La tradición

Abstract

: In the following work I will study the notion of body in Plato's Symposium based on Aristophanes' speech, to review at the same time the traditional reading of the dialogue —which focuses solely on the character of Socrates— and the more accepted interpretation of the place that the body occupies in Platonic thought —which is relegated to a seemingly insurmountable sphere of negativity. In the first part I will show that Aristophanes, as a poet, looks for elements at hand to inspire his story; and that he finds these elements in his interaction with the doctor Eryximachus. From this, Aristophanes will weave a conceptual scheme with medical notions in which the body will take on the role of "symptom", i.e. visible expression, of a sick and corrupted state. In conclusion, the idea of the body as a "symptom" will be an indication that Plato presents the body in a positive way in the Symposium as an awakening of a desire that will stimulate the search for the truth.