profane Book more ancient than P/ato $ and this Philosopher could not have it from any other Books than those of Moses.
Whoisitthatdoesnotdiscernthestileofthe Prophets in that place of Phoedon ; where he de- scribes a pure Earth which is a*bove this of ours in Heaven, andincomparisonofwhichthiswe inhabit is no better than Dirt > In this every thing is corrupt, a n d w e a r e e n c o m p a s s ' d w i t h D a r k n e s s -, o r i f w e f e e any Light, 'tisthrough great Clouds, and very thick
Mists: whereas in the other, the true Light is to be <, seen; and everything initisadmirable. All things thereIhinewiththeglitteringLustreofGold, Jas
pers, Saphirs, and Emeralds ; and those that inha bit it enjoy a long Life which is not cross'd with a- ny incommodious Accident. The Ancients who dis- cover'd the Truth hid under these Images, show that they were extracted out of the Books of the holy Prophets,whocallHeaventheCityofGod, and the Land of the Righteous j. and prove, that the Names ofthese precious Stones are taken from the 54th Chapter of Isaiah, where God promises to Jay
So the
lxxums- Jaspers.
dirit.
Ishould be too prolix if I should here relate all
thatPlatohasdrawnfromthisFountain. 'Tissuf ficient to know, that what we find inhim of this kind, isso considerable, that it ought to'render his Writings very precious to us -, and that of all the Works ofthePagans, thereisnonemoreuseful,or that can be more serviceable to establish eternal
. Truths, to raise the Soul to the solid Contemplati on of the divine Essence, and to manifest the Beau tiesofthesacredScriptures. And"tisontheseAc-
the Foundation of his Church with Saphirs, and
Boot1. countsthathemeritedthatgreatEncomium, given "L;? . jf him byProcli/s. Truth (layshe)isspreadthrough
all
? ? The Use of Platb. , 143
'alPlato'i- Dialogues, more obscurely in some, and moreclearlyinothers. Wefindin'emev&rywhere grave,sensible,supernatural thoughts of thefirst
Philosophy, whichcarrythoseup tothepure imma terial Essence of God, who are in some sort in a condition,toparticipateofit. Andashewhohas
created every thing in the Wcrld by hispower, has in every part of this Universe placed Images of the
Gods, which areso many Proofs oftheir Existence, thatallthingsintheWorld might turntowards tbe Deity, because ofthe Union, and ifI may so say, n a t u r a l R e l a t i o n t h a t is b e t w e e n t h e m ; s o t h e M i n d o f Plato beingfilPd withtheDeity, hasdispersedhis ThoughtsofGodthroughallhisWorks. Hewould not suffer any single TraS to be destitute of this CharaSer, and without any thing spoken of God; that such as are truly enflanid with the Love of Divine thingsmightreceivesotneknowledgofthe
supreme Being from all his Writings, and so might have a fust Idea ofevery thing which cannot be known butinGodwho isTruthitself.
Having spoken ofNatural Philosophy and Mora- lity let us pals to the third part which isDialeffick. The Ancientswrite, thatPlatoperfectedPhiloso phy, by adding this part to Physicks and Ethicks : Butby thistheyonlymeanhe broughtDialellick,
Dhltftict.
whichistrueLogicktoitsperfection. IndeedPlato's Logick is more natural, more exact, and more solid than that which was in use before him, and than that the Rules of which have been published after him. For he teaches more by examples, than Precepts :
He alwayschoosesSubjectsthatarefamiliarand u s e f u l t o M o r a l i t y ? , a n d t r e a t e s ' e m n o t a s a D o c t o r ,
and as they do in the Schools, by Methodical Dis coursesandstudiedSyllogisms,butlikeaMan of Conversation by free Diicourfes, which properly maketheCharacterofDialectick. ThereforePlato preserv'd Socrates his method of Dialogue being fully convinc'd that Sciences ought to be taught by WordofMouth, andnotbyWriting,becauseMen
are
? ? ? 44
Ike Life of Plato. '
are better persuaded by the Tongue thafi the Pert} because the Answers, and Objections of the Learner, not only shew what progress Truth makes in his Mind jbut besidesgive an occasionofclearingup many Difficulties that lie in his Way, and which can'tallbeforeseeninWriting. Platoteachesbet terthan any Man how to speak with justness, to answerpreciselytowhatisasked, tolaydownthe
State of a Question exactly, and lead on the Argu ment directly. He shews perfectly well how to' make accurate Divisions, to define well, and to ex amine Definitions aright, that none may be suffer'd to escape that are not true.
He not only brought this Science to perfection but also regulated the study of it; forto avoid the unhappyInconveniencesthatbefalthosewho apply
themselves to it too Young, and who commonly
make use of itrather to contradict than rO investi-
At what gate Truth, he would have none apply themselves sge Piaco to it, till they were above thirty Years of Age, and
Men /hub* r^en w o u ^ nave 'ern employ five Years in it, being Dhleffick. P^rswaded that on this alone depends all the Progress aManiscapableofmakingintheSciences,andin
theperfectknowledgoftrueandsolidGood. And indeed, Dialellick being the Art of Reasoning, 'tis not only the Foundation of all the Sciences, but the only Guide that can conductMentotrue Happiness^
bymaking'emdistinguishTruthfromError. And for this fame Reason, near six hundred Years before Platp, the Holy Spirit exhorted M e n to learn Dialec tick, when he signifies by the Mouth of Solomon,
thatallScience withoutExamination and Vroofserves onlytodeceiveMen. Andalsothattheknowledg os a fool, is but a Discourse in the Air without E x aminationandProof. Andforthesame. Reason
tici. p. and^-Pau? %S5 aBishopoughttoholdfastthefaith- u% J fullWordashehathbeentaught,thathemaybea-
blebyfound do3rine, both toexhort, and toconvince Gainsayers. whohy their false Principlesy^faw/- whole Houses-,teachingthingswhichtheyoughtnot; And
? ? The Use of Plato. r 14 j
thisistheworkofDialectick. For'tisproperlyTlit>ff. a Habitude, a Science which teaches to define what tin ofoll- every thing is, in what itdiffers from another thing, MftVfc. or in what it resembles it ; to search it out where
itis, to know what makes the Essence of it, how many true Beings there are ? , what chose things are
w h i c h a r e n o t ? , a n d i n w h a t t h e y d i f i e r f r o m t n o s e that are: It treats of the true Good, and of that
whichisnotso,itshewsushowmanythingsen terintothe firstGood,andhowmanyarerank'd underitscontrary;andleadsustodistinguishthat . whichisEternal, fromthatwhichisburTemporal and Transitory ; and this not by Reasonings founded
onOpinion,butbyProofsdrawnfromScience. Fof ithinderstheMind from wanderingaftersensible things, and thereby fixes it on that which is intel ligible, and by dissipating all forts of Errors by its Light, feeds it as it were in the field of Truth. Vlotinus fays very well, that this is the most esti
mable parrofPhilosophy;andisnottobeconsi dered as the Instrument of a Philosopher, but as that which is essential to him. For it does not stop at simple Propositions and Rules, but passes ontothings, andhasallBeingsforitsMatterand Object: ; and by the Truth that is in it discerns Error which is always a Stranger to it.
Ifthe Writings of the Ancient Hebrews assisted "<<<>*<<? * Tlato inlayingtheFoundationsofgoodEthicksandl/? 07""<<<< Phyficks, they have not been less setviceable to him DUltctick. inestablishingthePrinciplesofgoodLogick. Tnesejf:mthetu* Principles consist in a right Imposition of Names, l,nvct'
which oughttodenotetheNatureofthings. For whentheNatureofanythingisknown'tiseasyto reasonjustly,andtoestablishtheTruth. No'Na* tion ever follow'd better Rules in this than the Hebrews, asappearsbytheBooksofMoses^andthe WritingsoftheProphets. AndthereforePlatocon fessesthattheGreeksborrow'd-the greatestpartof the Names of things from the Barbarians (that is fromtheHebrews) andacknowledgesthatthisright
L Impo-
? ? 146 The Life of Platoi
ImpositionofNamesproceedsfromamoreDivine . Nature thanthatofMan.
nechine- Platohys,thatMan willneverbeagoodDia ls';o/aWlectician, who is not in a condition (they are his DidtilMMownwor(is)toGiveandReceiveReason. Hemeans
thatto beaDialectician aMan oughttobeable, notonlytoknowtheTruth, buttomakeitknown to others, and perfwade 'em to embrace it. And for this Reaicn there are indeed two parts of Dialec ticsnamelyLogickandRhetorick. Bythefirstwe
know,andbythesecondweperfwade.
Tbttr,aust SinceLogickandRhetorickarethe2partsofDi- ofLogics alectick,'tiseasytoseetheyoughtonlytobeem- andRhtto-pioy'iforJusticeandTruth. Ifus'dtosupport
Jbrror. 'tis no longer Rhetorick nor Logick; as aRuleisnolongeraRulewhenitisbenttomake anilluseofit. ForacrookedRulecannolonger judge, either of it self, or that which is straight. Logxk and Rhetorick teach us truly to reason and discourseforandagainst. NotthattwoContraries canbeequallytrue;Butthisistoputusinacon dition oi aniwering those who would abuse 'em
iniavourofInjustice. None doubtsthatthesole Object of Logick is Truth : And this is no less true of Rhetorick : And Plato very well fays that a Wise Man willnever labourto renderhimselfDextrous
inhisPhe-topleaseMan^buttopleasetheGods. For(headds) drusTow. j Prudence requires that we should ratherseek the fa
vour of our Masters^ than of those who are on ly our Companions in theservice we owe them.
