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Eryximachus's Lost Objectivity In The Symposium

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Lost Objectivity in the Symposium The Symposium presents several arguments about love at a group drinking party. To pass time while they drink, Eryximachus suggests that each of the guests orate a speech on love. The guests proceed to participate in oration; however, their analysis of love may not be as objective as it seems. Many of them have their own personal beliefs that they are advancing in each of their speeches. Several speeches heavily deviate from a speech about love, and turn it into a speech that uses love to support and justify their beliefs. Characters in the Symposium twist the meaning of love to fit their own narrative, rather than provide an objective analysis. Pausanias’s speech utilizes love as a way to justify his relationships …show more content…

Commencing his speech, Eryximachus presents a view that love is not only a human response, but also one that is found throughout nature. Next, he introduces his own opinions about nature and love: “I’ve noticed as a result of practicing medicine professionally… that Love is a great and awesome god who pervades every aspect of the lives of men” (186a-186b). The introduction of his opinion prevents Eryximachus from taking a neutral stance on love. Rather than analyze love through an impartial lens, he presents skewed views on love. To promote his belief was the goal of his …show more content…

Pausanias presents a speech that details why loving young boys is justified, Aristophanes speech discusses the importance of worshiping the gods, and Alcibiades presents one discussing Socrates. The lack of objectivity in these speeches highlights how difficult it can be to remain objective on a subject matter that one cares about; however, not every speech in the Symposium has a motive. Phaedrus discusses the origin of the god love, Agathon examines how love is attractive and full of goodness, and Socrates presents a retelling of a discussion he had with Diotima. Plato presents these speeches along with ones that are not able to maintain their objectivity because the entire story is just a discussion between a group of friends. He details that some ay push their political agenda and justify their actions while others may maintain an objective view of the subject. Plato describes objective and nonobjective speeches to highlight the importance of analyzing motives behind speech to ascertain the trustworthiness of the

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