From the book
Symposium
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordOrganic growth and descent supply related images for what outlasts its producer.
- In the SymposiumThe offshoot phrase explains animal care after the replacement account.
- Reading contextThe offshoot phrase explains animal care after the replacement account.
- A place to readCare for one’s offshoot follows the immortality explanation.
Meaning
Organic growth and descent supply related images for what outlasts its producer.
Use in the book
The offshoot phrase explains animal care after the replacement account. The offspring of Homer and Hesiod extend the image to poems that provide immortal fame and remembrance. The text invites comparison between biological and cultural continuance without making a poem literally a biological child or proving that its author remains personally conscious through it.
Places to read
ἀποβλάστημα (apoblastēma)
apoblastēma — A growth or offshoot from oneself, the object of reproductive care.
- 208b — τὸ αὑτοῦ ἀποβλάστημα. Everything by nature honours its own offshoot for the sake of immortality.
Read: Offshoot.
ἔκγονος (ekgonos)
ekgonos — Born from or descended from; in the neuter plural, offspring.
- 209d — ἔκγονα. The lasting works of poets are called offspring left behind.
Read: Offshoot.