Despite these works being written over centuries apart, the authors correlation of the concepts of love were notable. Plato’s Symposium was composed of different views regarding their definitions of love, while Carver’s “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” focuses on what a group of friends talk about on the topic of love. Both pieces contain groups of people discussing their ideologies and relatable experiences, which in the end emphasize the complexity and variety of this emotion. Even though these literary pieces were written over two thousand years apart, similarities could be found within them regarding the concepts of dying for love as well as acknowledging the different forms of love that exist.
In other, previously existing
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Love is unvarying; not just the god, but also the emotion itself. There are similarities between Carver 's short story as well as Plato 's work where not all relationships were the same. By love also existing in different forms, it supports both the homo and heterosexual relationships found in Plato 's work. Another form of love is found in Greek mythology, as expressed by Aristophanes, where the idea of soulmates originates from these two beings who had two sets of body parts that were connected together, constituting of a variation of mixes between the three sexes. The two people started out as one, but their power was too strong so the gods had to separate them which is where the idea of looking for one’s other half comes from (Plato 25-28). There are older men who pursue younger men, as discussed at this symposium, where the older man would act as mentors or guides for the other. They were discouraged from exhibiting any signs of pleasure that they could feel from the less experienced partner. These homosexual relationships were looked upon with more respect because women were viewed to be inferior mentally to men, so by men desiring other men, it meant that their relationships were countered by an intelligent partner.Pausanias believed in two types of love; celestial, meaning physical and mental attraction, and common. Celestial love is related with not having affairs with younger boys who are “younger than the age at which intelligence begins to form”(Plato 14), while common love was regarded as a negative form because it was someone “who
A great writer once wrote: “The most important things are the hardest to say. They are the things you get ashamed of, because words diminish them -- words shrink things that seemed limitless when they were in your head to no more than living size when they 're brought out.” Boundless things -- ideas, concepts, memories -- are all torn apart when we speak about them. They get cut up into little pieces, so that we may chew on them and digest them without choking. We end up turning these immeasurable things into literary defecation. Love, for instance, has been constant subject among writers and philosophers for eons. Everyone from E.L James to Plato has written on love and attempted to explore it with language. In Plato’s Symposium, love is discussed
In the Symposium, a most interesting view on love and soul mates are provided by one of the characters, Aristophanes. In the speech of Aristophanes, he says that there is basically a type of love that connects people. Aristophanes begins his description of love by telling the tale of how love began. He presents the tale of three sexes: male, female, and a combination of both. These three distinct sexes represented one’s soul. These souls split in half, creating a mirror image of each one of them. Aristophanes describes love as the search for the other half of your soul in this quote: “When a man’s natural form was split in two, each half went round looking for its other half. They put their arms around one another, and embraced each other, in their desire to grow together again. Aristophanes theme is the power of Eros and how not to abuse it.
Aristophanes attributes love as a punishment from the gods, whereas Aristotle classifies it was one’s desire. Aristophanes believed that we we’re once whole, before our souls were split in halves because of the threat humans faced to the gods. The God’s weakened because of the powers love possess, and we exist as halves. Through the journey of love we seek to unite with our other half and empower ourselves once again to return to our original human state. Aristophanes perceives erotic love as having someone to go through the process of life with. The objective of life would be to life one’s soulmate for the fulfillment of one’s life. He emphasizes that without love, one’s life cannot be complete because it’s everlasting and unifying. We seek the feeling and experiences associated with love, more than the sexual pleasures because of what we’re missing externally. On the other side of the fence, Greek Philosopher Aristotle describes erotic love as one’s desires or simply Eros. What governs who we should love is should be guided by reason as opposed to desires. He perceives erotic love existing beyond one’s projected image, because of the problems associated with people resembling each other. If you love person A because she has
Love, in classical Greek literature, is commonly considered a prominent theme. Love, in present days, always appears in the categories of books, movies, music, etc. Interpreted differently by different people, Love turns into a multi-faceted being. In Plato’s work Symposium, Phaedrus, Pausania, Eryximachus, Aristophane and Agathon, each of them presents a speech to either praise or definite Love. Phaedrus first points out that Love is the primordial god; Pausanias brings the theme of “virtue” into the discussion and categorizes Love into “good” one or “bad” one; Eryximachus introduces the thought of “moderation’ and thinks that Love governs such fields as medicine and music; Aristophanes draws attention to the origin and purposes of Love; Agathon enunciates that the correct way to present an eulogy is first to praise its nature and gifts.
Love is a concept that has puzzled humanity for centuries. This attachment of one human being to another, not seen as intensely in other organisms, is something people just cannot wrap their heads around easily. So, in an effort to understand, people write their thoughts down. Stories of love, theories of love, memories of love; they all help us come closer to better knowing this emotional bond. One writer in particular, Sei Shōnagon, explains two types of lovers in her essay "A Lover’s Departure": the good and the bad.
