“For these reasons, Aristotle's attitude to poetry was less hostile than his teacher's. Like everything else, poetry has its place in life, and is a worthy object of study by the philosopher. Philosophy should classify the different kinds of poetry, explain how they work and what their purpose is, and subject them to critical appraisal rather than outright condemnation. Aristotle's tone is detached and objective, unlike Plato who suggests that we should reject poetry like "a lover who renounces a passion that is doing him no good" (Republic X 608E).

Aristotle made public his refusal to accept Plato's views on poetry in his dialogue On Poets, the surviving fragments of which are newly collected and translated in this volume…” ~ Richard Janko #Aristotle #Poetics #bookstr