What They're Arguing About
Agathon hosts a dinner party in Athens where the guests decide to skip the usual flute-girls and instead deliver successive speeches in praise of Love. As the wine flows, the arguments shift from mythological origins to the psychological nature of desire and its relationship to virtue. Socrates waits until the end to share a conversation he once had with Diotima, who argues that love is a ladder leading from the attraction of beautiful bodies toward the possession of the Good itself. The evening concludes with a chaotic arrival of intoxicated revelers and a quiet, sleepy debate about the shared nature of tragic and comedic craft.
Speakers
- Socrates
A philosopher who turns every party into an intense tutorial.
- Agathon
A playwright hosting a banquet for his high-profile friends.
- Diotima
A mysterious teacher who explains the hierarchy of desire.
- Alcibiades
A drunken reveler who ruins the dinner party seating chart.
What it's really about
- Hierarchy of Desire
- Ascending from physical attraction to the abstract Good.
- The Noble Error
- Pursuing virtue through others even if they are flawed.
Why it's memorable
- Socrates standing alone as the only guest awake at dawn.
- A drunk Alcibiades interrupting a formal discussion on love.
What they conclude
The party dissolves into a morning lecture on the singular nature of dramatic craft.
For your book club
- Why does a party about love focus so heavily on virtue?
- Is the argument that comedy and tragedy are identical a joke?