Symposium (Xenophon)
The Symposium (Συμπόσιον) is a Socratic dialogue by Xenophon. It dramatizes a discussion of Socrates and company at a dinner given by Callias for Autolycus, son of Lycon. (Some commentators identify this Lycon with the Lycon who was one of Socrates' prosecutors. However, others doubt the identification; John Burnet, for example, claims it "is most improbable".) 421 BC is the dramatic date of Xenophon's Symposium.
While Plato's Symposium consists of a series of lengthy speeches in praise of love, Xenophon's is dominated by witty repartee.
A contest of words emerges between Socrates and Callias, and each of the symposiasts is asked to describe the thing on which he prides himself the most. All their answers are playful or paradoxical: Socrates, for one, prides himself on his knowledge of the art of pimping.
The story comes to a climax when Socrates praises the love Callias had for Autolycus.
Read more about Symposium (Xenophon): Relationship To Plato's Symposium, References and Sources
Famous quotes containing the word symposium:
“Plato’s Symposium shows that flirtation and philosophy can further one another.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)