It is probable for individuals to disagree with social traditions and expectations. Some people feel obligated to rebel against society. However, most adults realize that compromise is necessary to achieve happiness. This is evident in early nineteenth century England, the scene of Jane Austen’s novel, “Pride and Prejudice.” In the novel, Elizabeth Bennett is a lively, independent woman, whose family’s financial situation, as well as her strong mindedness suggest she may never marry. Her personality contrasts to that of her best friend, Charlotte Lucas, while an intelligent and sensible girl, is “plain” in looks and aging
What Aristophanes says about love is that the humans now aren’t like they were once before. He mentioned that there were three kinds of human races back then: fully male, fully female, and lastly both male and female in one body. Since the humans that holds both sexes were misbehaving in their world to the gods, the
The Symposium, The Aeneid, and Confessions help demonstrate how the nature of love can be found in several places, whether it is in the mind, the body or the soul. These texts also provide with eye-opening views of love as they adjust our understanding of what love really is. By giving us reformed spectrum of love, one is able to engage in introspective thinking and determine if the things we love are truly worthy of our sentiment.
For many years, love has been argued as to whether it is a feeling or a choice. We experience love in all shapes in forms through family, friends, or significant others. But what is the true, desirable definition of love? You would be surprised with how much this four letter word means to the world and how much it could affect your life. I believe love is something unique and special that most people cannot live without. If you feel as if these characteristics don't exist in your life, then what will you have in the end? (Odo 66) But then again love isn't just about the “magic” you have for someone, but about how to make it work and to keep that meaning alive, and about learning to love yourself before you love others.
“Love is difficult to define, and there maybe different definitions. But one definition of love, is an utter, absolute, and unqualified wish for the other’s happiness” (). One of the most important Greek philosophers in Western history, Socrates contributed to many theories, and impacted the field of ethics throughout his life. He was well known in Athens for his knowledge and teachings to the youth. He was the creator of Socratic irony and the Socratic method, both used to convey his lessons to the Athenians. Socrates had many disciples throughout his life including Plato, one of the more popular students. Plato is the author of many philosophical writings, many of which are about Socrates. He questioned the idea of virtue and studied the
with some very different views of love as brought to us by Agathon, Phaedrus and
Hate, a passionate dislike for something or someone, has taken part of every war in the world, whether it is a political or civil one. Macklemore, the rapper of the song “Same Love”, uses powerful lyrics and imagery in many of his songs. It is in “Same Love” that he raps about a social issue that the world has been dealing with since, some could argue, the beginning of time. In the song “Same Love” he uses his rap to speak to everyone who can make a change in this world. “Same Love” by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis bring awareness to the unjust issue of homophobia by giving people the information they need to obtain a voice and stand up for humans who have had their rights stolen.
In my opinion Plato’s ideas and philosophies are completely unrealistic and contradicting. His view on love really intrigued me. I don’t like the idea of “platonic love.” I think that it is ridiculous that he would think of such an idea to be so great. I can not comprehend having a marriage without romance or sexual desire. Plato to my understanding really had no feelings or value for emotions. There are many other works and ideas of Plato’s' that I did not touch on in this paper. I could probably proceed for pages and pages.
Love has been expressed since the beginning of time; since Adam and Eve. Each culture expresses its love in its own special way. Though out history, though, it’s aspect has always been the same. Love has been a major characteristic of literature also. One of the most famous works in literary history is, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. This story deals with the love of a man and a woman who’s families have been sworn enemies. There love surpassed the hatred in which the families endured for generations. In the end they both ended up killing their selves, for one could not live without the other. This story is a perfect example of true love.
Some people believe that there is no such thing as “true love” they believe that love is nothing but an illusion designed by social expectations. These people believe that love ultimately turns into pain and despair. This idea in some ways is true. Love is not eternal it will come to an end one way or another, but the aspect that separates true love from illusion, is the way love ends. “True Love” is much too powerful to be destroyed by Human imperfection; it may only be destroyed by a force equal to the power of love. Diotima believed that “Love is wanting to posses the good forever” In other words love is the desire to be immortal and the only way that we are able to obtain immortality is through reproduction, and since the act of reproduction is a form of sexual love, then sexual love is in fact a vital part of “True love”. Sexual love is not eternal. This lust for pleasure will soon fade, but the part of love that is immortal, is a plutonic love. You can relate this theory to the birth of love that Diotima talks about. She says that love was born by a mortal mother and immortal father. The mother represents the sexual love, the lust for pleasure. The father represents the plutonic love that is immortal. Plutonic love is defined as a true friendship, the purest of all relationships. A true plutonic love will never die; it transcends time, space, and even death.