dukeofbookingham:She’s got a point1) ‘Plato’ actually means something like

dukeofbookingham:She’s got a point1) ‘Plato’ actually means something like 'broad shoulders’, and apparently there was even an ancient Greek wrestler called Plato, so that’s definitely wrong, though the fact that it was a nickname instead of his real name is probably true.2) Technically speaking, the Symposium is not about Greek dudes fucking. It’s about Greek dudes fucking younger men, i.e. 'pederasty’. Like, aristocratic parents allowing old, supposedly wise men to fuck their teenage sons in exchange for education. So, to equate the pederasty of the Symposium with homosexuality (which the ancient Greeks did practise, and there’s plenty of other ancient texts describing it) is just plain wrong. 3) However, if you do wish to appropriate the Symposium for gay culture, there are many other reasons to do so. I mean, all the speeches about love have sort of a universal value, and in particular Aristophanes’ speech is perhaps the earliest discussion of homosexual love, but male and female, in Greek literature. So yeah, correction: The Symposium is not just about Greek dudes fucking. It’s about Greek dudes talking about Greek dudes fucking whatever – other Greek dudes, women, teenage boys, and so on. Have a lovely day! -- source link

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