Plato

The Symposium (annotated) Plato

Plato's Symposium is a series of Philosophical speeches on Love given at a party in ancient Greece dated c. 385-370 BC. 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 depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches given by a group of notable men attending a banquet. The men include the philosopher Socrates, the general and political figure Alcibiades, and the comic playwright Aristophanes. The speeches are to be given in praise of Eros, the god of love and desire. It is the first major philosophical text on love in Western literature. It can be classified as a tragicomedy, using elements of both genres. This version of the book contains: -A biographical account of the author