Plato advocates the expulsion of poets in The Republic. His main point is that literature, being based on a lowly mimetic art appealing to emotions rather than reason, fails to provide universal truth, and therefore poets must be banished. However, this challenge raised by Plato triggered efforts to define the distinctive characteristics of literature, distinguishing it functionally from philosophy.

Plato questions the utilitarian value of literature from moral and ethical perspectives.

“But let us address poetry in such a way that it will not criticize our rigidity and coarseness.” – The Republic

Plato’s aversion to poetry and poets can be explained through his criteria of imitation. Humans possess an instinct to imitate, and the theory of poetry as imitation of nature existed even before Plato. Consequently, like Aristotle, Plato agrees with the view that all art is imitation. However, for Plato, access to the realm of Ideas (Forms) is impossible through art’s capacity for imitation. The realm of Ideas he pursued does not exist in the material world where we live. Therefore, art, which imitates the material world — itself an imitation of the Ideas — can never approach the Ideas closely.

He distinguishes imitation into two kinds: “imitation of reality as it is” and “imitation of visible appearances.” Art belongs to the latter, which Plato argues is merely a shadow twice removed from truth, that is, from the Ideas.

Plato valued the Ideas highly and considered anything further removed from them inferior. According to him, art is farther removed from the Ideas than even the material world, thus incapable of conveying the truth. Moreover, his second reason for rejecting art is that it stimulates human emotions. Plato separates the human psyche into reason and emotion, regarding emotion as the inferior part. Therefore, art that arouses emotion is also inferior, he states:

“This imitation ought to have subdued these (emotions), but it nourishes them and enthrones them as rulers over us, whereas these ought rather to be ruled.” – The Republic

This judgment stems from Plato’s distrust of art violating society’s public welfare function.

Plato believed that poets rely solely on mysterious inspiration, irrespective of their mimetic skill.

“No one, while possessing reason, can compose poetry or prophecy. Composing poetry and speaking beautifully is a god-given power, and every poet can only compose well what the god inspires.” – Ion

Here, Plato ridicules the poet’s irrational state, known as the theory of the maddened poet.

In his analysis of poetry, he ignored the individual poet’s artistic creativity or literary imagination, focusing instead on the truthfulness of poetic expression. He judged the poet’s imitation as a lowly skill that merely copies visible objects or reality, denying any unique qualities expressed within poetry itself.

Summary

Art is an imitation of the physical world, which itself is an imitation of the world of Ideas; thus, it can never truly approach truth.  Furthermore, art is inferior because it expresses and stimulates emotions, the inferior part of the human psyche.