Alcibiades Description of Socrates: a Contrast Between Reality and Appearance

Alcibiades Description of Socrates: A Contrast between Reality and Appearance

The Symposium is a dialogue in which a variety of men provide descriptions about love, and the god of love Eros. Then men are gathered at Agathon’s house for a symposium to celebrate Agathon’s victory in a dramatic contest. Since the men are still hungover from the celebrations from the prior evening, Eryximachus suggests that the men participate in a discussion about Eros, the god of love. Each man at the party provides their own description about love, and when Alcibiades joins the celebration they ask that he also give a depiction of love. Alcibiades is a man in Athens who is famous for his political career and his attractiveness. He is Socrates’ younger lover and, although Socrates typically speaks and acts as the lover, in their relationship Alcibiades is the lover and Socrates is the beloved. This is also in contrast to the relationships during their time because the older man would normally pursue the younger man. When Alcibiades is asked to give his account on love he decides to provide a description and praise about Socrates because he does not want praise anyone else in the fear that Socrates might become jealous. Alcibiades’ speech is meant to honor Socrates and it depicts the opposition between the way Socrates appears and the way he actually is. Alcibiades provides a variety of descriptions about Socrates’ nature and these can be related to how Socrates appears, and how he is described, in many other Platonic dialogues.

Alcibiades begins his depiction of Socrates by using an image of a satyr to demonstrate how Socrates may appear ugly on the outside but inside his soul there are beautiful images of gods. This description displays how Socrates may appear one way on the surface but when someone gets to know him he reveals something different. Alcibiades also compares Socrates to Dionyisus, the god of wine, and the music associated with the satyr because he states that...