Tag: plato
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The Symposium III: Erixymachus, Aristophanes, Agathon, Socrates, and Alcibiades
Erixymachus follows Pausanias, only after Aristophanes is overcome with a fit of hiccuping -an appropriate interruption for the famous comedian who once mocked Socrates in The Clouds. Erixymachus praises Eros as the akin to the superiority of the medical art, over and above the legal craftsmanship of Pausanias. Recall that Erixymachus is a doctor, and is […]
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The Symposium II: Pausanias
While Phaedrus had spoken from the point of view of the beloved, in defense of the god Eros as a pathway to virtue (courage and manliness), Pausanias, the old lover, posits a new thesis that all love does not merely lead to virtue. Instead he identifies that it is the behavior of the lover that is the […]
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The Symposium I: Phaedrus
The plan for The Symposium comes from Erixymachus, the physician, who shares his opinion that each of the attendees, starting on the left, should recite the fairest praise of Eros. This idea originates with Phaedrus who claims that Eros has never been properly praised. Socrates agrees, stating that no one would disagree with him, and Phaedrus begins. […]
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