Ficino commentary on plato's symposium pdf merge

The conversation produces a series of reflections by the allmale participants on gender roles, sex, and sublimation of basic human instincts. With wit and insight, they each present their ideas about lovefrom erixymachuss scientific naturalism to aristophanes comic fantasy. Nonetheless, the modern bias evans reveals by playing down ficinos higher goal as well as his own discussions of the heroic. Symposium oikonomikos xenophon cyropaedia hiero ways and means plato s socrates alcibiades charmides protagoras laches lysis menexenus hippias euthydemus meno gorgias phaedrus symposium euthyphro defense of socrates crito phaedo plato s republic plato s later work seventh letter timaeus critias theaetetus sophist politician. Sep 06, 2012 how and why love should be praised in plato s symposium philosophy core concepts duration. Bury, the symposium of plato, 214e crossreferences to this page 3. Full text of plato s symposium see other formats plato symposium trans. Nonetheless, the modern bias evans reveals by playing down ficino s higher goal as well as his own discussions of the heroic.

A model of the kind of text one needs for lecture courses. Symposium oikonomikos xenophon cyropaedia hiero ways and means platos socrates alcibiades charmides protagoras laches lysis menexenus hippias euthydemus meno gorgias phaedrus symposium euthyphro defense of socrates crito phaedo platos republic platos later work seventh letter timaeus critias theaetetus sophist politician. Ficino, the great 15thcentury translator of plato, regarded diotimas ladder as the centerpiece of platos works, as did his contemporary giovanni pico della mirandola 146394. The higher world of ideas or forms provided archetypal patterns of. The two spirits merge into one in the description of.

Platos symposium greek and latin texts with facing. Categories ethics in value theory, miscellaneous categorize this paper isbns. Stanford libraries official online search tool for books, media, journals, databases, government documents and more. The publication of his latin translations of the dialogues in 1484 was an intellectual event of the first magnitude, making the platonic canon accessible to western europe after the passing of a millennium and establishing plato as an authority for renaissance. As that decade wore on ficino authored commentaries on and summaries of platos writings, many of which he continued to work on for the rest of his career. Quite a few comments have been posted about symposium. Ficino, marsilio internet encyclopedia of philosophy. The symposium or banquet, which forms platos inspiring account of socrates and his fellows discoursing on the nature of love, was translated from the greek into latin by the renaissance scholar, philosopher and astrologer, marsilio ficino. Here ficino set up his famous florentine academy, devoted to the study and celebration of plato s teachings. Marsilio ficino stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Marsilio ficinos commentary on platos symposium in.

Socrates says he served in the athenian army during three campaigns. Ficino presents his commentary as the report of a historical event. Symposium by plato the speech of eryximachus summary and. Commentary on platos symposium on love by marsilio ficino. For ficino, the notion that one should combine book learning with good moral. This english translation by sears jayne is an indispensable tool for a series of classes im teaching on platonic traditions. Ficino directed the platonic theology toward his fellow renaissance ingeniosi, or intellectuals, in the republic of florence, including the political elites. Instead the various speakers take turns, as it were, each offering what he knows from his own perspective and then socrates presents a view that can place the others within a grander.

The characters and the settings are to some degree based on history, but they. Please see wikipedias template documentation for further citation fields that may be required. Modern scholars, in contrast, have tended to look on diotimas ladder with irreverent fascination. The aim of this commentary is to make platos symposium as accessible as possible to intermediatelevel greek readers so that they may experience the joy, insight, and lasting influence that comes from reading some of the greatest works in classical. In platos symposium, seven very different men get together for a.

Ficino, who was also present, recorded what was said, although he himself did not speak, and his report constitutes the text of his commentary to platos dialogue. In platos idea of two coexisting worldsa higher one of being that is eternal, perfect, and incorruptible, a sharp contrast to the material worldficino found precisely what he had sought. In the symposium alcibiades describes socrates valour in the battles of potidaea and delium, recounting how he saved his life in the former battle 219e221b. He has been widely recognized by historians of philosophy for his defense of the immortality of the soul, as well as for his translations of plato, plotinus, and the hermetic corpus from greek to latin. The symposium is, like all of plato s dialogues, fiction. Such a direct comparison of johns gospel with platos symposium. Ficino wrote it between 1469 and 1474 and it was published in 1482. Apollodorus, who repeats to his companion the dialogue which he. The conversation produces a series of reflections by the allmale participants on gender roles, sex.

The dramatic nature of platos dialogues is delightfully evident in the symposium. Ficino s labors as a translator provided his greekless contemporaries with access to the greatest works of the ancient platonic tradition. Ficinos hermias translation and a new apologue coauthored with roger a. Buy commentary on platos symposium on love by ficino, marsilio, sears jayne isbn.

Marsilio ficino, neoplatonism, and the problem of sex journal. Sept 2014 10 mb this link contains a free pdf copy of plato s symposium. Marsilio ficinos commentary on platos symposium asserts, the physical union of lovers is the first step toward recovering the supernatural light man lost in aristophanic original sin. The aim of this commentary is to make platos symposium as accessible as possible to intermediatelevel greek readers so that they may experience the joy, insight, and lasting influence that comes from reading some of the greatest works in classical antiquity in the original greek. Marsilio ficino s commentary on plato s symposium sears reynolds jayne a. If you are unable to see the pdf link please follow the direct links to the pdf available. The marriage between character and thought bursts forth as the guests gather at agathons house to celebrate the success of his first tragedy. It has been described as ficinos philosophical masterpiece. Plato s symposium this dialogue is unlike the others of plato, in as much as, socrates does not question the others in the dialectical fashion, except briefly. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Socrates and aristodemus will attend a banquet at agathon, with aristophanes, appolodore, pausanias and eryximachus. Marsilio ficinos commentary on platos symposium sears. As for the text itself, the title is quite deceptive, as it is more of a compendium or compilation of a smattering of neoplatonic ideas mixed in with classical physiology and a touch of astrology than a commentary on plato s symposium. The higher world of ideas or forms provided archetypal patterns of everything that existed on the lower mundane plane.

