Attitude Towards Food and Pleasures in Consumption on Plato's Phaedra
Discussion
In your initial post, identify the text or group of texts that you found most interesting, surprising, or disturbing and provide a brief (one to two sentence) explanation. Then select one of the discussion questions to begin a closer examination of the texts. In follow up posts throughout the remainder of the week, respond to your colleagues and explore as many of the remaining discussion starter questions as possible.
● Consider the excerpt from Plato's Phaedra. What attitudes towards food, the pleasures of consumption dominate this text? Plato does not limit consumption to the consumption of food but includes bodily pleasures such as sex and the consumption of consumer goods such as new stylish sandals in his musings. With the clarity of looking at the past from the present, where might we find similar sentiments expressed in our time? How influential are they and what determines their influence? What insights or question(s), if any, does this excerpt bring to our attention that you would like to explore in more detail?
● Pythagoras presents one of the earliest known arguments for a vegetarian diet. What did you notice about the language that is used to frame his argument that Ovid passes on to us? Consider the use of pathos (emotion) and logos (reason) in the argument. Are they well-balanced or does one dominate the other? How effective is the argument? To what extent does it resonate in our time? What insights or question(s), if any, does this excerpt bring to our attention that you would like to explore in more detail?
● Many encounter the passages from the old testament in church or synagogue while the new testament excerpts are exclusive to the Christian faith. When we examine them in a non-religious context, what do they reveal about the concerns and worries that have been with us throughout history? Compare the excerpts to Plato's assertions about the mind and body. To what extent do the texts reinforce similar sentiments? What is the significance of these sentiments and attitudes? What insights or question(s), if any, do these excerpts bring to our attention that you would like to explore in more detail?
● Ovid often evokes a strong response in our time. What attitudes and sentiments are expressed in the two excerpts that evoke such a strong response? What connections can you make to our time? You may want to consider the 2006 Me Too movement started by Tarana Burke and the 2017 hash tag started by Alyssa Milano to help you make connections but certainly there have been many others who have explored the ways in which women's bodies have been depicted throughout history in similar a vain. What insights or question(s), if any, does these excerpts bring to our attention that you would like to explore in more detail?
● The plum poem is perhaps the most accessible of this week's readings. How does the poem allow us to explore time? Consider your experience of reading the poem and thinking about it and compare it to the way in which the poem is used in the film clip? What are one or two differences you noticed? How does the camera influence our experience of the poem when we are watching the film clip? What insights or question(s), if any, does this poem bring to our attention that you would like to explore in more detail?Remember to keep the initial and all follow up contributions focused and concise in a paragraph of two to invite dialogue that allows us to develop a thoughtful analysis that considers multiple perspectives and responses. Provide brief references or direct quotations to a particular passage that is central to your contribution.
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Discussion
The text that caught my attention is the excerpt from Plato's Phaedra, which talks about food. The outstanding attitude towards food is bold and optimistic. Food is not limited to the cooked food we eat when hungry. Instead, it encompasses everything that we do to satisfy our hunger and craving for certain things. For example, as Plato explains, fashion and intimacy is food because it satisfies a craving. These are things that have taken importance in our contemporary world. These influential "food" currently determines a person's social status. Therefore, this excerpt has a deeper meaning that most people in modern society can resonate with, considering the broad meaning of food.
Replies
Student 1
Hi Victoria,
You have written a well-thought discussion. I agree with you that the author uses more pathos appeal than logos. The emotional appeal makes the reader reflect more on eating meat and the suffering that it causes to animals. Indeed, people can get proteins from plants; thus no need to kill animals for this nutrient. In our contemporary world, people are embracing vegetarianism because of lifestyle diseases and the campaigns that go with it.
Student 2
Hello Sydney,
The same text attracted my attention. I like that you compared it with the biblical use of food. In the Bible, the Israelites in the wilderness were given manna by God after they complained to Moses that they were starving. Similarly, the Old Testament gives several animals that should not be eaten and others that should be eaten. Therefore, food is integral to our lives ordinarily and spiritually. I believe that food in the contemporary Christian world includes the hunger for God's word as dispensed by evangelists.
Reflection on "Dark Ages and the Men of God" by M.F.K Fisher.
The text that caught my attention the most from the list is "Dark Ages and the Men of God" by M.F.K Fisher. First, the title indicates that the text addresses a sad moment in history and the obvious mood is sad. Indeed, this is the mood in the story. Fisher describes the period when Rome was falling, and the people were consumed by insatiable greed. Here, Fisher uses the word greed to describe the cause of the fall of Rome. The food culture was completely ignored, and the eating patterns changed, as Fis...