Platonic Love Essay

In the Symposium, which is normally dated at the beginning of the eye period, Plato introduces his theory of go. First liaison to note is that in Platos theory, delight is given and its existence is not questi peerlessd. The word have sex leaves the matter indefinite as to whether we atomic amount 18 discussing cognise in the normal, human, sense of the word, or if we are discussing desire in a much broader sense, but in this backchat we are that fenceing notwithstanding love of type eros, love as a kind of desire that exists between two human beings.Symposium, is a dialogue by Plato, astir(predicate) a dinner party in honor of the tragedian Agathon, after they acquit finished eating Phaedrus suggests that each mortal in turn should make a speech about the assess of god of love. Symposium not only gives us theory of Forms in Diotimas discussion of the Form of Beauty, but it also gives us a number of varying perspectives on love. One more burning(prenominal) thing to consider is that Diotima is not known to be a historical figure, and the way in which she is introduced suggests that she is almost certainly just a literary device certain by Plato to express his own ideas.In this theory, we see Plato rejecting the romanticization of cozy love, valuing above all an asexual and all-consuming passion for wisdom and steady. Plato clearly regards substantial physical or sexual contact between lovers as flying and wasteful forms of erotic expression. Because the avowedly goal of eros is real beauty and real beauty is the Form of Beauty, what Plato calls Beauty Itself, eros finds its fulfillment only in Platonic philosophy. Unless it channels its power of love into higher pursuits, which finish in the experience of the Form of Beauty, eros is doomed to frustration.For this reason, Plato thinks that most mickle sadly squander the real power of love by passing themselves to the mere pleasures of physical beauty. For understanding of Platos des cription of love it is actually important to firstly understand his notions, about social system of knowledge and his ideas on appearance and reality . Plato has given allegory of the cave and the line to beg off the difference between reality and appearance, through which Plato doer to depict quadruple ways of thinking, and he has defined the structure of knowledge by broad specific order to these four ways and knowledge according to Plato is to progression along this structure.He puts images of the butts on the lowest level, above which he puts objects. in a higher place the object is the concept of the object developed from the object, which lead to the highest and perfect(a)st form of thinking, pure concept, concept which is independent of the object. Here the first two levels of knowledge differ signifi stick outtly from the last two. Plato argues that one can only have opinions about the first two levels (objects and images), because there is no certainty about them. They exist in the reality, so they are subject to change, and this certainty is achieved in the later of the two levels. According to Plato from the pure concept we can total the form, which gives us the essence. Here one more important thing to realize is that for Plato, we are born with knowledge, it is just that we have forgotten it, so liberation through this ladder to achieve the form is merely a way of recollection. love life is one of the form of desire, where desire implies the lack of something.Love as a word can be used in two ways noun or verb, thus it can mean objects of love or acts of love, and while formulating a theory of love it is very important to know which one precedes the other. In Platos theory of love, it is very clear that for Plato love is an object and the acts of the love are guessd from the objects of love. These acts should be directed towards achieving of objects of love. subsequently having an idea about the structure of knowledge for Plato, it is easier to understand the methods he adopts to derive the argumentations for objects of love and how to achieve the form of love.In Symposium, Socrates is just restating the account of love given to him by a woman named Diotima. In this dialogue Socrates derives miscellaneous parameters of love through a series of questions, which he asks to Agathon. As mentioned earlier, love is a form of desire one of the parameter of objects of love is that it should be desirable. Also from the arguments between Agthon and Socrates, one can deduce that being elegant is also one of the parameter to become an object of love.Here one important thing to note is that whether something is beautiful or not is bearing not subjective. Further by the example of wealth, health and strength, Socrates argues that not only desiring the object once, but also the continuance of the desirability, is a parameter for the object of love. After which Socrates asks Agathon whether adept is beautiful or not, to which Agathon replies that he can not confound Socrates, But Socrates replies by arguing that Agathon can not refute the truth that is why he can not refute him. gum olibanum we can derive that for Socrates , being good is also one of the parameter for becoming the object of love. After discussing the temperament of the objects of love and also the structure of knowledge, it is easier to understand how to achieve the form of love. To achieve the true love, first amount is to love worldly images and objects, from which one can derive the concept of good beauty through the encounters with beautiful particulars.From the concept of beauty one can derive the form of beauty or the eternal beauty, according to Plato true and pure love is nothing but the form of beauty. According to him, the someone who has achieved the form of beauty will suddenly perceive a nature of wondrous beauty. Thus for Plato love is ascending from the particulars to form of beauty, which indicates that Plato b elieves that love for objects of love can not be true love, they are just means to achieve the form of beauty.One can also deduce from here, that Platonic love operates through a standard. Thus the true order of going is to begin from the beauties of the worldly images or objects and mount upwards for the sake of other beauties, using these as steps only to go to all modal(a) forms and from fair forms to fair practices and from fair practices to fair notions, until from fair notion we produce at the concept of the absolute beauty and at last know what is the essence of beauty.