Never did any one exceed Plato in shewing the use of true Rhetorick, of which he gives admirable Pre cepts : To shew the difference between this and its Counterfeit, he compares the firstto the Medicinal Art,andtheothertoskillinCookery. ThePhysici an seeks only such things as may conduce to the Health ot the Body, Health being the thing he de signs to procure : but the C o o k is concern'd only fof what may please the Taste, without troubling his Head, whether 'tis healthful or hurtful. In like m a n
ner
? ? The Lifeof Plato. 147
nerthe trueOraror, hesays,seeksonlytomake tb'dip- those to w h o m he speaks better, and the counterfeit rmi k: '
Orator has no other design than that of perswadingj*7**i "em, whateverdamage theysufferbyit. lomttrjdt
Tis ObjectedtohimthataManoughttomakeor'ixw. lifeofhisEloquence atany ratetoacquireReputati-
bn and Authority in his Country $ and to bring itinto subjection to him, ifpossible ; to advance his friends,
tobringdown hisEnemies;andinfine(when great Calamities happen) to securehimselfor othersfront danger h Plato answers all these Objections aftef
an admirable manner, and by Principles that can not be contested.
Firsthemakes,itappear thatthosewho havethe greatest Authority in their Countrey are the most un happy, if they have not acquir'd it by just Means, and do not employ it to just Purposes.
He (hewsthatTyrantsaresofarfrombeingHappy, and from having dominion over others, that they areveryMiserable, andsomanyvileSlaves;who never do what they desire, even then when they do What they please.
Heprovesthat'tismuchbetter tosufferWrong than to do it-, and that when a Man has once done it, 'tis much happier for him to be punifh'd for it, than to escape the Penalty he has deserv'd.
As for what respects a Man's saving himselfor se curing others from great Danger ; he shews 'tis
not so considerable a thing as to deserve so much
of our Esteem ; for there are a great many things whichoftenconducetosaveLife,whichyetate . ,( veryinconsiderableinthemselves, forExample(heinGocgias,' lays) the Art of Swimming is a thing very lit-ft*. 1. tie efteem'd, and yet on many Occasions it pre
serves a Man from certain Death. , The Art of aPilotsaveswholeFamilies,and thewholeEstates
of divers Persons ; yet a Pilot is not ordinarily
much pufPd up on. the account of this advantage 5
he' does" nd't think himself a very Considerable Mali
tUa State,' butcontents himselfwithamoderate
L 2 Salary,'
? ? ",V *
falaryXas 'tisreasonable he should, becausehe does
nor know whether he has done those whom he has preserved any great service, for besides that he. re
turns 'em just such as he found 'em ? ,It often
happens that it might have been better for some of 'emtohaveperiih'dintheirVoyage.
The like may be said of the Art of Engineers, that ofCarpenters, Brick-layers, Coachmen and ma nyothers^who oftenpreservetheLivesofabun danceofPeople-,and yet thereisnoGoverment wherein the Laws allot, any very great Honors, or establish any very considerable Rewards for those that exercise 'em : So true is it that notwithstan ding the love M e n naturally bear to Life, it must be confess'd that the Art of preserving our selves or others is no such wonderful thing, as to be piefer'dtoeverythingbesides. TheonlyArtwhich
, merits our Esteem, and which alone can make a
m
148
Ik Use of Plato.
ifrf**>>feMrManconsideredasaGod, isthatofsavingSouls;
aim meritsand to save 'em, they must be purg'd from their
ourEstN/n. Vices :for'tisthegreatestunhappineisintheWorld foraMan to pass into the other Life with his Soul loaded with Sins. Therefore a Good Man oughttoemployallhisLogick andEloquenceboth to make himself better, and to render others so -, and to put both himself and others in a Condition toappearbeforethatJudgfromwhomnothingcan be hid, who viewing Souls quite naked discovers
theleastscarsthatarelefton'em byPerjury,Injus
tice, Vanity, Lying, Cruelty, Debauchery, and all
otherSins^andwho, asherenderstoeveryMan
according to his Works, punishes those for a time,
who have committed only such Sins as are cure-
able, that iswhich may be expiated, and condemns
tholetoEternalTormentswho havebeenguiltyof Mortal Sins ? , and by pushing their Wickedness to
extremity have render'd themselves incurable, and have no found part in 'em. This is the Danger from which 'tis ib noble a thing to secure Men. This is the lest Combate in the World, and the
only
? ? 7be Life]'osPlato. 140
only one that deserves to be undertaken even with the perilofone'sLife:forisitfitweshouldfear Men who candonomorethankilltheBody?
Thole Legislators, Orators and Ministers of Statewho havenotemploy'dtheirEloquenceto meliorate the People that were subject to 'em, were not true Orators, aud consequently were not trulyrighteous. ThisPlatoprovesbytheExamples
of Pericles, ? Simon, Milciades and Themijiocles ? , who were so far from making' the Athenians good
Men that they render'd them yet more brutish and s a v a g e -, a n d i n f i n e , b o r e t h e P u n i s h m e n t o f t h a t littlecaretheytookof'em. Forallthatbefel'em from thehandsof rhePeople, came on'em through their own fault;likethatwhich happens toanill
Groom,whosuffershisHorsestobecomemore unluc
ky thanwhentheywerefirstcommittedtohiskeep ing, and so at last is kicked by 'em, and can no lon
gerrule'em. ThisistheIdeaPlatohadofRhe- torick, of which he gives excellent Precepts in his Pbedn/s, and Gorgiar, Dialogues which can never be sufficiently commended, and which furnish us with the Maxims of which we have been discour sing.
WhenIsayRhetorickisonepartofDialectics 1 don't forget that this is sometimes oppos'd to the other-,as we findinPlato'sown Writings in the beginningofGorgicu, whereSocratesfaystoPolus, that he exercis'd himself more in that which is call'd
Rhetorick, thaninDialectics But 'tiseasytosee that Socrates there, by Rhetorick, means that Arc
which has no regard to Truth, but aims only at a plausible Appearance ofTruth? ,and the Scope of
which is only to adorn and embellish any Subject, When lfocrates makes a Panegyrick on Helena, he only employs the figures of Rhetorick ; and never troubles himself about the Proofs and Argum. -nts ofDialectick. InaWord,anOratorisonewho labours to excite or appease the Passions, and to obtain his end seeks magnificent, Words, and ipe-
L 3 cious
? ? 150
7k LifeofPlato.
cious Figures, and employs false Arguments as if they were true ; and the Dialectician applies himself to Art, only to prove the Truth ^ as the Sophist has recourse to Art only to put off Falihood.
W e now come to the manner in which Plato han
dles the Subjects of which he treats; and lhall en
deavour to discover the Beauties and Defects of his
Stile.
jfttr-vbat Heisaccus'dofneverproposinghisQuestions
tola*! ! *'AEmpiyanc*clearly, andofcastingbythismeansa thesubjectsgreatdealofobscurityonhisDialogues. Butto. ofwhichhi]udgewhetherthisReproachiswell orillfoun
t s
ded 'tis necessary to examine what belongs to M e thod. There are two forts ofMethod ; The first maybecall'dsimpleanddryh suchisthatofGe ometricianswho endeavouronly to proposethena ked Truths, and to draw just Conclusions from their Propositions. ThisMethodisverygood,andex tremely useful, when we have to do with Minds that are rational and free from all sorts of Preju dice:ButisworthnothingwhenwedealwithPeo ple prepossessed or unattentive, impatient or obsti nate.
? The Second Method which may be call'd com
poundedoxjkridisthatof Orators-7'tisproperly thefirstMethod extended and disguised by all the Ornaments that can render Arguments agreeable, and takes away that rudeness and dryneis from Pre cepts, which commonly hinderthereception of 'em.
Ifwe examine Plato's works with reference to the first ofthese:'Tiscertainhedoesnotatfirstdash distinctly propose the Question on which he treats. But instead of being reproached he ought to be commended for this : ior he purpoiely rejected this Method to follow the other which is infinite lymore'useful,andhasmoreofArtinit. By
this means he cures a great many Passions, and destroys an infinite number of Prejudices, before they towhom hefpc. il:;',knowwhatheaimsat:and'tis
by this Course he convinces them with so much ? - , . . . . . . . . . . ,vi. . ? ,. strength/
? ? The Life of Plato. 151
strength of all the Truths he has a mind to teach.
But fay some, to what purpose serve those greatVhto'jpre-
Preambles which he sets at the head of his Dia- Mlbl"- logues ? These are necessary to accompany hisDe
sign 1 and as Plutarch fays when he speaks of the.
Dialogue which P/ato made of the Atlantick Island on Solons Memoirs ? , These are Superb gates and
magnificent Courts with which he purposely embellish es his great Edifices; ffat nothing may be wanting totheirBeauty, andthatallmaybeequallysplendid. HeactslikeagreatPrincewho whenhebuildsa
fine Pallace, adorns the Perch with Golden Pillars
tousethewordsofPindar. For'tisproperthat
what is first seen should be splendid and magnifi cent ? ,and should promise all that greatness which is
to be seen afterwards. IfPlato'sPreamblesshouldbeexcus'dforthefake ** ft:
oftheirgreatBeauty,andforthegenuineandad-'*"? **" mirable descriptions with which they abound ; yet e"'imi'
how cananyone excuse the frequentDigressions inwhichheengageshimself? Thisiswhatissaid by thosewhoneverhadthePatiencetoreadPlatoj orelsehavereadhimverycarelessly. 'Tistruethere are frequent Digressions in his Dialogues ; but these
Digressions never carry him entirely from his Sub ject; for he always employs them either to establish some greatTruthwhichheshallhave occasionfor i n t h e s e q u e l o f h i s d i s c o u r s e -, o r t o p r e v e n t t h e Readers mind with Authorities and Examples, or in fine to divert, and refresh him after a painful and serious research ; and in this Plato may be said,
to be the Greatest Inchanter that ever was in the World , for when he is giving you the proofs of the most necessary and solid Truths ; he takes care at the lame time to lead you into the sweet Meadows, Groves and Vallies which the Muses frequent.
