From the book
Symposium
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordSeeking identifies an absence or unfinished task; pursuing emphasizes movement or effort towards its object.
- In the SymposiumThe words connect the universal aim with the different activities through which it is approached.
- Reading contextThe words connect the universal aim with the different activities through which it is approached.
- A place to readThe mode of pursuit must be specified.
Meaning
Seeking identifies an absence or unfinished task; pursuing emphasizes movement or effort towards its object.
Use in the book
The words connect the universal aim with the different activities through which it is approached. Diotima asks not only what people want but how they pursue it. Psychic pregnancy seeks an appropriate companion; mortal nature seeks what it can of permanence; the ascent refines the field being pursued. None of these statements guarantees success merely from the fact of seeking.
Places to read
διώκω (diōkō)
diōkō — To pursue, with directed effort rather than passive attraction.
- 206b — διωκόντων. Diotima asks in which mode of pursuit the activity receives the name love.
- 210b — διώκειν. The learner pursues the beautiful in form.
Read: Seeking and pursuing.
ζητέω (zēteō)
zēteō — To seek or look for an object, answer or condition of fulfilment.
- 207d — ζητεῖ. Mortal nature seeks lasting existence.
- 209b — ζητεῖ. The pregnant soul seeks beauty in which to beget.
Read: Seeking and pursuing.