Several of platos dialogs refer to socrates military service. Ficino speaks of socrates one of three ancient thinkers who had collectively discovered and imparted to mankind a correct understanding of loves true nature. Proceedings of the eighth symposium platonicum pragense. In addition to these substitutions, i have edited jowetts translation for punctuation, grammar, and formatting not consistent with the conventions of standard english. The origin of the concept of platonic love comes from platos symposium, a dialogue set in an allnight banquet where the partygoers decide to discuss the concept of love eros. Symposium is perhaps platos masterpiece as a work of art, though other dialogues are of greater philosophical import. Sept 2014 10 mb this link contains a free pdf copy of platos symposium. This book is a translation of ficinos tuscan commentary to platos symposium. Symposium by plato summary and analysis of the speech of eryximachus buy study guide building on pausanias distinction between two types of love, eryximachus expands this, claiming that love not only occurs in humans, but everywhere in the universe, including the animal kingdom and in the world of plants, a lesson he learned from the field. The guests decide not to get drunk, but drinking a little and discuss about love. It has been accepted for inclusion in this collection by an authorized administrator. Its great range, from discussions of physical love to an almost mystical.

The house of agathon translated by benjamin jowett 20 pages part 1 greek fonts search platos works plato anthology the greek word library note by elpenor. This dialogue is unlike the others of plato, in as much as, socrates does not question the others in the dialectical fashion, except briefly. Marsilio ficino, the florentine philosopher and priest, consciously crafted a platonic revival in the. It depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches given by a group of notable men attending a banquet. The guests decide not to get drunk, but drinking a. Marsilio ficino 14331499 marsilio ficino was a florentine philosopher, translator, and commentator, largely responsible for the revival of plato and platonism in the renaissance. An exploration of the symposium and platos love remy p. Benardete apollodorus, in my own opinion, i am not unprepared for what you ask about.

Ficinos commentaries and treatises placed him in the first rank of philosophers of his age. Explain at least three ways in which plato demonstrates that he has drawn upon the ideas of. Trueblood, plato s symposium and ficino s commentary in lope. Eventually ficinos commentary on the symposiuman unorthodox dialogue itself loosely inspired by the. Contributor jayne, sears reynolds, 1920contentssummary. Bork ensoniment of platos symposium 2 dressed like a turk, a bellows, an ivory reed, and a keyboard the keys of which corresponded to various states of the mouth 77. The men include the philosopher socrates, the general and political figure alcibiades, and the comic playwright aristophanes. He continued to receive the active support of the medici until their expulsion from florence in 1494. In the symposium, the dialectic exists among the speeches. Marsilio ficino author of commentary on platos symposium.

Full text of platos symposium see other formats plato symposium trans. Responsibility the text and a translation, with an introduction, by sears reynolds jayne. As for the text itself, the title is quite deceptive, as it is more of a compendium or compilation of a smattering of neoplatonic ideas mixed in with classical physiology and a touch of astrology than a commentary on platos symposium. Ficino s commentaries and treatises placed him in the first rank of philosophers of his age. Marsilio ficinos commentary on platos symposium sears reynolds jayne a.

Diskin clay 2006, for example, jokingly describes italian. Marsilio ficino author of commentary on platos symposium on. In platos advocacy of the idea, the key terms are gracefulness. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading when philosophers rule. Symposium by plato, part of the internet classics archive. Apollodorus, who repeats to his companion the dialogue which he had heard from aristodemus, and had already once. Symposium is central in platos philosophy, since it talks about love and ideas. Commentary on platos symposium on love marsilio ficino. In plato s symposium, seven very different men get together for a. Marsilio ficino 14331499, the florentine scholarphilosophermagus, was largely responsible for the renaissance revival of plato. Marsilio ficino s commentary on plato s symposium asserts, the physical union of lovers is the first step toward recovering the supernatural light man lost in aristophanic original sin. In agreement with plato, in the work ficino argued for the immortality of the soul, and the fifth council of the lateran was probably influenced by this in its decree apostolici regiminis.

Apollodorus phaedrus pausanias eryximachus aristophanes agathon socrates alcibiades a troop of revellers scene. Translation of marsilio ficinos commentary on platos symposium, renaissance, neoplatonism. Because of the centrality and power of love in human experience, men and women throughout the ages have felt the compulsion to sing songs, to write verse, and to tell stories about this ineffable and mysterious force which leads. It is a more populist utopia than platos, but it shares his belief that an environment which is bright and fair, wholesome and beautiful 8 will gradually, over time, have a good effect on everyone, without their necessarily noticing how and by what means it happens. From there, the soul rises to approach ideal beauty intellectually, and then to merge. Plato s symposium and ficino s commentary agree in the vision of spiritual love as an ennobling force, in contrast to carnal love, which debases, a vision which in socrates speech pro duces the famous description of a ladder of love leading up to the pure idea of the good and the beautiful. Translation of marsilio ficino s commentary on plato s symposium, renaissance, neoplatonism.