Analysis Of Aristophanes On Love

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With the backdrop of the drinking party, Plato has put forth many views on love, most of which conflict with each other. However, it is Aristophanes’ speech that I’ll be writing about. The rather elaborate myth narrated by Aristophanes talks about the time when there were three different genders- man, woman and androgynous. Humans had 4 legs, 4 arms, 2 faces and so on.
This form did not stay for long though, soon humans started threatening the Gods and Zeus in reply to this unacceptable behavior, slashed the human form into two separate bodies;wholemalesandwholefemaleswerehomosexualpartnersand androgynous individualsweretheheterosexualpartners.These humans for the rest of their lives craved to be in their original form, whenever they found …show more content…

The reunification with the loved ones is the reason behind the array of emotions one feels during a romantic or sexual relation.
The narration of this myth by Aristophanes shapes sexuality in four aspects –
1. Love happens between to two separate individuals. The myth holds no space for asexuality, bisexuality or for other forms of love e.g. the love stories of Narcissus and Pygmalion. This puts this speech in opposition of the aforementioned stories of desire, narrowing the otherwise broad narrative about love and desire.
2. Sex need not solely be done for the purpose of reproduction. Sexual relation between same-sex couples for satisfaction and pleasure are completely acceptable and a phenomenon designed by God as opposed to the biblical belief of sex being a method to only reproduce.
3. An individual will be complete only if he/she finds a perfect lover. Search behavior is propagated amongst individuals, leading to a feeling of …show more content…

Ranging from TV shows such as ‘How I met your mother’ to the colloquial vocabulary, looking for one’s other half is a concept known to all. Each and every one, as Aristophanes says, looks for a soulmate to feel and complete and show love and compassion towards. The normalcy surrounding homosexual relationships has also gained prevalence today in certain parts of the world and are completely normal, which is in contrast to a darker world where Aristophanes’ speech fails to hold ground and a cloud of unacceptability shrouds over homosexuality. Another phenomenon that is accepted today is having sex for satisfaction and not only for

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