Even if platos fellow athenians did not know that the party which celebrated agathons victory occurred in 416 bc, they would be able to infer from the names of the guests that the gathering took place a short time before the disastrous sicilian expedition in 415414. Socrates says he served in the athenian army during three campaigns. Therefore, i have edited the pronouns and formatting for claritys sake. Phaedrus explains this further by describing that when in. Platos symposium is a masterpiece of art and thought, a high example of the fusion of plato the dramatist, poet, and philosopher. First i will discuss the mysteries themselves and then i will turn to a discussion of socratesdiotimas speech, showing how knowledge of the mysteries can illuminate platos meaning in the symposium.
The guests decide not to get drunk, but drinking a. The men include the philosopher socrates, the general and political figure alcibiades, and the comic playwright aristophanes. Love is the oldest of gods and inspires us to be better people so as to live up to the expectations of our lover. Socrates arrives at the party late, as he was lost in thought on the neighboring porch. Plato symposium lecture plato symposium what good is. Phaedrus began by affirming that love is a mighty god, and wonderful among gods and men, but especially wonderful in his birth. Symposium is central in platos philosophy, since it talks about love and ideas. The symposium is a philosophical text by plato dated c. Symposia being mens drinking parties, platos symposium depicts athenian live at a very lighthearted moment in 416 bc. The dialogues are arranged in chronological order, benjamin jowetts prefaces and introductions are included as well, for. Phaedrus starts by pointing out that eros is the oldest of the gods, and that eros promotes virtue in people. Because this god is the most philanthropic god of them all.
On a charitable interpretation of aristotle, aristotle reads plato correctly, and his criticism of plato is welltaken. Symposium is platos recounting of a, supposedly true, ancient cocktail party where various guests are invited to stand up and give their account of love, its function, and origin for those of you who dont know, symposium reads more like a particularly funny. The speeches of love by aristophanes and socrates in platos symposium. While phaedrus, pausanias, and eryximachus asserted eros to be the oldest god, aristophanes does not. On reading symposium for the first time, i thought plato was not a feminist. And more than any other platonic work the symposium is greek both in style and subject, having a beauty as of a statue, while the companion dialogue of the phaedrus is marked by a sort of gothic irregularity. A reading of platos symposium 36 suggest the love, as a god, has a desire for beauty, and a desire is always of a thing which is lacking.
No poet can be wise without love, nor could the gods or muses master their respective arts without love for those arts. Indeed, for agathon, who believes that what is good must also be beautiful 201c, this. Guidance is given through shame when acting shamefully and pride when acting well. Contents introduction vii editorial notes xxvii acknowledgments xxix euthyphro g. Love is wise since he is the inspiration for all other acts of wisdom. These are my reasons for affirming that eros is the eldest and noblest and mightiest of the gods. It concerns itself at one level with the genesis, purpose and nature of love, and in latterday interpretations is the origin of the concept of platonic love. In speech i chapter 3 on the origin of love, love is found to be the oldest, or first god, created by the good and residing in the bosom of chaos before the world. It depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches given by a group of notable men attending a banquet. Alcestis and admetus orpheus and eurydice achilles and patroclus love and virtue go together. Plato s symposium is a series of speeches on love given at a party in ancient greece. There is no criterion of the date of the symposium, except that which is furnished by the allusion to the division of arcadia after the destruction of mantinea. This dialogue is an amulet of the charms of a dialogue between the outpouring of the deepest of emotions. Pdf on jan 1, 2004, steven robinson and others published the contest.
Meditation platos proofs for the existence of gods. Benardete apollodorus, in my own opinion, i am not unprepared for what you ask about. Since plato and aristotle are both major philosophers, both must be interpreted charitably. Symposium is perhaps platos masterpiece as a work of art, though other dialogues are of greater philosophical import. Codex venetus marcianus graecus appendix classis 4, i, designated t. Sept 2014 10 mb this link contains a free pdf copy of platos symposium. January 27, 2016 plato symposium what good is love to human beings. When talking about love in the classical age, we would be utterly remiss to not include platos symposium in our conversation. Socalled from being discourse over wine after a banquet, it depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches about eros, the god of love, between some mostlyfamous athenians. Character list apollodorus narrator aristodemus told. So, i shall try and show you the extent of his power and you, in turn, show it to others. Docs love desire the thing that he is love of, or not. Summary overall summary apollodorus relates to an unnamed companion a story he learned from aristodemus about a symposium, or dinnerparty, given in honor of the tragedian agathon.
A form here means an ideal an eternal fundamental principle, of which material objects and attributes are imperfect copies. Apollodorus of phaleron tells a friend about a dinner party held in 415 b. Love is braver even than ares, god of war, since ares fell in love with aphrodite and was thus mastered by love. Plato, allan bloom wrote, is the most erotic of philosophers, and his symposium is one of the greatest works on the nature of love ever written. To contribute further to the discussion, please use the contact form. Platos symposium is one of the most loved classics from the ancient world, a work of consummate beauty as both philosophy and as literature, most appropriate since the topic of this dialogue is the nature of love and includes much philosophizing on beauty.