Besides 'tis an incontestable M a x i m e that the O p e rationsoftheMindarenotliketheMotionsofan Arrow, AnArrowdoesnotgowell,UnlessitRee straight forward ; but the Mind makes no less pro-
L 4 grels
? ? iji
The Life of Plato. 1
gresswhenitturnsaside,orflopsataSubject, to consider it well on every side, and by the different r e l a t i o n s it h a s t o o t h e r t h i n g s , t h a n w h e n it g o e s o n directlytoitsend. TisloranArrowtogo,with o u t t u r n i n g , t o t h e M a r k w e a i m a t -, a n d i t a l ways misiesitsstroke,howlittlesoeveritdiverts fromit. ButtheMindofManisnotoblig'dtopro ceed so directly ? , but is often engag'd to consider
such Objects as are nearlyAllied to that it desires to know? ,andtotakeaturnaboutthemtoexamine
'em on all sides. This Circular Motion is no lels ftreight than that of an Arrow ; and these turnings and windings instead of leading us from the end, conductustoit. Thisissotruethatwhenwehave been thinking Plato was wandering from his design b y f r e q u e n t D i g r e s s i o n s -, w e a r e s t r a n g e l y s u r p r i z e d
to see, that that which reersl'd to carry him from it does indeed after a wonderful manner lead him to i t -, a n d t h a t t h e T r u t h s h e h a s e x p l a i n ' d i n d i f f e r e n t places being laid together, form and compleat his Demonstrations, which would have been neithercer tainnorright,ifhehad approach'd'embyadire? t Line.
HemustneverhavereadPlato,whoaccuseshim ofbeing ignorantoftheMethod ofGeometricians. He knew itperfectly well, and designedlyforbearsthe
meAfrbottileofit. ALearnedMan,whoisverywellac-
Feuryinqu'aintedwithPlato,hasobserv'dbeforeme, thatno hitr'(#Man can moreaccurately proposethe State of a ojsudits. Question, more exactly divide a Subject, and exa
mineDefinitionsmorenicelythanhe. Heneverfor gets any of the things on which he has propos'd to treat ; He always returns to his Subject,' the fight of which he has never lost, what Digression soever he makes. Heoftenmarksoutthebeginningandend of each parr, and of every Digression by Propositi ons and Conclusions ; he often uses Recapitulations ; and when he keeps his proof at a distance, he always
takes care to make you remember the State of the QuestionV So that his Discourse has atonce the K
? ? The Life of Platcv 15J
berty of Conversation, and the accuracy of the most
M e t h o d i c a l Treatise. A n Ancient Philosopher has giv- Akin.
e n t h i s C o m m e n d a t i o n t o P / a t o ? , t h a t o s a l l t h e P h i - ? h ' v r *
lofophers he is the moji excellent and admirable for dividing and defining : which qualities denote him to be
a very expert Logician.
As for his Stile 'tissublime without heing Impe tuousandRapid. TisagreatRiver thedepthofv^fs
whichmakesitsmooth. TheprincipalCauseofthat Elevationwhichreignsinit, isthatheimitatesHo mer, more than any other Writers ; and has drawn from his Poesy as from a living Spring that which
hasfurnisli'daninfiniteNumberof Rivuletswhich hehasmadetorunfromit:NayheisHomer'sRi val 1 and indeed seems to have heap'd up so many magnificent things in his Treatises of Philosophy, and to have fallen so often upon Poetical Matters, and Expressions, only to dispute the Prize with this great Poetwithallhismight, likeanewWrestlerwho enters the Lists against one that has already receiv'd all the Acclamations, and is the Admiration of all Mankind. ThisistheJudgmentwhichLongings
makesofhim;butsincehegoesnotdeepenoughin
to the true Character of Plato, and understood but 'apartofit? ,Thatitmaybebetterknown, IhopeI
shallbepermittedtoexplainitalittlemore through ly, by adhering to what our Ancient Masters have said of it.
Thereareibmany differentmannersofcofnposing, Dion)fius thatindeedtheyareinnumerable. Foronemayfay,Halicarn.
the Countenances of M e n are not more different than Jl 5\fj? . theirwaysofWriting. 'TiswiththisArtas'tis^,f,titn. with that of Painting, the Professors of which make
very different Mixtures with tfje fame Colours, and Paintthe fameSubjectsafteraverydifferentMan
ner. Butthoughtholedifferencesaresoverynu
merous, when they are examined nicely and by de t a i l , y e t t h e y m a y b e r e d u e ' d t o t h r e e p r i n c i p a l o n e s ? ,
which go under borrow'd Names, for want of pro perones. TheFirstisaustereorrudeComposition. The
? ? 154 Tk LifeofPlato;
The Second is florid, or smooth. And the Thitd intermediate, which is compos'd of the other Two.
Austereorrough Composition resemblesthoseAn-
Aufltre trcient Buildings, the Stones of which are neither po- rudecompo- lifh'd, nor artificially plac'd j but yet are well fixM;
D? onvC anc*^avemoreSoliditythanBeauty,ithasmore ? <<? . 22,'&c. ? fNaturethanArt init-,anddepends more onthe PassionthanManners and Civility:Ithasnothing florid,5tisgreatandrigid, ifImaybepermittedto usesuchaTerm? ,'tiswithoutOrnament; andall
theGracesofitsavourmuchofAntiquity. This isthetrueCharacterofPindaryEschy/usand Tbucy- dides.
The Second, whichissmoothandflorid, isalmost smooth orentirely opposite to the other, It seeks the sweetest f l o r i d c o m - a n ( j s m o o t h e s t W o r d s -, a n d a v o i d s s u c h a s a r e h a r s l i
2$! and26. anc*roughwith all imaginable care. Thisfavours 'moreofArtthanNature, anddependsmore onpo liteMannersthanon thePassion. This istheCha
racterofHeJiod^Sapho, Anacreon, Simonides,andEu ripides among thePoets, and oflfocratesamong the Orators. ForofallthathavewritteninProsenonee- ver succeeded better than this Last.
The Third ismade up of both together 'tis com- Mix"dCom-pounded ofwhat isbest inthetwo former $and there- positim ' fbre excels them both ; for the perfection of Arts-
"btiilmtr a^ways cpnfists in a Medium, as well as that of jag. '27. 'Manners and Actions, and the whole Course of
Life.
TheWriters ofthiskinddiffermoreamong them
selves than those that have follow'd the two former methods,becauseofthedifferentmixture theyhave made of thole two Characters j for some have fal len more on the rough way, and others more on
the florid,
Homer, SophoclesJderodotusJdemoftKenesJPlato and
Ariftotle wrote in this last kind 5 but without contra d i c t i o n H o m e r is t h e m o s t t o b e a d m i r e d . T h e r e is n o partofhisPoemsbutiswonderfully diversifiedby these2sortsofComposition. Theywhohavefollow'd
him
? ? 7he Lifeof Plato; 155
fiimare snoreor lessexcellent5accordingasthey more or less approach this great Model. And as Platocomesnearertohimthanothers, 'tisthisthat
giveshim hisgreatestBeauts. TheFoundationoftheseThreeways,aswellas
ofallothersisFirstthechoiceofWords;Second- TbtFou>>* lythe regular placing of 'em, from which theref? TM< resultsadifferentHarmony, audinfinetheuseorti- '* i
gures,and alltheotherOrnaments ofDiscourse.
The choice of Words is first in Order, but the regularDispositionof'emisfirstinBeauty. This<<*<<*>><<? ?
issotrue, thatthebestchosenandnoblestWordsifrffg*^ thrown at a venture, without Method and Art, will gular fU_ quite spoil the Elegancy of the Thought ; whereas cingoj'tm. theworstchosenandmostvulgarWordswillmake
an indifferent Thought pass, when Art has taken care to put them in good Order; To be throughly convinc'dof thisTruth, aMan need onlypickout some of the finest Passages to be found in the Ora torsandPoets,andaltertheOrderandHarmonyof
'em without making any Alteration in the Words :, and he'll destroy the Beauty and Force of 'em: for by this means the Figures, Colours, Passionsand polite Mannersthatappearin'emwillbelost. Henceit is that the Beauties which shine in the Writings of these great M e n can't be discern0d but by those that
knowallthesedifferences. DionyfimHdicarnaffeus
with a great deal of reason compares the dispofiti-
on of Words to Hornet's Minerva s for as this God- Hdiorn.
dessbytouchingUlyffcswithherRingmadehimap-*? ' ^
pearonewhile little, deform'd, andlikeaBeggar,-? hkTru.
depress'dwithMiseryandAge-, andanotherwhileve-tinofcom-
rygreat andmarvellouslybeautiful hlothedifferentr^m, placing of the same Words make the Thoughts *? * "ndS;
appearonewhilepoorandlow, andanotherwhilew,toWm,^
rich and sublime. Divm-tor Platomaybecall'dDivineforthispart,andif heth,nirsni. were as happy in the choice of Words, as in the onof^ds.
Dispositionof'emhewouldequalHomer, andex-*nd! ^-
ceed all other Writers ; but he sometimes 1ails in his aoiat^tmm Lv<<? +*>'-. -i . . ? -". ? ? ? ? choice,
DhnyC
? ? 156
The Life (C)/"Plato.
choice, when he quits his ordinary Stile, to ffti uponextraordinaryanasublimeExpressions. While he keeps in a simple and natural way,nothing has more gracefulness, purityandsmoothnessthanhisDicti on. TisliketheChryttalStreamosaclearRiver. He then uses the molt common Terms, he only studies Accuracy and Perspicuity, and contemns al foreign Ornaments ; he only preserves a littleAir ofAntiquity, which isalmost insensible, and ierves to set off his Elegancy, and by Numbers varied with wonderful Art ; he every where spreads a char ming Harmony. But when he would exceed himself, andaffectstobegreat, thequitecontrarysometimes befallshim ? ,for besidesthathisDictionisleisa- greeable, less pure, and more embarrass'd ; he rails into Circumlocutions, whichbeingscatterdupand down without choice and without measure, have no Elegancy or Beauty -, and only make a vain show of a luxuriant richnessofLanguage : Instead of words that are proper, and of common uie, he
seeks only for such as are novel, foreign and an tique ; and instead of employing only such Figures as are wife and grave, and easily understood $ he isexcessiveinhisEpithets, hardinhisMetaphors, andextravagantinhisAllegories. WhenIfaythis Idon'tpretend thatthisalwayshappenstohim ;one must be either blind or stupid, not to be touch'd with aninfinitenumberofPassages, inwhich. he isas great and sublime as possible, and his Stile rises up to
theCharacterofWonderful. But I speakthisto sliewthatwhen hefalls,'tisonly inthatkindofStile, inwhich'tisimpossiblyforaMan alwaystosup porthimselfequally. Forthegreatandjnagnificept way is slippery and dangerous ^ and he that-wHfat tainitmustexposehimselftoFalls. Andindeed
none but a great Genius is capable of this noble Efforthand the FallsMen have had signify that they were led by a kind of Divine Ardour, which they could not govern. Therefore the sublime Me. fnd though it his very little Foundational
ways,
? ? ? najk 7heLifeos Plato. 157
flPH:ames thePrizefromthemiddleway, though it be never so happy and perfect.
