The Symposium
By Plato
Introduction by Christopher Gill, Translated by Christopher Gill
In the course of a lively drinking party, a group of Athenian intellectuals exchange views on eros, or desire. From their conversation emerge a series of subtle reflections on gender roles, sex in society and the sublimation of basic human instincts. The discussion culminates in a radical challenge to conventional views by Plato's mentor, Socrates, who advocates transcendence through spiritual love. The Symposium is a deft interweaving of different viewpoints and ideas about the nature of love - as a response to beauty, a cosmic force, a motive for social action and as a means of ethical education.
- ISBN:
- 9780140449273
- Format:
- Paperback
- Pages:
- 144
- Published:
- Publisher:
- Penguin Books Ltd
- Imprint:
- Penguin Classics
- Weight:
- 113 g