The Symposium

The first truly systematic and serious effort to define love according to perhaps the most entertaining philosophical work ever written. Protector John Armstrong During a boisterous drinking gathering a group of Athenian thinkers discuss the concept of eros or desire. From their conversation a number of nuanced insights about gender roles sex in society and the subjugation of fundamental human instincts appear. Socrates Plato's teacher challenges traditional wisdom in the discussion's conclusion by arguing for spiritual love as a means of transcendence. The Symposium skillfully weaves together various perspectives and notions about the nature of love whether it be as a reaction to beauty a cosmic power or a way to goodness.