The Symposium
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Plato’s The Symposium, written around 385–370 BC, is one of the foundational works of Western philosophy and among the most beautiful explorations of love in classical literature. Set during a drinking party at the house of the tragedian Agathon in Athens, the dialogue brings together a gathering of distinguished guests, including Socrates, Aristophanes and the young Alcibiades, each invited to deliver a speech in praise of Eros. Their reflections move between wit, mythology, desire and philosophical enquiry, gradually revealing the many dimensions of human attachment.
At the heart of the dialogue is Socrates’ account of love, drawing on the teaching of Diotima, who describes the ascent from physical beauty towards the contemplation of beauty itself. Combining dramatic storytelling with profound philosophical speculation, Plato considers love as both a human longing and a path towards wisdom, immortality and the eternal. The Symposium remains one of the most influential treatments of love in the literary and philosophical canon, its ideas continuing to shape discussions of beauty, desire and the nature of the good.
From the book
“At the touch of love every one becomes a poet.”
— Plato, The Symposium
On The Symposium
“The Symposium of Plato is a work of this character, and can with difficulty be rendered in any words but the writer’s own.”
— Benjamin Jowett, Introduction to The Symposium