What if love is not about what you have, but what you lack?

At a dinner party in Athens, the guests at Agathon’s house set aside heavy drinking for a different pleasure: speeches in praise of Eros. In Plato’s Symposium, a celebration becomes a lively search for love’s meaning. Phaedrus links love with courage, while medicine, comedy and philosophy each offer another way to understand desire.

At the centre stands Socrates, who turns to the teachings of Diotima. What do we want when we love, and where can that longing lead? From the myth of divided human beings to the ladder of beauty, the dialogue asks you to look beyond praise and consider what love is for.

この本で学べること

• A party of ideas Join Agathon’s guests as a shared evening becomes a contest of views on love.
• Love and courage Consider Phaedrus’s claim that love inspires bravery and brings people great good.
• The search for wholeness Explore the myth of divided human beings and the longing for another half.
• Desire and what is missing Follow Socrates into the question of whether love reaches toward what we lack.
• The ladder of beauty Encounter Diotima’s teaching as Socrates explores the ties between love, desire and beauty.

どのような方におすすめですか？

Readers who enjoy humorous arguments and lively talk about big ideas will love this book. It also suits those curious about ancient Greek views of desire, friendship and beauty.