how unusual an evening it was? What was the subject those present chose to discuss?What does Apollodorus' comment about Socrates' sandals tell you about Socrates? (He was traditionally thought of as notat all good looking.) What does "unbidden" mean? Notice the use to which Homer's lines are put.What is comical about the arrival of Aristodemus at the feast? Notice that the Greeks spend such an evening reclining oncouches rather than sitting at a table. What kind of impression of Socrates do you get from the description on p. 4? Noticethe way Socrates deflects any and all praise from himself to the speaker.Why does Agathon mention Dionysus? What is a libation? Notice that they drink after they eat. Who is Aristophanes? Why isSocrates "an exceptional being"? Notice that on this occasion "drinking is to be voluntary," which tells you that at such agathering it is usually not voluntary--a little like going the (reported) rounds at some fraternities or sororities, where eachperson in turn is obliged to take a drink. Who is Euripides?What is a "sophist"? What does Socrates say about the subject of love (p. 6)? Why is Aristophanes "always in the companyof Dionysus and Aphrodite"?Jot down a few notes on the presentation of each speaker (or mark up your book clearly). What we are given is a collection ofdifferent ways of looking at "love"; think about it: if you asked ten people to define "love," how many different definitions would you get? You should know each argument/definition of love and how each differs from or builds on the next. What is the"argument" of Phaedrus? Hesiod is a great Greek writer, thought by many to be second only to Homer, who wrote about thecreation of the world. Notice Phaedrus' pairing of "lover" and "beloved youth." What does Phaedrus say is the power of love?He finally mentions women! Read the stories of Alcestis, Orpheus, and Achilles and Patroclus in Hamilton.How does Pausanias refine Phaedrus' definition of love? ...