Itmust moreover be laidtothepraiseof? lato,
that the places wherein he may be said to fall are
very few in comparison of those in which he has s u c c e e d e d t o a w o n d e r ? , a n d i f w e t a k e n o t i c e o f
'em, Yis not so much to censure them, as to ad mire that a Man rais'd lo high above the ordina ry pitch of humane Nature ; (hould not be able
topreserve himself from Faults in those places where he might so easily have avoided them $ and whereheseemstohaveknown'em. Forhesome times conleiles that what he fays isnot somuch like a wile and orderly Discourse, as a Dithyram- bick P o e m ; and that he speaks like a M a n posieis'd. This extravagant Enthusiasm is vicious ? , especially
in Matrers of Philosophy ; and he ought to have c o r r e c t e d i t , s e e i n g h e d i s c e r n ' d i t ? , a n d w a s s o c a r e f u l
andjealousofhisStile, thatatfourscoreYearsof Age, he did not cease to give new touches once and again to his Dialogues, and took so much pains with'em, thatafterhisDeath,thebeginning ofhis Books ofaRepublickwasfoundon hisWriting-Ta bles, alter'd twenty several ways.
Butitmay besaidthisFaultpleas'dhim,orthat,be cause he fear'd the Simplicity of Socrates would not be always relish'd, he had a mind to raise it by the Sublimity of Tbucyiid. es and Gorgiaf, however in imitating theirVertues, he did not take sufficientpre cautionagainsttheirVices. ThisistheJudgment which Dionyjius Halicamaffeus makes of him inhis Treatise oftheAncientOrators? ,andhesupports itinthe AnswerwhichhemakestothegreatPom- peywhotookP/Wspart. InthisAnswerheproves to him the Truth of this Censure, and makes it appear,thatheisofthefamemindhimself;and
farther shows, that the Ancients, as Demetrius Pba- lereus^andsome others,hadpassedthefameJudg ment before him.
Longing whoissofine,sosure,andsoexacta Critick
? ? ? I58 The Life of Phto: sitn.
Critickwas ofthefameOpinioii4w#te>>iAges-l^fcfr Dionyjixs tialicarnaffeus. Heiicknowledgesaswell as this Latter that Plato writes after a divine manner in abundance of places, and at the fame time, proves, like him too,by palpable Instances, thathe issome times too figurative in his expressions -,and that by a certain fury of discourse he suffers himself to betransportedtoharshand extravagantMetaphors, and to a vain allegorical Pomp, which can't choose butfrequentlylanguish. Thisisadefectwhichhe might have avoided, as Demetrius lays, if he had used proper Terms more frequently than Meta phors.
But to finish this Character in few words, by re
sumingwhathasbeenalreadysaid. InGeneral
there isnothing more harmonious and touching than
Plato's Diction-, he joins the force of the greatest Orators, with the Graces of the greatest Poets ? ,
he isvery fruitful and luxuriant ; he so perfectly describes Manners and Passions, and forms Charac terssowell, thatallthePersonshebringsinevery where appear what they seem'd to be at first view. There is nothing more perfect when he keeps him selfwithintheBounds ofordinaryLanguage^but he sometimes falls when he strives to soar very high, thohisFallsarenotcommon, andyettheplaces wherein he shows himself pompous and magnifici- ent are very frequent ; so that even in this kind of writing there are a thousand things to be admir'd in hisBookswherethereisonetocondemn'd. ^
Having spoken of Plato's Stile, w e come to speak a word or twos of his. Commentators, and Inter preters. . ^. . ?
. We havebuttwoLatinTranslationsofthisPhi losopher'sWorks, thatofMarsdiuslicihus,and thatofJohndeSerres,whocompos'dtheHistory ofYrwceundertheTitleofanInventory (orRe gister. ) N e i t h e r o f ' e m w i l l e v e r m a k e P l a t o to' b e w e l l understood. Howevertheformerseemstomethebest for the literalSense,and 'tis certain,that it1has fewei
? ? T h e Life of Plated
( c p
faults. MarsiliusYicinuswasaLearnedandLabo rious M a n ; but being too speculative and abstracted he loses all the advantage of his Translation by his Explication, inwhichhestrainsAllegoriesandMys teriestoanexorbitantdegree. Itwouldhavebeena great uneasiness to him to understand any thing sim
ply, tho Plato often speaks with great Simplicity - and by this means he endeavours to justify a great many Errors into which Plato fell ? , for he every
where finds a fense, not only commodious and ex cusable, but orthodox ; he always looks on him with aprofoundrespectasaManinspir'dofGodh and is perswaded there is no Mystery in the Christian
Religion, but he knew it : I don't fay in the Wri tingsof theProphetsonly, butinthoseoftheEvan gelists and Apostles.
John de Setres was a Man of less Ability than Marsilius Yicinus, . nor did he understand Greek
near so well as he, so that his Translation abounds
with Faults, and essential Faults too, which corrupt See the Ab-
the Sense : but he is yet more to blame for entire- bot^^f> \ychangingtheorderoftheDialogues, anddispo-JJ2S ? s sing 'em into different Classes ; not according to the pag. 297.
Subjects, but the Titles of 'em, which are com m o n l y f a l s e ? , w h i c h m a k e s t h e R e a d e r , w h e n h e
seeks for that in the Dialogue which is promised in the Title, and does not find it, accuse Plato of be ing very defective in his Proofs, and of wandering from his Subject ; so that he has not the Patience to hear him. The only thing in his Work, that seems to me worthy of any great Commendation, is his small Marginal Notes ; in which he gives a naked discovery of Plato's Method 5 for tho Plato was willing to conceal it, to render, his Dialogues t h e m o r e d i v e r t i n g -, i t w a s f i t s o m e P e r s o n s h o u l d give himself the trouble of unfolding this Art tho roughly, which the Readers would not always un ravel of themselves : This is a very great help, and indeed is very useful to make the Beauties of the
Method Plato follow'd appear to. good advantage. ? ? ? In
? ? pjato.
losethetrainof hisReasoning. The Obscurities w e find in 'em result either from the Customs of his Time, or the Opinions of the Ancient Philosophers j into which Commentators give very little Light. The knowledg of 'em ought to be sought in the reading of Ancient Authors, which are more useful tomakeaMan understandPlato,thanallthathave labour'dtoexplainhisDoctrine.
Inthe Letter he wrote,to Tdermias, Erasm, and^MrVr Corifcm to exhort 'em to live in Peace, he fays. Ton. 3. You must readmy Letter all three together ; and that
you may profit by it, you ought to implore the Assist' anceofGod the SoveraignLordofallthingsthatei ther are or Jhallbe; and the Father of thisSoveraign, whoistheCauseofBeings. IfwearetrulyPhiloso
phersweshallknowthisGod asclearlyasBlessedMen arecapable of knowing him.
Does notPlatointhismanifestlyfollowtheOpi
nionoftheHebrews? Forwhencecould hereceive this knowledg of God, the Father, and the Lord ? ,E^-
ofGod thecauseofBeings>, butfromtheirWri-J2J; tings, w h o taught him to give the Son the name of xi. i<s. Lord, of which none of the Greeks before him had everheard, orhadtheleastIdea?
Nor isitonlypretended,thathehadsomeknow-piatohad ledg of the Word, the Eternal Son of God, but/>>>><<W<< of some farther maintain, that he had some discovery ^. ^oly of the Holy Spirit-, and so had a certain Idea of rmy'
the most Holy Trinity :For thus he writes to young Dionysus, ImustdeclaretoArchedemus, thatwhichLetUrIt is m u c h m o r e p r e c i o u s a n d d i v i n e ; a n d w h i c h y o u h a v e Torn. 3, avery ardentdesiretoknow;sinceyousentexpress lytome onthatAicount. forasfarasIunderstand byhimyoudon'tbelieve Ihavesufficientlyexplain'd.
what I think of the Nature of thefirst Principle; I
must writeofthistoyouinEnigmas, thatifmyLet
ter
? ? 140
The Life osPhto. ,
terJhoulibeinterceptedbySeaorLand, bethatreads itmaynotbeabletocomprehendanything. Allthings are round about their King ; they exist by him, and he alone is the cause of good things^ Secondforse condthings, andthirdforthird.
In his Epinomis, and elsewhere, he establishes for Principles, the firstGood, the Word, or Under standing,orSoul. ThefirstGoodisGod-,andwhen hecallsGod, Goodness, orthefirstGood, hehad an Idea of this Truth, that Good isnothing but the NatureofGod,andhisInfiniteGoodness. This Good he explains in Terms very well worth the reading. As the Sun (fays he) gives to visible things,notonlythefacuityofbeingseen, butalso, their Birth, Nourishment and Growth, jujlso this
Bm^vrofGood, notonlymakesintelligiblethingsknowable,but btxKepub. aij0giVes 'em being, although that isnot EssenceJ>ut om. 2. jomg ot^gr fang fat infinttely surpasses Essence by
its Power and Majesty. TheWordorUnderstandingistheSon ofthe
first Good, who hath begotten him like himself A n d t h e S o u l w h i c h is t h e T e r m b e t w e e n t h e F a t h e r and the Son, isthe Holy Spirit.
