The motif of the so-called “critique of writing” in the Phaedrus has received much attention from contemporary commentators of Plato. Less attention has been paid to the explicit praise of writing and the project of making all citizens literate presented in the Laws. Because in the Phaedrus there is talk of writing of every sort (including legal documents), the question arises whether Plato changed his attitude to writing in the Laws. The present discussion places the Platonic reflection on writing and speech in the broader context of the ambivalent attitude of fourth-century BC Athenians to writing and written laws. It is demonstrated, first, that Plato criticizes writing to the same extent to which he praises it; second, that if his criticism includes writing, it also includes verbal teachings and all oral compositions.

A review of Jacob Howland’s book Glaucon’s Fate: History, Myth, and Character in Plato’s Republic.