Why Love Letters Can Really Suck

Toward the end of Plato’s Phaedrus, Socrates begins to talk about speechwriting and rhetoric. He wishes to understand how to formulate a strong speech that will ultimately persuade the masses, as he claims Pericles accomplished. While arguing the subject with his companion Phaedrus, Socrates notes the practice of writing. 

In the telling of his last myth to Phaedrus, the aging philosopher describes how a sacred bird named Ibis created many arts and sciences, including writing. The Egyptian king Thamos taught these creations to the demon Theuth. When they come upon written letters, Theuth professes to the king, “‘This, knowledge, king,...will make the Egyptians wiser and provide them with better memory; for it has been found as a drug for memory and wisdom’” (Plato 85). Theuth sees the advantages of writing that many of us see today: written records help keep information safe from getting lost in a world filled with trillions upon trillions of bits of information. Our literate society depends upon writing so much to keep track of laws, history, people’s milestones, and an endless amount of other information. Many understand why writing carries such importance.

In Socrates’ myth, however, the wise Thamos disagrees with Theuth. He tells the demon that written letters will “‘provide forgetfulness in the souls of those who have learned it, through neglect of memory, seeing that, through trust in writing, they recollect from the outside with alien markings, not reminding themselves from inside, by themselves. You have therefore found a drug not for memory, but for reminding. You are supplying the opinion of wisdom to the students, not truth’” (85). Here, Socrates persuades Phaedrus that writing acts as a safety net for those who are unsure of their words. They, or their speechwriters, can write down ideas and try to draw strength from the piece of paper, rather than finding the inspiration within themselves to speak truly to their audiences. Also, Socrates points out that once a speech is written, it can travel anywhere to be seen by anyone, not just its intended audience. Readers who do not have the proper knowledge to understand the speech may misinterpret it, changing its meaning so that it does not reflect the author’s intentions.

One of my favorite songs, Johnny Flynn’s “The Wrote and the Writ,” also cautions against the ill usage of writing. In the song, Flynn sings, “You wrote me oh so many letters / And all of them seemed true / Promises look good on paper / Especially from you, from you” (Flynn). Here, he admits to the one he loves that she uses writing to sway his opinion of her and to keep him in love, while she does not act in love with him when they are together. Socrates warns his society against the ways rhetoricians and their written speeches can persuade their audiences against truth if it pleases them. Flynn gives us an example of how love letters accomplish this task as well.

Flynn goes on to describe his lover’s false writings, telling her that “I never knew a part of you / You didn’t set in ink, in ink” (Flynn). Likewise, Socrates dislikes how many Sophists distance themselves from their writings so that the audiences may fall in love with their speeches, but they will never know the Sophists’ true intentions. Flynn ends his song with the following stanza: “If you’re born with a love for the wrote and the writ / People of letters, your warning stands clear / Pay heed to your heart and not to your wit / Don’t say in a letter what you can’t in my ear.” Flynn asks that lovers speak the truth in their letters if they insist on writing them. He does not want them to pay attention to making their writing fine and embellishing it so that readers will stand in awe of their art. Rather, he believes that writers should state their purposes clearly so that they do not break their lovers’ hearts and lead them to believe there is something more in the relationship. Socrates asks that rhetoricians tell the truth as well, so that society may benefit after hearing their speeches, instead of falling in love with something that is not there.

Flynn, Johnny. “The Wrote and the Writ.” Metro Lyrics. 17 Sept. 2012. Web.

Plato. Phaedrus. Trans. James H. Nichols, Jr. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Print.