There is a famous statement that"there is an old quarrel between philosophy and poetry". Well Plato is definitely a person who believes in it. He lived at a time where his city was in disaster after the Peloponnesian war and this helped him to contribute his ability in philosophy as well as literary theories. All his literary theories are influenced by his philosophy. Plato was very critical about the knowledge of the poets in is time. He lived in a critical time where people needed good guidance. People tend to look up to the poets because they water the desires...
emotions in a negative way.

Plato gives many reasons for his dislike for poetry and we have to keep in mind he had no grudge against poetry but he had issues against the power of poetry. He certainly respects Homer but is critical about the credibility of his work which has influenced many generations. Even though he thinks of banishing poets in his earlier works he brings a better idea of censoring the poems through a board of scholars before publishing. This maturity made him give advice on how to write appropriate poems which would help develop the county.