I don't know whether without having recourse to these great Truths, w e could by Plato's Philosophy , explain these Passages which seem so strange, so as to give 'em another sense that should be natural, andagreeabletohisPrinciples. Imustfay,Ivery muchdoubtit. Nay,Iamperswadeditwouldbe verygreatTemerity, orratherImpiety, tointerpret
. . 'emafteranyothermanneraftertheDecisionof*so stau- manyFatnersoftheChurchandEcclesiastickWriters, gufiin, F? rtheytellusinexpressTerms,thatPlatohadthis
I St. Jcrom,knowledgoftheFatherandtheSon,andofhim that St. Cyril, proceedsfromthemboth,namelytheHolySpirit.
Theodo-' Origenisnotcontenttoassureusof the. fame ret,st. ck- thing, but accuses Celsus for having purposely over man, &c. look'd the Passage of the 6th Letter, because Jesus
Christisplainlyspoken ofinit. Which proves, that the ( hristtans were not the only Persons who- found
? ? 7he Life os Plato. ' 141
found these great Mysteries in Plato's Writings-, but thatthe Enemies of Christianity found 'em thereas well as. they, and were uneasy at the light of 'em.
Let us not by our Darkness cast a ihade over those Rays of Light which proceed from the Foun tain of Light it self-, but let. us acknowledge that Tlato not only knew all that Natural Reason could discoverconcerning God toaPhilosopher; but was
illuminatedbysupernaturalReasontoo. Havingbeen
instructedintheBooksoftheHebrews, inthoseof theProphets,andintheTraditionsoftheEgyptians, ?
hebecame favourablydispos'dtoreceivetheSeeds of t h e s e E t e r n a l T r u t h s ? , a n d w a s a s s i s t e d b y G r a c e , f o r
St. Augustin asserts, that Jesus Christ revealed 'em to him. Thatwhichisdeplorableisthathehascorrupted Howplat0
5embyhisReasonings. ForhespeaksoftheThreeJJJgJgg Persons ofthe Deity as of Three Gods,and Three dis- roitbwhich
ferentPrinciples. ThuswhilethesupremeReason en-bewasi/u- lighten'dhimononefide, Philosophyseduc'dhim? &"***by
ontheother:Thecommon unhappinefsofthosewho merely by Humane Reason go about to explain the MysteriesofGod, which arenot to beknown but from himself, and from those he has truly inipir'd.
That Plato had a particular knowledg of the Sacred Writings appears by many Passages in his W o r k s , a n d b y h i s E r r o r s t h e m s e l v e s ? , f o r t h e g r e a
testpart of his most erroneous Opinions proceed in some sort from that Source ofLight which daz zled him, and on which he has spread so much Darkness. This severalhaveobservedbeforenow.
That of theCreationofSoulsbeforeBodiesseems
tohave had no other Foundation than that Passage ofJeremiahs where God fays to this Holy Prophet. T BeforeIformedthee inthebellyIknewthee, This"'"'*'5" Philosopher notunderstandingthatGod callsthings
that are not as if they were ; and that he knows net only all that is,but also all that shall ever be, builtonthisTextthatErrorofhis, thatSoulsex istedbefore Bodies.
From the iame Divine Writings he extracted all the
? ? 141 A IheLifeofPlato. -
the greatTruths which he teaches, as when he fays theName ofGod ishethatisforthere'snonebut Godthattrulyis. ThisNameofGod,asSt. Au-
gustin observes, is not found in any profane Book more ancient than P/ato $ and this Philosopher could not have it from any other Books than those of Moses.
Whoisitthatdoesnotdiscernthestileofthe Prophets in that place of Phoedon ; where he de- scribes a pure Earth which is a*bove this of ours in Heaven, andincomparisonofwhichthiswe inhabit is no better than Dirt > In this every thing is corrupt, a n d w e a r e e n c o m p a s s ' d w i t h D a r k n e s s -, o r i f w e f e e any Light, 'tisthrough great Clouds, and very thick
Mists: whereas in the other, the true Light is to be <, seen; and everything initisadmirable. All things thereIhinewiththeglitteringLustreofGold, Jas
pers, Saphirs, and Emeralds ; and those that inha bit it enjoy a long Life which is not cross'd with a- ny incommodious Accident. The Ancients who dis- cover'd the Truth hid under these Images, show that they were extracted out of the Books of the holy Prophets,whocallHeaventheCityofGod, and the Land of the Righteous j. and prove, that the Names ofthese precious Stones are taken from the 54th Chapter of Isaiah, where God promises to Jay
So the
lxxums- Jaspers.
dirit.
Ishould be too prolix if I should here relate all
thatPlatohasdrawnfromthisFountain. 'Tissuf ficient to know, that what we find inhim of this kind, isso considerable, that it ought to'render his Writings very precious to us -, and that of all the Works ofthePagans, thereisnonemoreuseful,or that can be more serviceable to establish eternal
. Truths, to raise the Soul to the solid Contemplati on of the divine Essence, and to manifest the Beau tiesofthesacredScriptures. And"tisontheseAc-
the Foundation of his Church with Saphirs, and
Boot1. countsthathemeritedthatgreatEncomium, given "L;? . jf him byProcli/s. Truth (layshe)isspreadthrough
all
? ? The Use of Platb. , 143
'alPlato'i- Dialogues, more obscurely in some, and moreclearlyinothers. Wefindin'emev&rywhere grave,sensible,supernatural thoughts of thefirst
Philosophy, whichcarrythoseup tothepure imma terial Essence of God, who are in some sort in a condition,toparticipateofit. Andashewhohas
created every thing in the Wcrld by hispower, has in every part of this Universe placed Images of the
Gods, which areso many Proofs oftheir Existence, thatallthingsintheWorld might turntowards tbe Deity, because ofthe Union, and ifI may so say, n a t u r a l R e l a t i o n t h a t is b e t w e e n t h e m ; s o t h e M i n d o f Plato beingfilPd withtheDeity, hasdispersedhis ThoughtsofGodthroughallhisWorks. Hewould not suffer any single TraS to be destitute of this CharaSer, and without any thing spoken of God; that such as are truly enflanid with the Love of Divine thingsmightreceivesotneknowledgofthe
supreme Being from all his Writings, and so might have a fust Idea ofevery thing which cannot be known butinGodwho isTruthitself.
Having spoken ofNatural Philosophy and Mora- lity let us pals to the third part which isDialeffick. The Ancientswrite, thatPlatoperfectedPhiloso phy, by adding this part to Physicks and Ethicks : Butby thistheyonlymeanhe broughtDialellick,
Dhltftict.
whichistrueLogicktoitsperfection. IndeedPlato's Logick is more natural, more exact, and more solid than that which was in use before him, and than that the Rules of which have been published after him. For he teaches more by examples, than Precepts :
He alwayschoosesSubjectsthatarefamiliarand u s e f u l t o M o r a l i t y ? , a n d t r e a t e s ' e m n o t a s a D o c t o r ,
and as they do in the Schools, by Methodical Dis coursesandstudiedSyllogisms,butlikeaMan of Conversation by free Diicourfes, which properly maketheCharacterofDialectick. ThereforePlato preserv'd Socrates his method of Dialogue being fully convinc'd that Sciences ought to be taught by WordofMouth, andnotbyWriting,becauseMen
are
? ? ? 44
Ike Life of Plato. '
are better persuaded by the Tongue thafi the Pert} because the Answers, and Objections of the Learner, not only shew what progress Truth makes in his Mind jbut besidesgive an occasionofclearingup many Difficulties that lie in his Way, and which can'tallbeforeseeninWriting. Platoteachesbet terthan any Man how to speak with justness, to answerpreciselytowhatisasked, tolaydownthe
State of a Question exactly, and lead on the Argu ment directly. He shews perfectly well how to' make accurate Divisions, to define well, and to ex amine Definitions aright, that none may be suffer'd to escape that are not true.
He not only brought this Science to perfection but also regulated the study of it; forto avoid the unhappyInconveniencesthatbefalthosewho apply
themselves to it too Young, and who commonly
make use of itrather to contradict than rO investi-
At what gate Truth, he would have none apply themselves sge Piaco to it, till they were above thirty Years of Age, and
Men /hub* r^en w o u ^ nave 'ern employ five Years in it, being Dhleffick. P^rswaded that on this alone depends all the Progress aManiscapableofmakingintheSciences,andin
theperfectknowledgoftrueandsolidGood. And indeed, Dialellick being the Art of Reasoning, 'tis not only the Foundation of all the Sciences, but the only Guide that can conductMentotrue Happiness^
bymaking'emdistinguishTruthfromError. And for this fame Reason, near six hundred Years before Platp, the Holy Spirit exhorted M e n to learn Dialec tick, when he signifies by the Mouth of Solomon,
thatallScience withoutExamination and Vroofserves onlytodeceiveMen. Andalsothattheknowledg os a fool, is but a Discourse in the Air without E x aminationandProof. Andforthesame. Reason
tici. p. and^-Pau? %S5 aBishopoughttoholdfastthefaith- u% J fullWordashehathbeentaught,thathemaybea-
blebyfound do3rine, both toexhort, and toconvince Gainsayers. whohy their false Principlesy^faw/- whole Houses-,teachingthingswhichtheyoughtnot; And
? ? The Use of Plato. r 14 j
thisistheworkofDialectick. For'tisproperlyTlit>ff. a Habitude, a Science which teaches to define what tin ofoll- every thing is, in what itdiffers from another thing, MftVfc. or in what it resembles it ; to search it out where
itis, to know what makes the Essence of it, how many true Beings there are ? , what chose things are
w h i c h a r e n o t ? , a n d i n w h a t t h e y d i f i e r f r o m t n o s e that are: It treats of the true Good, and of that
whichisnotso,itshewsushowmanythingsen terintothe firstGood,andhowmanyarerank'd underitscontrary;andleadsustodistinguishthat . whichisEternal, fromthatwhichisburTemporal and Transitory ; and this not by Reasonings founded
onOpinion,butbyProofsdrawnfromScience. Fof ithinderstheMind from wanderingaftersensible things, and thereby fixes it on that which is intel ligible, and by dissipating all forts of Errors by its Light, feeds it as it were in the field of Truth. Vlotinus fays very well, that this is the most esti
mable parrofPhilosophy;andisnottobeconsi dered as the Instrument of a Philosopher, but as that which is essential to him. For it does not stop at simple Propositions and Rules, but passes ontothings, andhasallBeingsforitsMatterand Object: ; and by the Truth that is in it discerns Error which is always a Stranger to it.
