{"product_id":"the-symposium","title":"Le Banquet","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat makes someone worth loving: a beautiful face, a fine character, or the way they help us live?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Xenophon’s The Symposium, Callias hosts a dinner to honour Autolycus, a young athlete celebrating a victory. Socrates arrives with companions, and a visiting showman brings music, dancing, and acrobatics. Entertainment gives way to conversation as the guests explain what makes them proud, from wealth and beauty to poverty and the ability to improve others.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach answer invites teasing—and a closer look. Critobulus takes pride in his beauty, while Antisthenes finds wealth in having enough within himself. As love becomes the evening’s central concern, Socrates examines Callias’s attachment to Autolycus. His playful questions draw a distinction between desire for a body and affection for a person’s character.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat you'll discover\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSocrates in playful company\u003c\/strong\u003e – Meet a Socrates whose jokes bring serious questions into an evening of shared entertainment.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePride under gentle scrutiny\u003c\/strong\u003e – Follow the guests as their proudest claims become invitations to teasing and examination.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBeauty put to the test\u003c\/strong\u003e – Join Critobulus’s comic debate about attraction and what good looks can actually accomplish.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWealth without a fortune\u003c\/strong\u003e – Consider Antisthenes’s claim that true wealth means having enough within yourself, rather than owning more.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLove that values character\u003c\/strong\u003e – Explore affection that asks both people to become better, not merely admire each other.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003ePerfect for readers who enjoy lively dinner-table conversation, ancient Greek social life, and philosophy carried by jokes rather than long formal speeches.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOpen the first page and join Socrates at a dinner where laughter makes room for questions about living well.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Library of Alexandria Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59534746911068,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1027\/9442\/8764\/files\/09620_en_ebook-front_c17.jpg?v=1792175168","url":"https:\/\/libraryofalexandria.com\/fr\/products\/le-banquet-fr","provider":"The Library of Alexandria","version":"1.0","type":"link"}