시와 철학 교육을 통한 인성 함양에 대하여 - 고대 그리이스의 시와 철학에 대한 플라톤의 입장을 중심으로 -

Ancient Greek poetry played a significant role in character education. Greek poetry helped build attitudes and values of Greek people.

Nonetheless, Plato thought at his time that poetry is not appropriate for character education any more. Plato's reason for this is that Athens has been changed so much. Greek poetry, however, has not successfully fit to this social change. As a result, Greek poetry has lost its major role in providing attitudes and values for the Athenian. In this sense Plato thought that poetry is to be substituted for philosophy. Athens needs the new way of thinking to adapt to the changing situation.

According to Plato, Greek poetry, in general, had not dealt with what is true. It had mainly described to touch emotion and volition. It also praised Greek heros' life and deeds. Thus, Plato criticized in that Greek poetry alienated Athenians from themselves, since poetry did not deal with the unchangeable, that is, the Idea but the changeable. Emotion and volition are good and necessary for life. Even it is true, it is not enough for every individual life. Everyone needs to control emotion and volition since it is always fluctuating.

If a man can not rule emotion and volition, his life is floating in chaos. Then he will loose who he is and what to do. In other words, he can not find himself in life. He can not identify with himself. It is hard for him to stand tall against any kinds of emotional fluctuations and hardship by himself without the strong self-identity.

Thus, Plato thought at this point that Athenians need philosophy rather than poetry. It does not, however, mean that Athenians do not need poetry at all. It means that Athens needs poetry with different contents. Greek poetry has to limit its role in a certain range. Greek poets also have to change their point of views to which they regard poetry as searching and delivering truths. Otherwise Athens could not have any hope for its future, since there is no progress without truth.

In this paper, I will examine the point in which Plato criticizes the limits of Greek traditional poetry, and why morality is important in poetry. Then I will closely look at why Plato tried to substitute poetry for philosophy for character education. Finally I will try to show from Plato's educational thought what kind of lesson we can get for our character education.