Ifthe Writings of the Ancient Hebrews assisted "<<<>*<<? * Tlato inlayingtheFoundationsofgoodEthicksandl/? 07""<<<< Phyficks, they have not been less setviceable to him DUltctick. inestablishingthePrinciplesofgoodLogick. Tnesejf:mthetu* Principles consist in a right Imposition of Names, l,nvct'
which oughttodenotetheNatureofthings. For whentheNatureofanythingisknown'tiseasyto reasonjustly,andtoestablishtheTruth. No'Na* tion ever follow'd better Rules in this than the Hebrews, asappearsbytheBooksofMoses^andthe WritingsoftheProphets. AndthereforePlatocon fessesthattheGreeksborrow'd-the greatestpartof the Names of things from the Barbarians (that is fromtheHebrews) andacknowledgesthatthisright
L Impo-
? ? 146 The Life of Platoi
ImpositionofNamesproceedsfromamoreDivine . Nature thanthatofMan.
nechine- Platohys,thatMan willneverbeagoodDia ls';o/aWlectician, who is not in a condition (they are his DidtilMMownwor(is)toGiveandReceiveReason. Hemeans
thatto beaDialectician aMan oughttobeable, notonlytoknowtheTruth, buttomakeitknown to others, and perfwade 'em to embrace it. And for this Reaicn there are indeed two parts of Dialec ticsnamelyLogickandRhetorick. Bythefirstwe
know,andbythesecondweperfwade.
Tbttr,aust SinceLogickandRhetorickarethe2partsofDi- ofLogics alectick,'tiseasytoseetheyoughtonlytobeem- andRhtto-pioy'iforJusticeandTruth. Ifus'dtosupport
Jbrror. 'tis no longer Rhetorick nor Logick; as aRuleisnolongeraRulewhenitisbenttomake anilluseofit. ForacrookedRulecannolonger judge, either of it self, or that which is straight. Logxk and Rhetorick teach us truly to reason and discourseforandagainst. NotthattwoContraries canbeequallytrue;Butthisistoputusinacon dition oi aniwering those who would abuse 'em
iniavourofInjustice. None doubtsthatthesole Object of Logick is Truth : And this is no less true of Rhetorick : And Plato very well fays that a Wise Man willnever labourto renderhimselfDextrous
inhisPhe-topleaseMan^buttopleasetheGods. For(headds) drusTow. j Prudence requires that we should ratherseek the fa
vour of our Masters^ than of those who are on ly our Companions in theservice we owe them.
Never did any one exceed Plato in shewing the use of true Rhetorick, of which he gives admirable Pre cepts : To shew the difference between this and its Counterfeit, he compares the firstto the Medicinal Art,andtheothertoskillinCookery. ThePhysici an seeks only such things as may conduce to the Health ot the Body, Health being the thing he de signs to procure : but the C o o k is concern'd only fof what may please the Taste, without troubling his Head, whether 'tis healthful or hurtful. In like m a n
ner
? ? The Lifeof Plato. 147
nerthe trueOraror, hesays,seeksonlytomake tb'dip- those to w h o m he speaks better, and the counterfeit rmi k: '
Orator has no other design than that of perswadingj*7**i "em, whateverdamage theysufferbyit. lomttrjdt
Tis ObjectedtohimthataManoughttomakeor'ixw. lifeofhisEloquence atany ratetoacquireReputati-
bn and Authority in his Country $ and to bring itinto subjection to him, ifpossible ; to advance his friends,
tobringdown hisEnemies;andinfine(when great Calamities happen) to securehimselfor othersfront danger h Plato answers all these Objections aftef
an admirable manner, and by Principles that can not be contested.
Firsthemakes,itappear thatthosewho havethe greatest Authority in their Countrey are the most un happy, if they have not acquir'd it by just Means, and do not employ it to just Purposes.
He (hewsthatTyrantsaresofarfrombeingHappy, and from having dominion over others, that they areveryMiserable, andsomanyvileSlaves;who never do what they desire, even then when they do What they please.
Heprovesthat'tismuchbetter tosufferWrong than to do it-, and that when a Man has once done it, 'tis much happier for him to be punifh'd for it, than to escape the Penalty he has deserv'd.
As for what respects a Man's saving himselfor se curing others from great Danger ; he shews 'tis
not so considerable a thing as to deserve so much
of our Esteem ; for there are a great many things whichoftenconducetosaveLife,whichyetate . ,( veryinconsiderableinthemselves, forExample(heinGocgias,' lays) the Art of Swimming is a thing very lit-ft*. 1. tie efteem'd, and yet on many Occasions it pre
serves a Man from certain Death. , The Art of aPilotsaveswholeFamilies,and thewholeEstates
of divers Persons ; yet a Pilot is not ordinarily
much pufPd up on. the account of this advantage 5
he' does" nd't think himself a very Considerable Mali
tUa State,' butcontents himselfwithamoderate
L 2 Salary,'
? ? ",V *
falaryXas 'tisreasonable he should, becausehe does
nor know whether he has done those whom he has preserved any great service, for besides that he. re
turns 'em just such as he found 'em ? ,It often
happens that it might have been better for some of 'emtohaveperiih'dintheirVoyage.
The like may be said of the Art of Engineers, that ofCarpenters, Brick-layers, Coachmen and ma nyothers^who oftenpreservetheLivesofabun danceofPeople-,and yet thereisnoGoverment wherein the Laws allot, any very great Honors, or establish any very considerable Rewards for those that exercise 'em : So true is it that notwithstan ding the love M e n naturally bear to Life, it must be confess'd that the Art of preserving our selves or others is no such wonderful thing, as to be piefer'dtoeverythingbesides. TheonlyArtwhich
, merits our Esteem, and which alone can make a
m
148
Ik Use of Plato.
ifrf**>>feMrManconsideredasaGod, isthatofsavingSouls;
aim meritsand to save 'em, they must be purg'd from their
ourEstN/n. Vices :for'tisthegreatestunhappineisintheWorld foraMan to pass into the other Life with his Soul loaded with Sins. Therefore a Good Man oughttoemployallhisLogick andEloquenceboth to make himself better, and to render others so -, and to put both himself and others in a Condition toappearbeforethatJudgfromwhomnothingcan be hid, who viewing Souls quite naked discovers
theleastscarsthatarelefton'em byPerjury,Injus
tice, Vanity, Lying, Cruelty, Debauchery, and all
otherSins^andwho, asherenderstoeveryMan
according to his Works, punishes those for a time,
who have committed only such Sins as are cure-
able, that iswhich may be expiated, and condemns
tholetoEternalTormentswho havebeenguiltyof Mortal Sins ? , and by pushing their Wickedness to
extremity have render'd themselves incurable, and have no found part in 'em. This is the Danger from which 'tis ib noble a thing to secure Men. This is the lest Combate in the World, and the
only
? ? 7be Life]'osPlato. 140
only one that deserves to be undertaken even with the perilofone'sLife:forisitfitweshouldfear Men who candonomorethankilltheBody?
Thole Legislators, Orators and Ministers of Statewho havenotemploy'dtheirEloquenceto meliorate the People that were subject to 'em, were not true Orators, aud consequently were not trulyrighteous. ThisPlatoprovesbytheExamples
of Pericles, ? Simon, Milciades and Themijiocles ? , who were so far from making' the Athenians good
Men that they render'd them yet more brutish and s a v a g e -, a n d i n f i n e , b o r e t h e P u n i s h m e n t o f t h a t littlecaretheytookof'em. Forallthatbefel'em from thehandsof rhePeople, came on'em through their own fault;likethatwhich happens toanill
Groom,whosuffershisHorsestobecomemore unluc
ky thanwhentheywerefirstcommittedtohiskeep ing, and so at last is kicked by 'em, and can no lon
gerrule'em. ThisistheIdeaPlatohadofRhe- torick, of which he gives excellent Precepts in his Pbedn/s, and Gorgiar, Dialogues which can never be sufficiently commended, and which furnish us with the Maxims of which we have been discour sing.
WhenIsayRhetorickisonepartofDialectics 1 don't forget that this is sometimes oppos'd to the other-,as we findinPlato'sown Writings in the beginningofGorgicu, whereSocratesfaystoPolus, that he exercis'd himself more in that which is call'd
Rhetorick, thaninDialectics But 'tiseasytosee that Socrates there, by Rhetorick, means that Arc
which has no regard to Truth, but aims only at a plausible Appearance ofTruth? ,and the Scope of
which is only to adorn and embellish any Subject, When lfocrates makes a Panegyrick on Helena, he only employs the figures of Rhetorick ; and never troubles himself about the Proofs and Argum. -nts ofDialectick. InaWord,anOratorisonewho labours to excite or appease the Passions, and to obtain his end seeks magnificent, Words, and ipe-
L 3 cious
? ? 150
7k LifeofPlato.
cious Figures, and employs false Arguments as if they were true ; and the Dialectician applies himself to Art, only to prove the Truth ^ as the Sophist has recourse to Art only to put off Falihood.
W e now come to the manner in which Plato han
dles the Subjects of which he treats; and lhall en
deavour to discover the Beauties and Defects of his
Stile.
jfttr-vbat Heisaccus'dofneverproposinghisQuestions
tola*! ! *'AEmpiyanc*clearly, andofcastingbythismeansa thesubjectsgreatdealofobscurityonhisDialogues. Butto. ofwhichhi]udgewhetherthisReproachiswell orillfoun
t s
ded 'tis necessary to examine what belongs to M e thod. There are two forts ofMethod ; The first maybecall'dsimpleanddryh suchisthatofGe ometricianswho endeavouronly to proposethena ked Truths, and to draw just Conclusions from their Propositions. ThisMethodisverygood,andex tremely useful, when we have to do with Minds that are rational and free from all sorts of Preju dice:ButisworthnothingwhenwedealwithPeo ple prepossessed or unattentive, impatient or obsti nate.
