Symposium. Plato

«Symposium» by Plato — a central work for world culture, treating love not only as a natural phenomenon but also as a social and creative principle. Many customs of infatuation and romantic relationships, as well as concepts of the value of creative individuals, can be traced back to the «Symposium». The vivid and distinct characters of Socrates’ interlocutors, heightened drama, and the interplay of various poetic and prose styles make the «Symposium» an inexhaustible resource for «romantic» modes of thought. In a sense, the «Symposium» is a project not just of a novel as a literary piece, but of a novel as a social institution. The meaning of Plato's complexly structured dialogue goes far beyond the glorification of idealized love, which outdated translations and interpretations unintentionally suggest. The text of the «Symposium» is presented in a translation by Professor Alexander Markov from RGGU, taking into account the latest philosophical and philological interpretations of Plato's central work.