L’exègèsis chez Plutarque: textes poétiques, textes philosophiques et vérité

Abstract

Although both poetic texts and the writings of Plato require “explanation” (exegesis), the exegesis of Homer will necessarily produce different results from that of Plato, given the very different relationship of each type of text to the truth. Poetic texts are the domain of the grammatikos, but his “explanation” is not suffi cient to ensure that the reader will benefi t or that poetry will serve as a propaedeutic to philosophy. To arrive at the truth, it is not enough simply to explain the meaning of Homer’s words or to clarify his thought but, rather, his poetry must be constantly compared to the truth, which lies outside it. Far from being an explanation of the poets, the De audiendis poetis therefore teaches the reader above all to adopt a critical approach to poetry. By contrast, the truth is to be found in the writings of Plato, which allow the reader to understand the world as a whole and provide a basis for understanding the essential truths. In the case of Platonic texts, Plutarch offers his own exegesis. He writes for his sons and his friends, providing them with an ethics of exegesis, for exegesis is a means not just of approaching the content of a work and its doctrines but also of putting the exegete himself to the test. Its ultimate goal is to make the exegete, as far as possible, at one with himself, with Plato and with the truth.