Alcibiades

Question 1

How is love described by alcibiades?

Answer 1

• the embodiment of love is simply socrates himself
• socrates there is knowledge & virtue
• it can demobilise & dehumanise & be painful ‘‘bitten by a snake’’

Question 2

How is loves power described by Alcibiades

Answer 2

• his love for socrates is incredibly powerful, leaving himm ‘spellbound’
• socrates is capable fo making him feel shame –> love can expose negative traits that require fixing
• reinforces the importance of love of knowledge as he wants to date socrates
• the rejection of this love makes him be bitten by a snake, so his heart & mind have been poisoned
• Alcibiades wants to be a better person & thinks socrates can help him
• sees socrates on another level due to his pursuit of the truth

Question 3

What are the dangers of love according to alcibiades

Answer 3

• alcibiades thinks desire can achieve knowledge, so love must be mutual - if A + S got into rlationship it would not be mutual
• perhaps duplictous love & attachment entices socrates deceit –> a criticism of unrequites love –> a lack of mutuality? - Glaucus & Diomedes

Question 4

Alcibiades thoughts on homosexual relationships

Answer 4

• socratespretends to be peoples lover and then swaps to become their beloved constant
• Alcibiades represents the traditional, passionate side of homoeroticism, centered on physical desire, while Socrates embodies a higher, intellectual love, where beauty and wisdom matter more than sex.
• This contrast highlights the difference between lust and true philosophical love—a central theme in Symposium.

Question 5

Alcibiades specfic thoughts on homosexual relationships - idealised pederastry

Answer 5

• Idealized Pederasty – Alcibiades operates within the classical Greek tradition of pederasty, where an older, wiser man (the erastes, or lover) mentors and forms an intimate relationship with a younger, beautiful man (the eromenos, or beloved).
• He expects Socrates to fit this role for him.

Question 6

alcibiades specific thoughts on rolve reversal in pederastic relationships

Answer 6

• Reversal of Roles – Alcibiades is frustrated because Socrates refuses to conform to traditional homoerotic dynamics
• Normally, the older man pursues the younger, but in this case, Socrates remains emotionally and sexually detached, even though Alcibiades actively tries to seduce him.

Question 7

Alcibiades throughts on innervs outer beauty in pederastric relationships

Answer 7

• Socrates’ Inner Beauty vs. Physical Beauty –
• Alcibiades admits that while he is physically beautiful, Socrates is not
• However, Socrates possesses a deeper, spiritual beauty—his wisdom and character—which makes him more desirable than any physical attraction
• This reverses the expected roles: instead of Alcibiades being the prized eromenos, it is Socrates who holds the true value in the relationship.

Question 8

Alciabiades thoughts/ attitudes towards women?

Answer 8

• refers to a ‘worthless pipe girl’ –> dehumanises women
• homosocial soceity so not much to discuss here
• it is more than In ancient Greece, an auletris (flute girl) was often a low-status entertainer, sometimes associated with courtesans or party performers.
  By using this insult, Alcibiades both admires and mocks Socrates—saying that his words are as hypnotic as music but also implying that he is a trickster or manipulator.
  This fits with Alcibiades’ overall frustration: he desires Socrates physically, but Socrates refuses to engage, instead “playing” Alcibiades through philosophy.

Question 9

other thoughts of alciabes?

Answer 9

• unrequited love deon’t have to be reciproacted
• depiction of socrates as a very effective solider
• claims that socrates saved his life