Course Correction
Plato has survived the collapse of Athens, the burning of libraries, the rise of Christianity, the fall of empires, and two millennia of footnotes. Recent news from a public university now suggests the ancient philosopher requires administrative review before entering a syllabus. A professor was instructed to remove passages from Plato’s Symposium, not because of error or obscurity, but because the dialogue touches themes modern policy finds difficult to classify. The moment is unintentionally comic. Plato wrote in riddles, staged arguments, and refused to resolve his own questions, precisely to force readers to think rather than comply. Treating him as a doctrinal risk misunderstands both philosophy and institutions. Ironically, the review now turns to whether Plato’s dialogues count as instruction, conversation, or unsupervised inquiry.
Further Reading
Plato, Roman marble copy after a Greek original attributed to Silanion, 4th century BCE. Capitoline Museums. Public domain.