Leo Strauss-Persecution & the Art of Writing

[Sitaram]

I have now taken my copy of this book of my shelf. Dusted it off a bit, and am preparing to say some things about it.

First, I shall say what I can remember of it from my reading of 30 years ago, and what was so impressive. Afterwards, I shall re-read it and post a few excerpts and comments.

The thing which really opened my eyes, when I learned of it in the late 60's at St. John's in Annapolis, is the understanding of "apples of gold in fittings of silver" which refers to a verse from King Solomon's Book of Proverbs.

For now, I shall quickly paraphrase things from memory. Later, I can return and polish things up.

A word of wisdom, fitly spoken, is like an apple of gold in fittings of silver.

Apparently, in those ancient times, artisans were fond of fashioning an apple out of solid gold, and then encasing it within an elaborate casing or filigree or screen of silver. From a distance, should you catch sight of this creation, you would think you had discovered an apple fashioned out of solid silver, a valuable find indeed. As you cautiously approach your discovery, you begin to sense that something is not quite right. As you draw nearer and nearer to this curious object, you notice an occasional glint of yellow, like an evening star hinting at night in a silvery sunset sky. As you take the apple into your hands, to make it truly your own, you remove your glasses, and squint at close range, and, Lo!, you make your second discovery. You have found not one apple but two apples! The apple of solid gold is cleverly concealed within the hollow apple-like casing of silver. You pause and give me a quizzical glance. You ask me what this curious work of craftsmanship has to do with the art of writing, much less persecution.

(Sitaram pauses to sit by the window and browse through the brown, aging pages of his old copy).

Aha. Here is something! At the very end of Chapter 2:

Exoteric literature presupposes that there are basic truths which would not be pronounced in public by any decent man, because they would do harm to many people who, having been hurt, would naturally be inclined to hurt in turn him who pronounces the unpleasant truths. It presupposes, in other words, that freedom of inquiry, and of publication of all results of inquiry, is not guaranteed as a basic right. This literature is then essentially related to a society which is not liberal. Thus one may very well raise the question of what use it could be in a truly liberal society. The answer is simple. In Plato's Banquet [Symposium], Alcibiades - that outspoken son of outspoken Athens - compares Socrates and his speeches to certain sculptures which are very ugly from the outside, but within have most beautiful images of things divine. The works of the great writers of the past are very beautiful even from without. And yet their visible beauty is sheer ugliness, compared with the beauty of those hidden treasures which disclose themselves only after very long, never easy, but always pleasant work. This always difficult but pleasant work is, I believe, what the philosophers had in mind when they recommended education. Education, they felt, is the only answer to the always pressing question, to the political question par excellence, of how to

reconcile an order-which-is-not-oppression
with a freedom-which-is-not-license.
​

[emphasis and hyphenation is mine, for the sake of greater clarity]

http://cla.calpoly.edu/~smarx/courses/251/Symposlect.htm

Socrates is like statue of Silenes—holding flutes and pipes, ugly, lecherous old man, when opened hold images of gods within, 161

(1) Image of Silenus: http://cla.calpoly.edu/~smarx/courses/251/images/Silenus-Rubens.jpg

(2) His arguments are like Silenes Box—quote 168—“they appear quite ridiculous at first; theyre wrapped round on the outside with words and phrases like the hide of an outrageous satyr…but if the arguments are opened, and one sees them from the inside, he will find…they contain within themselves utterly divine and multitudinous images of virtue, and that they are relevant to…all things worth considering for one who intends to be noble and good.

http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/r/r11g/part4.html

(from the Prologue to Gargantua and Pantagruel)

Most noble and illustrious drinkers, and you thrice precious pockified blades (for to you, and none else, do I dedicate my writings), Alcibiades, in that dialogue of Plato’s, which is entitled The Banquet, whilst he was setting forth the praises of his schoolmaster Socrates (without all question the prince of philosophers), amongst other discourses to that purpose, said that he resembled the Silenes. Silenes of old were little boxes, like those we now may see in the shops of apothecaries, painted on the outside with wanton toyish figures, as harpies, satyrs, bridled geese, horned hares, saddled ducks, flying goats, thiller harts, and other such-like counterfeited pictures at discretion, to excite people unto laughter, as Silenus himself, who was the foster-father of good Bacchus, was wont to do; but within those capricious caskets were carefully preserved and kept many rich jewels and fine drugs, such as balm, ambergris, amomon, musk, civet, with several kinds of precious stones, and other things of great price. Just such another thing was Socrates. For to have eyed his outside, and esteemed of him by his exterior appearance, you would not have given the peel of an onion for him, so deformed he was in body, and ridiculous in his gesture. He had a sharp pointed nose, with the look of a bull, and countenance of a fool: he was in his carriage simple, boorish in his apparel, in fortune poor, unhappy in his wives, unfit for all offices in the commonwealth, always laughing, tippling, and merrily carousing to everyone, with continual gibes and jeers, the better by those means to conceal his divine knowledge. Now, opening this box you would have found within it a heavenly and inestimable drug, a more than human understanding, an admirable virtue, matchless learning, invincible courage, unimitable sobriety, certain contentment of mind, perfect assurance, and an incredible misregard of all that for which men commonly do so much watch, run, sail, fight, travel, toil and turmoil themselves.