Plato's Dialectic at Play: Argument, Structure, and Myth in the Symposium

University Park, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.: Pennsylvania State Univ Pr. New. 2004. Hardcover. 0271024623 .*** FREE UPGRADE to Courier/Priority Shipping Upon Request *** - *** IN STOCK AND IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE FOR SHIPMENT - BRAND NEW, FLAWLESS COPY, NEVER OPENED -- 280 pages -- TABLE OF CONTENTS: 1 Apollodorus's prologue : an imitation of an imitation 7 * 2 Aristodemus's prologue : the destruction and transformation of the factual frame of reference 21 * 3 The order of the speeches : formulating the problem 43 * 4 From character to speech : the early speeches and their significance 51 * 5 Diotima-Socrates : mythical thought in the making 104 * 6 The greater mysteries and the structure of the Symposium so far 147 * 7 Alcibiades and the conclusion of the Symposium : the test and trial of praise 163 * 8 Conclusion : Plato's dialectic at play 188. -- DESCRIPTION: -- The Symposium is one of Plato's most accessible dialogues, an engrossing historical document as well as an entertaining literary masterpiece. By uncovering the structural design of the dialogue, Plato's Dialectic at Play aims at revealing a Plato for whom the dialogical form was not merely ornamentation or philosophical methodology but the essence of philosophical exploration: his dialectic is not only argument; it is also play. -- with a bonus offer-- .