From the book
Symposium
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordThe small reporting clauses preserve whose judgement is being described.
- In the SymposiumDiotima’s broad explanation of desire does not prove that every desired means achieves its intended good.
- Reading contextDiotima’s broad explanation of desire does not prove that every desired means achieves its intended good.
- A place to readMistaken self-sufficiency blocks desire for wisdom.
Meaning
The small reporting clauses preserve whose judgement is being described.
Use in the book
Diotima’s broad explanation of desire does not prove that every desired means achieves its intended good. As they think qualifies the expectation surrounding bodily offspring, while the amputation example depends on what people judge bad. Earlier self-sufficient ignorance likewise turns on a mistaken judgement about oneself. A paraphrase that removes these markers can wrongly convert a psychology of pursuit into a guarantee of success.
Places to read
δοκέω (dokeō)
dokeō — To seem or be thought; local judgement is not automatically established knowledge.
- 205e — ἐὰν αὐτοῖς δοκῇ. People consent to amputation if their own members seem bad to them.
Read: As they think.
οἴομαι (oiomai)
oiomai — To think or suppose; a reporting qualification can separate an agent’s expectation from the narrator’s endorsement.
- 208e — ὡς οἴονται. Parents expect immortality, memory and happiness through offspring, as they think.
Read: As they think.