The Symposium

Plato’s "Symposium" is a series of speeches on Love given at a party in ancient Greece. They deal with questions of: what Love is; interpersonal relationships through love; what types of love are worthy of praise; the purpose of love; and others. It is the first major philosophical text on love in Western literature. It can be classified as a tragicomedy using elements of both genres.. Apollodorus tells the story of a drinking party or symposium that occurs long ago. Socrates and Aristodemus go to a party given for Agathon since Agathon has just won a contest for the performance of his tragedy. The men there talk and drink and then decide that each should give a speech in praise of the god Love.