The symposium is Plato’s work written about a friendly speech contest of several notable men. The word symposium itself describes a literary form used by Plato in his works where he features speeches or essays on one topic from the point of view of different people. Eros is a concept in philosophy that means a deep passionate affection for someone or something. Eros in philosophy can also be perceived as the drive that keeps persons living in the world.
Philia is one of the words used by Socrates to define different types of love. In general, Philia means a demonstration of fondness expressed towards an item or person. Eros is different from Philia, as Eros implies deep affection for someone, while Philia is being fond of someone. Eros is more profound as compared to Philia, and Eros takes part in relationships between lovers, while Philia is found in friendships.
Each speaker in the symposium has different opinions on Eros, its relations with love, and the contexts of attractions. Phaedrus’s speech on love was focused on its divine origins and implies that love provides moral guidance for people who perform good and honorable deeds as acts of love. Pausanias’s speech centered around the different types of Eros, with one being a common type of physical affection and the second being a Heavenly Eros, designated for more honorable love that involves an intellectual side. Aristophanes perceived love as a connection between souls that provides people with a sense of gratitude and allows them to feel whole. On the other hand, Socrates viewed love as unwise and ugly behavior and rejected love due to its primary involvement in reproduction function.
Phaedrus’s speech focuses on love in general and its divine origins, rather than Eros with desire or affection. In his perception, love and affection are acknowledged as moral guides because affection cultivates the need for admiration. He mainly viewed attraction in the context of private individual relationships, even though in his examples, the deeds conducted as acts of love were evaluated by gods and later became known to the public. Phaedrus characterizes Eros as a force of desire by showing a story of a woman named Alcestis who died for the sake of Apollo. Her bravery impressed the gods, and they brought her back to life. He also draws a negative example of Alcestis, who was in love with Apollo but failed to impress him.
While Phaedrus did not specifically address the aspect of erotic longing, he suggested that the specific object desired by people in love is the lover’s admiration. Therefore, in most cases, the product of love, or Eros, is the fulfillment of the need for admiration. Loving the right person and being loved back brings joy to both parties. In Phaedrus’ speech, the relationship between morality and Eros is organic, as Eros, or desire for affection, supports high morals. Moreover, Phaedrus thought that young people could only get great rewards from becoming devoted lovers. In his perception, love guides men into living extraordinary lives as opposed to money. By drawing different examples, he illustrated how good actions performed as an act of love create pride in a person while misbehaving brings shame.
Plato’s symposium presents a collection of speeches on the topic of love and Eros from different points of view. The work features speeches, or essays, from Phaedrus, Pausanias, Aristophanes, Socrates, and Alcibiades. All speakers have different opinions on the topic of Eros, or love, and its contexts and connection to morality. Phaedrus viewed love as a source of moral guidance; Pausanias defined two types of Eros with different moral characteristics, while Aristophanes expressed a human-centered approach to Eros through the concept of self-love. On the other hand, Socrates was more attracted to the inner beauty of people and rejected love expressions.
In Pausanias’s speech, love presents a force of desire when adequately pursued. Pausanias suggests that love that started in an honorable manner is most likely to last longer. Eros, in his understanding, represents a sexual desire sourced in common or body-centered affection without the involvement of intellect. Therefore, common love is easily achievable and is rated lower than love sourced from honorable intentions. Pausanias’s speech acknowledges attraction as an element of private and individual relationships. In common love, the specific object desired by erotic longing is the partner’s body, while higher love strives for honorable acts fueled by people’s desire for the lover’s admiration. Therefore, the product of love is gratification and honorable acts caused by the need for admiration. Gratification makes people satisfied when they achieve a goal, and when people desire true love, finding it makes them attain fulfillment.
Aristophanes’ speech was the most interesting as it gave the listeners many memories of being a myth needing interpretation. This speech dwells on how love displays itself in people and states that there are three genders. Aristophanes suggests that Females originated from the earth, while males are linked to the sun. In addition, androgynous types of humans came from the moon. Aristophanes argues that men who love other men have the most vital kind of love, as, in comparison to men who love women, their love is bold. Therefore, attraction in Aristophanes’ understanding exists in the human context without binding to genders, which presents a phenomenon of love. People who search for partners to stay with them with no aim of separation intend to make themselves whole, meaning that wholeness is the product of love. Love is not about physical attractions; it is about the souls of the people that want to stay connected. The role of self-love in Aristophanes’ speech is to inspire people to find lovers that connect to their souls. His speech states that sex and other desires cannot fill the emptiness in one’s soul, while love satisfies a person.
Alcibiades discusses Socrates, saying that the behavior of Socrates is like that of Marsyas and Silenus, where he deceives people through the use of words. The problem in the relationship between Socrates and Alcibiades is that Socrates rejected the advances of Alcibiades. Socrates is interested in the beauty that exists in people; however, he does not love the person. Socrates loves chasing amazing things, such as the beauty that exists within people, which is not spoiled by unwise or ugly behavior. Therefore, he is not willing to contribute to any loving relationships as they cause unwise decisions. Alcibiades was attracted by the bravery and smartness that Socrates displayed to people. The failure of Socrates to reciprocate the feelings of Alcibiades created an argument between them. They were very close to each other in different meanings, as Socrates viewed Alcibiades as a son, while Alcibiades viewed him as a lover. The conflict caused discord in their relationships, as both had their interests and wanted different things in relationships with each other.