? The Second Method which may be call'd com
poundedoxjkridisthatof Orators-7'tisproperly thefirstMethod extended and disguised by all the Ornaments that can render Arguments agreeable, and takes away that rudeness and dryneis from Pre cepts, which commonly hinderthereception of 'em.
Ifwe examine Plato's works with reference to the first ofthese:'Tiscertainhedoesnotatfirstdash distinctly propose the Question on which he treats. But instead of being reproached he ought to be commended for this : ior he purpoiely rejected this Method to follow the other which is infinite lymore'useful,andhasmoreofArtinit. By
this means he cures a great many Passions, and destroys an infinite number of Prejudices, before they towhom hefpc. il:;',knowwhatheaimsat:and'tis
by this Course he convinces them with so much ? - , . . . . . . . . . . ,vi. . ? ,. strength/
? ? The Life of Plato. 151
strength of all the Truths he has a mind to teach.
But fay some, to what purpose serve those greatVhto'jpre-
Preambles which he sets at the head of his Dia- Mlbl"- logues ? These are necessary to accompany hisDe
sign 1 and as Plutarch fays when he speaks of the.
Dialogue which P/ato made of the Atlantick Island on Solons Memoirs ? , These are Superb gates and
magnificent Courts with which he purposely embellish es his great Edifices; ffat nothing may be wanting totheirBeauty, andthatallmaybeequallysplendid. HeactslikeagreatPrincewho whenhebuildsa
fine Pallace, adorns the Perch with Golden Pillars
tousethewordsofPindar. For'tisproperthat
what is first seen should be splendid and magnifi cent ? ,and should promise all that greatness which is
to be seen afterwards. IfPlato'sPreamblesshouldbeexcus'dforthefake ** ft:
oftheirgreatBeauty,andforthegenuineandad-'*"? **" mirable descriptions with which they abound ; yet e"'imi'
how cananyone excuse the frequentDigressions inwhichheengageshimself? Thisiswhatissaid by thosewhoneverhadthePatiencetoreadPlatoj orelsehavereadhimverycarelessly. 'Tistruethere are frequent Digressions in his Dialogues ; but these
Digressions never carry him entirely from his Sub ject; for he always employs them either to establish some greatTruthwhichheshallhave occasionfor i n t h e s e q u e l o f h i s d i s c o u r s e -, o r t o p r e v e n t t h e Readers mind with Authorities and Examples, or in fine to divert, and refresh him after a painful and serious research ; and in this Plato may be said,
to be the Greatest Inchanter that ever was in the World , for when he is giving you the proofs of the most necessary and solid Truths ; he takes care at the lame time to lead you into the sweet Meadows, Groves and Vallies which the Muses frequent.
Besides 'tis an incontestable M a x i m e that the O p e rationsoftheMindarenotliketheMotionsofan Arrow, AnArrowdoesnotgowell,UnlessitRee straight forward ; but the Mind makes no less pro-
L 4 grels
? ? iji
The Life of Plato. 1
gresswhenitturnsaside,orflopsataSubject, to consider it well on every side, and by the different r e l a t i o n s it h a s t o o t h e r t h i n g s , t h a n w h e n it g o e s o n directlytoitsend. TisloranArrowtogo,with o u t t u r n i n g , t o t h e M a r k w e a i m a t -, a n d i t a l ways misiesitsstroke,howlittlesoeveritdiverts fromit. ButtheMindofManisnotoblig'dtopro ceed so directly ? , but is often engag'd to consider
such Objects as are nearlyAllied to that it desires to know? ,andtotakeaturnaboutthemtoexamine
'em on all sides. This Circular Motion is no lels ftreight than that of an Arrow ; and these turnings and windings instead of leading us from the end, conductustoit. Thisissotruethatwhenwehave been thinking Plato was wandering from his design b y f r e q u e n t D i g r e s s i o n s -, w e a r e s t r a n g e l y s u r p r i z e d
to see, that that which reersl'd to carry him from it does indeed after a wonderful manner lead him to i t -, a n d t h a t t h e T r u t h s h e h a s e x p l a i n ' d i n d i f f e r e n t places being laid together, form and compleat his Demonstrations, which would have been neithercer tainnorright,ifhehad approach'd'embyadire? t Line.
HemustneverhavereadPlato,whoaccuseshim ofbeing ignorantoftheMethod ofGeometricians. He knew itperfectly well, and designedlyforbearsthe
meAfrbottileofit. ALearnedMan,whoisverywellac-
Feuryinqu'aintedwithPlato,hasobserv'dbeforeme, thatno hitr'(#Man can moreaccurately proposethe State of a ojsudits. Question, more exactly divide a Subject, and exa
mineDefinitionsmorenicelythanhe. Heneverfor gets any of the things on which he has propos'd to treat ; He always returns to his Subject,' the fight of which he has never lost, what Digression soever he makes. Heoftenmarksoutthebeginningandend of each parr, and of every Digression by Propositi ons and Conclusions ; he often uses Recapitulations ; and when he keeps his proof at a distance, he always
takes care to make you remember the State of the QuestionV So that his Discourse has atonce the K
? ? The Life of Platcv 15J
berty of Conversation, and the accuracy of the most
M e t h o d i c a l Treatise. A n Ancient Philosopher has giv- Akin.
e n t h i s C o m m e n d a t i o n t o P / a t o ? , t h a t o s a l l t h e P h i - ? h ' v r *
lofophers he is the moji excellent and admirable for dividing and defining : which qualities denote him to be
a very expert Logician.
As for his Stile 'tissublime without heing Impe tuousandRapid. TisagreatRiver thedepthofv^fs
whichmakesitsmooth. TheprincipalCauseofthat Elevationwhichreignsinit, isthatheimitatesHo mer, more than any other Writers ; and has drawn from his Poesy as from a living Spring that which
hasfurnisli'daninfiniteNumberof Rivuletswhich hehasmadetorunfromit:NayheisHomer'sRi val 1 and indeed seems to have heap'd up so many magnificent things in his Treatises of Philosophy, and to have fallen so often upon Poetical Matters, and Expressions, only to dispute the Prize with this great Poetwithallhismight, likeanewWrestlerwho enters the Lists against one that has already receiv'd all the Acclamations, and is the Admiration of all Mankind. ThisistheJudgmentwhichLongings
makesofhim;butsincehegoesnotdeepenoughin
to the true Character of Plato, and understood but 'apartofit? ,Thatitmaybebetterknown, IhopeI
shallbepermittedtoexplainitalittlemore through ly, by adhering to what our Ancient Masters have said of it.
Thereareibmany differentmannersofcofnposing, Dion)fius thatindeedtheyareinnumerable. Foronemayfay,Halicarn.
the Countenances of M e n are not more different than Jl 5\fj? . theirwaysofWriting. 'TiswiththisArtas'tis^,f,titn. with that of Painting, the Professors of which make
very different Mixtures with tfje fame Colours, and Paintthe fameSubjectsafteraverydifferentMan
ner. Butthoughtholedifferencesaresoverynu
merous, when they are examined nicely and by de t a i l , y e t t h e y m a y b e r e d u e ' d t o t h r e e p r i n c i p a l o n e s ? ,
which go under borrow'd Names, for want of pro perones. TheFirstisaustereorrudeComposition. The
? ? 154 Tk LifeofPlato;
The Second is florid, or smooth. And the Thitd intermediate, which is compos'd of the other Two.
Austereorrough Composition resemblesthoseAn-
Aufltre trcient Buildings, the Stones of which are neither po- rudecompo- lifh'd, nor artificially plac'd j but yet are well fixM;
D? onvC anc*^avemoreSoliditythanBeauty,ithasmore ? <<? . 22,'&c. ? fNaturethanArt init-,anddepends more onthe PassionthanManners and Civility:Ithasnothing florid,5tisgreatandrigid, ifImaybepermittedto usesuchaTerm? ,'tiswithoutOrnament; andall
theGracesofitsavourmuchofAntiquity. This isthetrueCharacterofPindaryEschy/usand Tbucy- dides.
The Second, whichissmoothandflorid, isalmost smooth orentirely opposite to the other, It seeks the sweetest f l o r i d c o m - a n ( j s m o o t h e s t W o r d s -, a n d a v o i d s s u c h a s a r e h a r s l i
2$! and26. anc*roughwith all imaginable care. Thisfavours 'moreofArtthanNature, anddependsmore onpo liteMannersthanon thePassion. This istheCha
racterofHeJiod^Sapho, Anacreon, Simonides,andEu ripides among thePoets, and oflfocratesamong the Orators. ForofallthathavewritteninProsenonee- ver succeeded better than this Last.
The Third ismade up of both together 'tis com- Mix"dCom-pounded ofwhat isbest inthetwo former $and there- positim ' fbre excels them both ; for the perfection of Arts-
"btiilmtr a^ways cpnfists in a Medium, as well as that of jag. '27. 'Manners and Actions, and the whole Course of
Life.
TheWriters ofthiskinddiffermoreamong them
selves than those that have follow'd the two former methods,becauseofthedifferentmixture theyhave made of thole two Characters j for some have fal len more on the rough way, and others more on
the florid,
Homer, SophoclesJderodotusJdemoftKenesJPlato and
Ariftotle wrote in this last kind 5 but without contra d i c t i o n H o m e r is t h e m o s t t o b e a d m i r e d . T h e r e is n o partofhisPoemsbutiswonderfully diversifiedby these2sortsofComposition. Theywhohavefollow'd
him
? ? 7he Lifeof Plato; 155
fiimare snoreor lessexcellent5accordingasthey more or less approach this great Model. And as Platocomesnearertohimthanothers, 'tisthisthat
giveshim hisgreatestBeauts. TheFoundationoftheseThreeways,aswellas
ofallothersisFirstthechoiceofWords;Second- TbtFou>>* lythe regular placing of 'em, from which theref? TM< resultsadifferentHarmony, audinfinetheuseorti- '* i
gures,and alltheotherOrnaments ofDiscourse.
