4
To me, at least, it seems that a splendid hall excites the speaker's fancy and stirs it to speech, as if he were somehow prompted by what he sees. No doubt something of beauty flows through the eyes into the soul, and then fashions into the likeness of itself the words that it sends out. In the case of Achilles, the sight of his armour enhanced his anger at the Trojans, and when he put it on to try it, he was inspired and transported with the lust of battle.Iliad, 19, 16; 384. Then are we to believe that the passion for speech is not enhanced by beautiful surroundings? Socrates was satisfied with a fine plane-tree and lush grass and a spring of clear water.not far from the Ilissus: sitting there, he plied his irony at the expense of Phaedrus of Myrrhinus, criticised the speech of Lysias, son of Cephalus, and invoked the Muses, believing that they would come to a sequestered spot and take part in the debate on love, and thinking no shame, old as he was, to invite maids to join him in amorous ditties. Herod. 7, 27. May we not suppose that they would come to a place as beautiful as this, even without an invitation?
5
In truth, our shelter is not to be compared with mere shade or with the beauty of a plane-tree, not even if you pass over the one on the Ilissus and mention the Great King’s golden plane.Plato, Phaedrus, 229 seq. That was wonderful only on account of its cost; there was no craftsmanship or beauty or charm or symmetry or grace wrought into the gold or combined with it. The thing was barbarous, nothing but money, a source of envy to those who saw it, and of felicitation to those who owned it. There was nothing praiseworthy about it. The ArsacidsAnachronism; the possessors of the tree were the Achaemenid princes. neither cared for beauty nor aimed at attractiveness in making their display nor minded whether the spectators praised or not,as long as they were astounded.
