tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4104012373258339565.post8112587020069427164..comments2023-10-31T12:10:39.067-04:00Comments on Ladder on Wheels: Plato's Pleasure PrincipleMichial Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10062071425935524922noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4104012373258339565.post-8080812332444157852008-05-29T07:18:00.000-04:002008-05-29T07:18:00.000-04:00Timaeus (being a sequel of sorts to Republic) in t...Timaeus (being a sequel of sorts to <I>Republic</I>) in the passage you cite seems to be building off of the metaphor of the climbers and the two plateaus: the climbers who reach the highest point realize that their former pleasure at reaching the midpoint was a lesser pleasure than that accompanying the full climb. <BR/><BR/>Plato's not so bad; one could do worse. (And most of my freshman comp students haven't done any better.) I do worry sometimes that my favorite book to teach is also Allan Bloom's and Leo Strauss's, but I comfort myself by remembering that I teach it as an entry into rather than a stopping point for the intellectual life. A trip through <I>Republic</I> makes the <I>Federalist</I> or Jefferson's essays positively refreshing.Nathan P. Gilmourhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00731491771737922242noreply@blogger.com