Eryximachus
During 385-370 B.C. Plato wrote a philosophical text entitled
the Symposium. In this a group of men are to present a speech, or an encomium,
on their personal definition of love. In my three blog posts I will discuss
three different speeches that interested me, Eryximachus (because he was a
physician and I’m going in to the medical field), Aristophanes, and Socrates.
Eryximachus claims that love is not limited to humans, he
believes that love extends to the animal kingdom and even plants, which he
learned in the field of medicine. During his speech he brings in his knowledge
that he has learned throughout medicine to draw in additional information.
He believes that the body manifests two different types of
love: health and disease. Medicine shows the effects of this love and how it
flows in and out of the body. It is a physician’s job to determine whether this
source love is good and up to standards or whether it is harmful; once
determined the Physician is to create harmony within the body.
Love ultimately needs to improve the person not destroy it
and if love helps to build a person up it is encouraged. However, if it is a
disgraceful kind of love that destroys a person it is not to be encouraged.
This proper, encouraging love, is what creates harmony
within an individual. This sort of love is also connected to the Health side of
his speech. The destructive side is the diseased side which causes the need for
this “medicine” he speaks of.
I still think the "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" theme expresses most of what we know about love: "you've got to give a little, take a little, let your poor heart break a little..."
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