Plato - definitions of love Flashcards
What work of Plato’s covers definitions of love
- Laws
- Symposium
- Phaedrus
How does Plato’s ‘Laws’ define love
The laws outlines the difference between love, desire and friendship
Love = about lifelong friendship
Who in the symposium defines love
- Phaedrus
- Pausanius
- Euryximachus
- Aristophanes
- Agathon
- Socrates
- Alcibiades
How does Phaedrus define love in the symposium
- Love is the eldest and noblest of the gods and causes people to behave nobely and honourably.
- Love is the path to virtue
- Proper love makes men and women dare to die for men that they love
How does Pausanius define love in the symposium
- There are 2 types of love both born of Aphrodite: Pandemian and Uranian Eros.
- Both are needed but uranian eros is to be aspired to
How does Euryximachus define love in the symposium
Love is a manifestation of a human phenomenon that can be seen in the heavens and throughout nature.
Good love balances and brings harmony to life. bad love which results from not controlling bad desires brings destruction.
How does Aristophanes define love in the symposium
Love is the longing for wholeness.
- primeval man (rolly-polly people) - 3 types
How does Agathon define love in the symposium
- Love is beautiful, tender, soft and nice
- Ares falls for Aphrodite so love is stronger than war - love is the master of all the gods
How does Socrates define love in the symposium
Socrates repeats what Diotima told him;
- Love of the mind (between men) creates beautiful things (poetry, philosophy)
- love should be the pursuit of the beautiful
How does Alcibiades define love in the symposium
Socrates embodies love he holds knowledge and virtue
What is Plato’s definition of Love
- due to the conflicting ideas presented in his work it is difficult to find a clear view that can be attributed to him.
- Love is powerful and can lead to truth or delusion and distraction.
- Love is seperate from desire
How does Socrates define love in Phaedrus
He claims that everyone sees love is a desire
This differs in opinion from the rest of Plato’s work that we study in that it does not seperate love and desire and is part of the reason it is so difficult for us to figure out what Plato’s own opinion on love is
