Plato, Love, and Cheeseburgers

To consider why Plato chose to write the Symposium in a literary form, it would be pertinent to first establish what Plato believed love is. Before constructing the work Plato had a conception of love that he wished to convey. It was based on this conception that he decided what format would be suitable.

Understandably, the stage Plato chose was an erotic drinking party consisting of intellectually accomplished men and ascetically pleasing boys--A fair choice indeed. However, it must be acknowledged that love is not something that only exists between men and boys (though it is certainly a shining example). There can love between a man and woman, a woman and child, person and dog, dog and elephant (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAN5nf04L2s). Love also extends to inanimate objects as well. I really love cheeseburgers. This is one point Plato emphasized. Love does not only exist between two “souls” that have energia (the ability to actively alter or pursue the physical), as exemplified by the Speech of Aristophanes. The consistent characteristic of these love-filled examples is that involves multiple objects. Love is always of something. In addition, the Greeks firmly believed all facets of reality had an inherent hierarchy. Modern notions of equality are just that—modern. There is by nature the fastest cheetah and by nature the wisest man (they have a point—Einstein is probably smarter than me). Consequently there are superior and inferior objects of love. What is the most superior object of love according to Plato? You guessed it, surprisingly the philosopher believes it is wisdom! (In an effort to remain brief, I will not delve into Plato’s argument for why wisdom is the highest object of love, but I, along with an impressive contingent of human history, have found it compelling.) Complete wisdom however, cannot fully be attained (Pythagoras is still scratching his head why A squared + B squared= C squared). However, striving after wisdom is the ultimate pursuit and paradigmatic example of love. Plato says, “the lover is turned to the great sea of beauty, and, gazing upon this, he gives birth to many gloriously beautiful ideas and theories, in unstinting love of wisdom.” It is a beautiful idea isn’t it? To remain faithful to the object of your love even when you realize it is unattainable. For the man who loses interest in the girl when he discovers she is unavailable, only reinforces the fact he never genuinely loved her in the first place.

So why did Plato choose an orgiastic drinking party to present his account of love? Primarily, Plato had a great sense of humor. The common conception of love in Athens involved relations between men and boys followed by men and women. To be ironic, Plato chose this exact setting to argue why the highest love is not this at all. And his hero who expresses this opinion, Socrates, is the only one capable of refraining from such bodily-obsessed behavior “polluted by human flesh.” Plato reveres this hypothetical Symposium as opposed to the traditional intoxicated sex romps because our characters cease to indulge themselves in hedonistic behavior and instead turn their mind’s eye to the pursuit of knowledge, i.e. participate in the highest form of love. Love, because it does not pertain to truth, but instead is the search for truth, cannot be logically deduced. Thus a classic logic-driven Platonic dialogue between interlocutors is an unsuitable platform for this topic. Love can only be recognized to exist. Through the literary style, which utilizes stories and interpersonal exchanges, love comes to the forefront--these characters care about the topic. We read the Symposium for a reason. It is in pursuit of knowledge, is it not?