In the various acts and situations of life a man is full of contradictions. He is swayed by manifold impulses, often directly contradicting each other. Hence we have affirmed that there are in his mind two distinct principles, one contradicting the other: the emotional and the rational.[320] When a man suffers misfortune, emotion prompts him to indulge in extreme grief, and to abandon himself like a child to the momentary tide. Reason, on the contrary, exhorts him to resist, and to exert himself immediately in counsel to rectify or alleviate what has happened, adapting his conduct as well as he can to the actual throw of the dice which has befallen him.[321] Now it is these vehement bursts of emotion which lend themselves most effectively to the genius of the poet, and which he must work up to please the multitude in the theatre: the state of rational self-command can hardly be described so as to touch their feelings. We see thus that the poet, like the painter, addresses himself to the lower department of the mind, exalting the emotional into preponderance over the rational--the foolish over the wise--the false over the true.[322] He introduces bad government into the mind, giving to pleasure and pain the sceptre over reason. Hence we cannot tolerate the poet, in spite of all his sweets and captivations. We can only permit him to compose hymns for the Gods and encomiums for good men.[323] [Footnote 320: Plato, Republic, x. p. 603 D. [Greek: muri/ôn toiou/tôn e)nantiôma/tôn a(/ma gignome/nôn ê( psuchê\ ge/mei ê(mô=n . . .] 604 B: [Greek: e)nanti/as de\ a)gôgê=s gignome/nês e)n tô=| a)nthrô/pô| peri\ to\ au)to\ a(/ma du/o tine/ phamen e)n au)tô=| a)nagkai=on ei)=nai.]] [Footnote 321: Plato, Republic, x. p. 604 C. [Greek: Tô=| bouleu/esthai peri\ to\ gegono\s kai\ ô(/sper e)n ptô/sei ku/bôn pro\s ta\ peptôko/ta ti/thesthai ta\ au)tou= pra/gmata, o(/pê| o( lo/gos ai(rei= be/ltist' a)\n e)/chein, a)lla\ mê\ prosptai/santas, katha/per pai=das, e)chome/nous tou= plêge/ntos e)n tô=| boa=n diatri/bein], &c.] [Footnote 322: Plato, Republic, x. p. 605.] [Footnote 323: Plato, Republic, x. pp. 605-606-607. 605 B: [Greek: to\n mimêtiko\n poiêtê\n phê/somen kakê\n politei/an i)di/a| e(ka/stou tê=| psuchê=| e)mpoiei=n, tô=| a)noê/tô| au)tê/s charizo/menon . . .] 607 A: [Greek: ei) de\ tê\n ê(dusme/nên mou=san parade/xei e)n me/lesin ê)\ e)/pesin, ê(donê/ soi kai\ lu/pê basileu/seton a)nti\ no/mou te kai\ tou= koinê=| a)ei\ do/xantos ei)=nai belti/stou lo/gou.]] [Side-note: Ancient quarrel between philosophy and poetry--Plato fights for philosophy, though his feelings are strongly enlisted for poetry.]