LOVE Symposium by Plato. Symposium A Greek discussion or debate.

LOVESymposium by Plato

Symposium

Symposium

A Greek discussion or debate

Symposium

A Greek discussion or debate

However, its actually quite casual

Symposium

A Greek discussion or debate

However, its actually quite casual

….and fun

Symposium

A Greek discussion or debate

However, its actually quite casual

….and fun

This is how ancient Greeks liked to party

Symposium

A Greek discussion or debate

However, its actually quite casual

….and fun

This is how ancient Greeks liked to party

….and they did a lot of drinking

Agathon

A lot of Greek men

A lot of Greek men

A lot of drink

A lot of Greek men

A lot of drink

What is the natural topic

of conversation?

A lot of Greek men

A lot of drink

What is the natural topic

of conversation?

LOVE

Aristophanes

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

He described there being three sexes:

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

He described there being three sexes:

male,

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

He described there being three sexes:

male, female,

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

He described there being three sexes:

male, female, and an androgenous

combination of the two.

Aristophanes

He was an ancient ‘comedian’

He described there being three sexes:

male, female, and an androgenous

combination of the two.

He said Zeus split up the androgenous

sex with a bolt of lightning.

Aristophanes

So Aristophanes describes love as the

desire for a person to find their other

half

Aristophanes

So Aristophanes describes love as the

desire for a person to find their other

half

To become ‘whole’.

Phaedrus

Phaedrus

Love is:

Phaedrus

Love is:

Great and wonderful

Phaedrus

Love is:

Great and wonderful

Supreme benefactor of mankind

Phaedrus

Love is:

Great and wonderful

Supreme benefactor of mankind

Great sense of humour

Pausanias

PausaniasLove is:

Not singular but dual

PausaniasLove is:

Not singular but dual

• Common love – when you have

common interests

PausaniasLove is:

Not singular but dual

• Common love – when you have

common interests

• Heavenly love – felt by boys during

maturation looking for life

partnership

PausaniasLove is:

Heavenly love can be BAD

PausaniasLove is:

Heavenly love can be BAD (if it leads

to sexual desire)

PausaniasLove is:

Heavenly love can be BAD (if it leads

to sexual desire)

But, appropriate love is when one

person educates another and makes

them wise and good.

PausaniasLove is:

Heavenly love can be BAD (if it leads

to sexual desire)

But, appropriate love is when one

person educates another and makes

them wise and good (which may mean

trying really hard)

Eryximachus(He’s a doctor so his ‘way of knowing’

is through anything to do with

medicine)

Eryximachus(He’s a doctor so his ‘way of knowing’

is through anything to do with

medicine)

He agrees with Pausanias that love can

be good or bad.

Eryximachus(He’s a doctor so his ‘way of knowing’

is through anything to do with

medicine)

He agrees with Pausanias that love can

be good or bad.

Like medicine, he believes love is

about enhancing the good and

depriving the bad.

EryximachusCommon love is good but we must not

indulge in it too much in case we get

sick.

EryximachusCommon love is good but we must not

indulge in it too much in case we get

sick.

Therefore, love is good in moderation.

EryximachusCommon love is good but we must not

indulge in it too much in case we get

sick.

Therefore, love is good in moderation.

Love is the cause of all self-control,

happiness and justice.

Agathon

Agathon

He comments that all that has been

talked about so far is what humans can

gain from love.

Agathon

He comments that all that has been

talked about so far is what humans can

gain from love (a very shallow and

selfish way to look at it).

Agathon

He comments that all that has been

talked about so far is what humans can

gain from love (a very shallow and

selfish way to look at it).

So he suggests that they talk about

Love as a God.

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Love is:

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Love is: Sensitive,

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Love is: Sensitive, never forceful,

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Love is: Sensitive, never forceful,

brave,

Agathon

Love is young and rules over the other

Gods, and therefore is peaceful.

Love is: Sensitive, never forceful,

brave,

He says Love is always moderate

because he controls pleasures and

desires.

Agathon

He also says no other God can master

their respective expertise without

Love.

Agathon

He also says no other God can master

their respective expertise without

Love.

Love is responsible for: beauty,

excellence, wisdom, goodness, etc etc

Agathon

Agathon is careless and vague about

his description, yet everyone applauds

and comments on how well spoken

and brilliant he is.

Socrates

Socrates

In true Socrates style, he is very

humbles and suggests he cannot add

anything of worth given that they all

spoke so well.

Socrates

In true Socrates style, he is very humbles

and suggests he cannot add anything of

worth given that they all spoke so well.

So he decides to tell a story of when he

met a woman called Diatoma (an oracle).

Socrates

He quickly points of that while the

previous speeches were well spoken,

they might only impress the ignorant.

Socrates

He quickly points of that while the

previous speeches were well spoken,

they might only impress the ignorant.

I.e. None of them have come close to

describing the TRUTH

Socrates

Socrates begins questioning.

Socrates

Socrates begins questioning.

Things like:

Is Love a love of something?

Socrates

Socrates begins questioning.

Things like:

Is Love a love of something?

Agathon agrees.

Socrates

He then gets Agathon to agree that

Love must desire that which it has a

love of.

Socrates

He then gets Agathon to agree that

Love must desire that which it has a

love of.

He then points out that you can only

desire something you don’t have in

their possession.

Socrates

He then gets Agathon to agree that

Love must desire that which it has a

love of.

He then points out that you can only

desire something you don’t have in

their possession.

Socrates

He goes back to Agathon’s argument

in which he said Love is ‘beautiful’ and

‘good’.

Socrates

He goes back to Agathon’s argument

in which he said Love is ‘beautiful’ and

‘good’.

Which therefore means Love cannot be

beautiful or good, since it desires it.

Socrates

He goes back to Agathon’s argument

in which he said Love is ‘beautiful’ and

‘good’.

Which therefore means Love cannot be

beautiful or good, since it desires it.

Agathon agrees he was wrong.

Symposium

Symposium

A major theme of Symposium is that

you can only know the TRUTH of

something if you can truly define it.

Symposium

A major theme is also that when you

love something, you can love the

knowledge of it,

Symposium

A major theme is also that when you

love something, you can love the

knowledge of it, i.e. in this case you

don’t have to love a specific beautiful

object, but you can go beyond that

and learn to love the idea of beauty.

Symposium

Another idea about Symposium is that

knowledge is like love,

Symposium

Another idea about Symposium is that

knowledge is like love, and Socrates’

definition of love describes his own

relationship with knowledge.

Symposium

Another idea about Symposium is that

knowledge is like love, and Socrates’

definition of love describes his own

relationship with knowledge. It is

something that you desire because

don’t have it.

Symposium

Another idea about Symposium is that

knowledge is like love, and Socrates’

definition of love describes his own

relationship with knowledge. It is

something that you desire because

don’t have it.

Symposium

This means:

If you think you have it, you really

don’t.

The pursuit of knowledge is a life long

pursuit.

Symposium

This means:

If you think you have it, you really

don’t.