A Philosophical Study of Plato’s Symposium: The Nature of Eros and the Ascent of the Soul

I. Introduction

Plato’s Symposium is one of the most profound works in ancient Greek philosophy that explores the nature of love (Eros). Far from being a romantic or poetic tribute to love, the dialogue investigates how Eros is deeply tied to human existence, ethics, ontology, and epistemology. Particularly through Diotima’s discourse, love is presented as a hierarchical ascent that reflects Plato’s Theory of Forms and offers a philosophical path toward the ultimate truth. This paper examines the structure and major themes of the Symposium, compares the various speeches, and focuses on Diotima’s teachings as a representation of Plato’s metaphysical concept of love.

II. Structure and Context of the Symposium

The Symposium unfolds in the form of a banquet where several prominent Athenian figures gather to celebrate Agathon’s victory in a dramatic competition. The dialogue consists of seven speeches delivered by Phaedrus, Pausanias, Eryximachus, Aristophanes, Agathon, Socrates (recounting Diotima), and finally Alcibiades. Each speaker presents a unique view of love, culminating in a philosophical climax through Diotima’s account.

The structure of the dialogue is not merely narrative but serves as a dialectical progression—starting with conventional or socially embedded views of love and moving toward a metaphysical understanding. This design reflects Plato’s literary strategy to lead the reader step by step toward his philosophical ideal, using Socrates as the mouthpiece of truth.

III. Comparative Analysis of the Speeches

1. Phaedrus and Pausanias

Phaedrus opens the discussion by calling love the “oldest and most noble of the gods” and praises its role in promoting courage, particularly in battle. For him, love is tied to honor and moral excellence. Pausanias follows by distinguishing between two types of love: Common (Pandemotic) Love, which is based on physical desire, and Heavenly (Uranian) Love, which is noble, intellectual, and oriented toward virtue. Pausanias, reflecting Athenian pederastic culture, sees the latter as a vehicle for moral development.

2. Eryximachus and Aristophanes

As a physician, Eryximachus extends love into the realm of cosmic harmony and natural order. For him, Eros is not just human but a universal force that governs bodily health, music, and even the seasons. In contrast, the playwright Aristophanes offers a mythological account, claiming that humans were once spherical beings split in half by the gods. Love, therefore, is the longing to reunite with one’s other half—a metaphor for existential incompleteness and desire for unity.

3. Agathon

Agathon, in a poetic and theatrical manner, praises love as the youngest, most delicate, and most virtuous of gods. While rhetorically beautiful, his account is superficial and aesthetic. His depiction lacks the philosophical depth that Socrates soon provides, and Plato uses Agathon’s speech as a foil to contrast with Socratic thought.

IV. Diotima’s Teaching: The Ascent of Love

Instead of speaking for himself, Socrates claims he once learned about love from a wise woman, Diotima of Mantinea. Through her teachings, love is presented as a yearning born of lack, and Eros becomes the intermediary between mortal and divine. Diotima’s “ladder of love” forms the core philosophical argument of the Symposium.

1. The Ladder of Ascent

Diotima outlines a gradual ascent in the soul’s understanding of love:

Love for one beautiful body
Love for all beautiful bodies
Love for beautiful souls and moral character
Love for beautiful laws and institutions
Love for knowledge and philosophy
Love for Beauty itself—the eternal and unchanging Form

This ascent reflects Plato’s metaphysical dualism, where true knowledge and fulfillment are possible only by contemplating eternal Forms, of which Beauty is the highest.

2. Love and the Life of the Philosopher

According to Diotima, the life of the philosopher is inherently the life of Eros—a striving toward eternal truth. Philosophers do not remain in the realm of appearances but ascend toward the ultimate reality, thereby giving birth to wisdom. This concept resonates with Plato’s Phaedo, where philosophy is described as a preparation for death—an attempt to free the soul from the prison of the body.

V. Alcibiades’ Entrance: Eros Embodied in Socrates

Following Diotima’s sublime account, Alcibiades enters the scene intoxicated and praises Socrates in personal and passionate terms. He describes Socrates as externally ridiculous but internally golden, resisting physical advances and embodying profound spiritual power.

This section functions as a dramatic reinforcement of Diotima’s vision. Socrates himself, through his life of restraint, consistency, and truth-seeking, is shown to be the living image of the philosophical lover, one who has transcended bodily desires and lives in pursuit of the Good.

VI. Conclusion: Eros as the Soul’s Ascent to Transcendence

In the Symposium, Plato redefines love not as emotional sentiment or sexual desire but as an ontological and epistemological drive toward transcendence. Through Diotima’s ladder, Eros becomes the philosophical impulse—the soul’s longing for beauty, truth, and immortality.

The dialogue, with its rich literary form and philosophical depth, shows that true love is not found in possession, but in the desire that elevates the soul. Love is the beginning of wisdom, and through it, the soul may rise from the perishable world to the realm of the eternal Forms. Thus, Plato’s Symposium remains one of the greatest explorations of human love, presenting it not as a weakness, but as the most powerful force that leads us to the divine.

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