Listening to the Cicadas

The focus of this account is how myth and formal argument in the dialogue Phaedrus complement and reinforce each other in Plato's philosophy. Not only is the dialogue in its formal structure a joining of myth and argument, but the philosophic life that it praises is also shaped by the limitations of argument and the importance of mythical and poetic understanding.The book is written for anyone seriously interested in Plato's thought and in the history of literary theory or of rhetoric. No knowledge of Greek is required.