The choice of Words is first in Order, but the regularDispositionof'emisfirstinBeauty. This<<*<<*>><<? ?
issotrue, thatthebestchosenandnoblestWordsifrffg*^ thrown at a venture, without Method and Art, will gular fU_ quite spoil the Elegancy of the Thought ; whereas cingoj'tm. theworstchosenandmostvulgarWordswillmake
an indifferent Thought pass, when Art has taken care to put them in good Order; To be throughly convinc'dof thisTruth, aMan need onlypickout some of the finest Passages to be found in the Ora torsandPoets,andaltertheOrderandHarmonyof
'em without making any Alteration in the Words :, and he'll destroy the Beauty and Force of 'em: for by this means the Figures, Colours, Passionsand polite Mannersthatappearin'emwillbelost. Henceit is that the Beauties which shine in the Writings of these great M e n can't be discern0d but by those that
knowallthesedifferences. DionyfimHdicarnaffeus
with a great deal of reason compares the dispofiti-
on of Words to Hornet's Minerva s for as this God- Hdiorn.
dessbytouchingUlyffcswithherRingmadehimap-*? ' ^
pearonewhile little, deform'd, andlikeaBeggar,-? hkTru.
depress'dwithMiseryandAge-, andanotherwhileve-tinofcom-
rygreat andmarvellouslybeautiful hlothedifferentr^m, placing of the same Words make the Thoughts *? * "ndS;
appearonewhilepoorandlow, andanotherwhilew,toWm,^
rich and sublime. Divm-tor Platomaybecall'dDivineforthispart,andif heth,nirsni. were as happy in the choice of Words, as in the onof^ds.
Dispositionof'emhewouldequalHomer, andex-*nd! ^-
ceed all other Writers ; but he sometimes 1ails in his aoiat^tmm Lv<<? +*>'-. -i . . ? -". ? ? ? ? choice,
DhnyC
? ? 156
The Life (C)/"Plato.
choice, when he quits his ordinary Stile, to ffti uponextraordinaryanasublimeExpressions. While he keeps in a simple and natural way,nothing has more gracefulness, purityandsmoothnessthanhisDicti on. TisliketheChryttalStreamosaclearRiver. He then uses the molt common Terms, he only studies Accuracy and Perspicuity, and contemns al foreign Ornaments ; he only preserves a littleAir ofAntiquity, which isalmost insensible, and ierves to set off his Elegancy, and by Numbers varied with wonderful Art ; he every where spreads a char ming Harmony. But when he would exceed himself, andaffectstobegreat, thequitecontrarysometimes befallshim ? ,for besidesthathisDictionisleisa- greeable, less pure, and more embarrass'd ; he rails into Circumlocutions, whichbeingscatterdupand down without choice and without measure, have no Elegancy or Beauty -, and only make a vain show of a luxuriant richnessofLanguage : Instead of words that are proper, and of common uie, he
seeks only for such as are novel, foreign and an tique ; and instead of employing only such Figures as are wife and grave, and easily understood $ he isexcessiveinhisEpithets, hardinhisMetaphors, andextravagantinhisAllegories. WhenIfaythis Idon'tpretend thatthisalwayshappenstohim ;one must be either blind or stupid, not to be touch'd with aninfinitenumberofPassages, inwhich. he isas great and sublime as possible, and his Stile rises up to
theCharacterofWonderful. But I speakthisto sliewthatwhen hefalls,'tisonly inthatkindofStile, inwhich'tisimpossiblyforaMan alwaystosup porthimselfequally. Forthegreatandjnagnificept way is slippery and dangerous ^ and he that-wHfat tainitmustexposehimselftoFalls. Andindeed
none but a great Genius is capable of this noble Efforthand the FallsMen have had signify that they were led by a kind of Divine Ardour, which they could not govern. Therefore the sublime Me. fnd though it his very little Foundational
ways,
? ? ? najk 7heLifeos Plato. 157
flPH:ames thePrizefromthemiddleway, though it be never so happy and perfect.
Itmust moreover be laidtothepraiseof? lato,
that the places wherein he may be said to fall are
very few in comparison of those in which he has s u c c e e d e d t o a w o n d e r ? , a n d i f w e t a k e n o t i c e o f
'em, Yis not so much to censure them, as to ad mire that a Man rais'd lo high above the ordina ry pitch of humane Nature ; (hould not be able
topreserve himself from Faults in those places where he might so easily have avoided them $ and whereheseemstohaveknown'em. Forhesome times conleiles that what he fays isnot somuch like a wile and orderly Discourse, as a Dithyram- bick P o e m ; and that he speaks like a M a n posieis'd. This extravagant Enthusiasm is vicious ? , especially
in Matrers of Philosophy ; and he ought to have c o r r e c t e d i t , s e e i n g h e d i s c e r n ' d i t ? , a n d w a s s o c a r e f u l
andjealousofhisStile, thatatfourscoreYearsof Age, he did not cease to give new touches once and again to his Dialogues, and took so much pains with'em, thatafterhisDeath,thebeginning ofhis Books ofaRepublickwasfoundon hisWriting-Ta bles, alter'd twenty several ways.
Butitmay besaidthisFaultpleas'dhim,orthat,be cause he fear'd the Simplicity of Socrates would not be always relish'd, he had a mind to raise it by the Sublimity of Tbucyiid. es and Gorgiaf, however in imitating theirVertues, he did not take sufficientpre cautionagainsttheirVices. ThisistheJudgment which Dionyjius Halicamaffeus makes of him inhis Treatise oftheAncientOrators? ,andhesupports itinthe AnswerwhichhemakestothegreatPom- peywhotookP/Wspart. InthisAnswerheproves to him the Truth of this Censure, and makes it appear,thatheisofthefamemindhimself;and
farther shows, that the Ancients, as Demetrius Pba- lereus^andsome others,hadpassedthefameJudg ment before him.
Longing whoissofine,sosure,andsoexacta Critick
? ? ? I58 The Life of Phto: sitn.
Critickwas ofthefameOpinioii4w#te>>iAges-l^fcfr Dionyjixs tialicarnaffeus. Heiicknowledgesaswell as this Latter that Plato writes after a divine manner in abundance of places, and at the fame time, proves, like him too,by palpable Instances, thathe issome times too figurative in his expressions -,and that by a certain fury of discourse he suffers himself to betransportedtoharshand extravagantMetaphors, and to a vain allegorical Pomp, which can't choose butfrequentlylanguish. Thisisadefectwhichhe might have avoided, as Demetrius lays, if he had used proper Terms more frequently than Meta phors.
But to finish this Character in few words, by re
sumingwhathasbeenalreadysaid. InGeneral
there isnothing more harmonious and touching than
Plato's Diction-, he joins the force of the greatest Orators, with the Graces of the greatest Poets ? ,
he isvery fruitful and luxuriant ; he so perfectly describes Manners and Passions, and forms Charac terssowell, thatallthePersonshebringsinevery where appear what they seem'd to be at first view. There is nothing more perfect when he keeps him selfwithintheBounds ofordinaryLanguage^but he sometimes falls when he strives to soar very high, thohisFallsarenotcommon, andyettheplaces wherein he shows himself pompous and magnifici- ent are very frequent ; so that even in this kind of writing there are a thousand things to be admir'd in hisBookswherethereisonetocondemn'd. ^
Having spoken of Plato's Stile, w e come to speak a word or twos of his. Commentators, and Inter preters. . ^. . ?
. We havebuttwoLatinTranslationsofthisPhi losopher'sWorks, thatofMarsdiuslicihus,and thatofJohndeSerres,whocompos'dtheHistory ofYrwceundertheTitleofanInventory (orRe gister. ) N e i t h e r o f ' e m w i l l e v e r m a k e P l a t o to' b e w e l l understood. Howevertheformerseemstomethebest for the literalSense,and 'tis certain,that it1has fewei
? ? T h e Life of Plated
( c p
faults. MarsiliusYicinuswasaLearnedandLabo rious M a n ; but being too speculative and abstracted he loses all the advantage of his Translation by his Explication, inwhichhestrainsAllegoriesandMys teriestoanexorbitantdegree. Itwouldhavebeena great uneasiness to him to understand any thing sim
ply, tho Plato often speaks with great Simplicity - and by this means he endeavours to justify a great many Errors into which Plato fell ? , for he every
where finds a fense, not only commodious and ex cusable, but orthodox ; he always looks on him with aprofoundrespectasaManinspir'dofGodh and is perswaded there is no Mystery in the Christian
Religion, but he knew it : I don't fay in the Wri tingsof theProphetsonly, butinthoseoftheEvan gelists and Apostles.
John de Setres was a Man of less Ability than Marsilius Yicinus, . nor did he understand Greek
near so well as he, so that his Translation abounds
with Faults, and essential Faults too, which corrupt See the Ab-
the Sense : but he is yet more to blame for entire- bot^^f> \ychangingtheorderoftheDialogues, anddispo-JJ2S ? s sing 'em into different Classes ; not according to the pag. 297.
Subjects, but the Titles of 'em, which are com m o n l y f a l s e ? , w h i c h m a k e s t h e R e a d e r , w h e n h e
seeks for that in the Dialogue which is promised in the Title, and does not find it, accuse Plato of be ing very defective in his Proofs, and of wandering from his Subject ; so that he has not the Patience to hear him. The only thing in his Work, that seems to me worthy of any great Commendation, is his small Marginal Notes ; in which he gives a naked discovery of Plato's Method 5 for tho Plato was willing to conceal it, to render, his Dialogues t h e m o r e d i v e r t i n g -, i t w a s f i t s o m e P e r s o n s h o u l d give himself the trouble of unfolding this Art tho roughly, which the Readers would not always un ravel of themselves : This is a very great help, and indeed is very useful to make the Beauties of the
Method Plato follow'd appear to. good advantage. ? ? ? In
? ? pjato.
losethetrainof hisReasoning. The Obscurities w e find in 'em result either from the Customs of his Time, or the Opinions of the Ancient Philosophers j into which Commentators give very little Light. The knowledg of 'em ought to be sought in the reading of Ancient Authors, which are more useful tomakeaMan understandPlato,thanallthathave labour'dtoexplainhisDoctrine.