More too than in any other of his dialogues, plato is emancipated from former philosophies. Havingsuch an ability is, in this consciousness, what it means to be god. Phaedrus begins his speech reiterating that love is a god, and is actually one of the most ancient gods. Symposium by plato sexuality in platos symposium and. Several of platos dialogs refer to socrates military service. See art leffs celebrated description of a godgroundedmoral order. According to hesiod, he was born to chaos and earth. While the republic may be more famous, symposium is the most graphic, intense, and dramatic of the dialogues. For these reasons, phaedrus offers his words of praise to this ancient, benevolent deity. In the symposium alcibiades describes socrates valour in the battles of potidaea and delium. This new edition brings together the english translation of the renowned plato scholar and translator, seth benardete, with two illuminating commentaries on it. Symposium by plato introductory dialogue and the speech of. Oldest of the gods, in plato s symposium oldest of the gods, in plato s symposium is a 35 letter phrase starting with o and ending with crossword clues for oldest of the gods, in plato s symposium.
The conclusion of this train of thought is that love, in some form or another, lacks beauty. Platos symposium is one of the most iconic works of literature in the western tradition. The symposium is about love, eros more specifically. A discussion of this meditation has been opened in debate and discourse. He praises the god, love, for its being among the oldest of all the gods and divine powers, citing works from the poets hesiod. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of the symposium and what it means. In the spirit of freshness, i will focus on one very important section, where socrates relates the words of his teacher diotima on the. It is named after greek philosopher plato, though the philosopher never used the term himself. The symposium philosophy learning and teaching organization. The symposium cannot therefore be regarded as a youthful work. The symposium, written around 370 bc, is the bestknown work by plato, the preeminent philosopher of antiquity.
Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Its great range, from discussions of physical love to an almost mystical. It is the first major philosophical text on love in western literature. An analysis of the argument of the symposium by plato.
Platos symposium greek and latin texts with facing. Out of that love in the bosom of chaos, the good creates the world composed of three worlds. Aristophanes may have demoted eros but is also restoring erosor at least trying to resurrect eros in response to the speeches that came before him. Now these spirits or intermediate powers are many and diverse, and one of them is love. Love is mans helper and the healer of all those things that stop him from being happy. Its legacy has been far reaching, inspiring religion and mysticism, to visions of art, the good, and the beautiful. The aim of this commentary is to make platos symposium as accessible as possible to intermediatelevel greek readers so that they may experience the joy, insight, and lasting influence that comes from reading some of the greatest works in classical antiquity in the original greek. Eros, the male god of love who was not as celebrated at this time nor as strongly. Suppose, for example, that aristotle claims that an idea of platos is false and that platos argument for it is invalid. Six are on eros,4 one is on socrates, and all contain mythological references, if not complete tales that may be considered myths in themselves. So god is the ideal of perfect goodness and source of all that is good.
Some 2,500 years ago, plato taught why we should believe in the gods. Pdf the contest of wisdom between socrates and agathon in. Rowe 294 parmenides mary louise gill and paul ryan 359 philebus dorothea frede 398 symposium. Phaedrus praise of love is unmitigated, and focused on a single god. Oldest of the gods, in platos symposium oldest of the gods, in platos symposium is a 35 letter phrase starting with o and ending with crossword clues for oldest of the gods, in platos symposium. Plato, symposium california state university, northridge.
Symposium quite clearly, it means love of something. Platos symposium this dialogue is unlike the others of plato, in as much as, socrates does not question the others in the dialectical fashion, except briefly. View notes plato symposium lecture from ucor 2 at duquesne university. Symposium by plato sexuality in platos symposium and ancient greece buy study guide in ancient greece, male homosexual relationships were commonly. Platos narrative style switches point of view so frequently that it can be confusing for students newly approaching the dialogues. Instead the various speakers take turns, as it were, each offering what he knows from his own perspective and then socrates presents a view that can place the others within a grander.
Less creditably, his mothers close relatives critias and charmides were among the thirty tyrants who seized power in athens and ruled briefly until the. Full text of platos symposium see other formats plato symposium trans. But phaedrus, pausanias, and eryximachus killed eros. Platonic love as devised by plato concerns rising through levels of closeness to wisdom and true beauty from carnal attraction to individual bodies to attraction to souls, and eventually, union. Benardetes on platos symposium and allan blooms provocative essay, the ladder of love. Therefore i say love is the most ancient of the gods, the most honored, and the most powerful in helping men gain virtue and blessedness, whcther. Firstly phaedrus says at the very start of his speech, love is a great god, plato, 178b which shows he thinks love to be male and throughout his speech he uses the. Platonic love often lowercased as platonic is a type of love, or close relationship, that is nonromantic. Love is the oldest of gods and inspires us to be better. Socrates and aristodemus will attend a banquet at agathon, with aristophanes, appolodore, pausanias and eryximachus.
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