Plato’s speeches in the Symposium surprised me, because at first it seemed that he was presenting multiple viewpoints on Eros, and leaving the reader to interpret the writings as they pleased. Besides Socrates’ dialogue with Agathon, he only offers witty banter, and a story he overheard from the mysterious Diotima. The Phaedrus also speaks about love, but it returns to the traditional question/answer method of dialogue that Plato and Socrates are so fond of. The two pieces, when read separately, offer competing views of love, and its role in life and society, but when I read them together I came up with an entirely different interpretation. In both the Symposium and the Phaedrus, Eros serves only as a platform to discuss the value and importance of leading a life of philosophy.
Platonic love begins with the Symposium, wherein a discussion on love quickly turns to a critique of non-philosophic ways of life. The introduction to the story …show more content…
The good horse wishes to take the charioteer closer to heaven, to view the gods in their perfect embodiment of the Forms. However, the bad horse is drawn by lust and mortal desires back to the material world. However, in an argument reminiscent of the Phaedo, Socrates states that when a lover views the object of their love, they are reminded of the form of Beauty, which they observed in heaven, and can regain control of the bad horse. Again, in the Phaedrus we see philosophers appearing atop a list of professions. Interestingly, this list does not seem to match the one presented in the Symposium. I suspect the list presented to Phaedrus is more due to their later argument on rhetoric, whereas the former list is about the love of seeking knowledge. The Phaedrus is far clearer in its intended meaning, at least where love is concerned. Both pieces relate love directly to a love of the
Platonic love begins with the Symposium, wherein a discussion on love quickly turns to a critique of non-philosophic ways of life. The introduction to the story …show more content…
The good horse wishes to take the charioteer closer to heaven, to view the gods in their perfect embodiment of the Forms. However, the bad horse is drawn by lust and mortal desires back to the material world. However, in an argument reminiscent of the Phaedo, Socrates states that when a lover views the object of their love, they are reminded of the form of Beauty, which they observed in heaven, and can regain control of the bad horse. Again, in the Phaedrus we see philosophers appearing atop a list of professions. Interestingly, this list does not seem to match the one presented in the Symposium. I suspect the list presented to Phaedrus is more due to their later argument on rhetoric, whereas the former list is about the love of seeking knowledge. The Phaedrus is far clearer in its intended meaning, at least where love is concerned. Both pieces relate love directly to a love of the