Plato’s Symposium, written around 385-370 BC, is set at a dinner party where a group of Athenian men — including the comic poet Aristophanes, the tragic poet Agathon, and ultimately Socrates himself — each deliver a speech in praise of love (Eros). Socrates’s contribution, in which he recounts the teaching of the wise woman Diotima, builds toward the famous Ladder of Beauty — love’s ascent from physical attraction to the pure Form of Beauty itself.
One of Plato’s most literary and beautifully written dialogues, the Symposium is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy, love, or classical literature. Download this free EPUB from Better Gutenberg today.