By Xhozef Lumaj
Describe how Plato, Sappho, and/or Catullus conceive of love (and/or friendship). You can choose to only discuss one of the three works or compare two or three of them. You can also choose to compare their views on love with The Odyssey, Oedipus Rex, or Lysistrata. You can also choose to focus more specifically on either the lover or the beloved if you like.
Plato describes love in a few different forms, which varies depending on the individual telling its meaning. It very much reminds me of The Odyssey. Within Homers story, love takes place in many different ways. One being the love of physical desire, which is displayed by Kalypso and Circe and another being the love for family that is displayed by Odyssues, Penelope and Telemachus. The love of family can be said to be the strongest as it was victoriously the end result. The point is, the meaning of love varies from person to person.
The similar views on love is indeed evident between the two readings. The Odyssey displayed many different types of relationships including what is described in The Symposium as “common love” and “heavenly love”. Odysseus was involved in a number of “common love relationships” but what he most desired was to return home to his family. The relationship with his son and wife was of more value to him than all the others.