Symposium
Συμπόσιον
Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 843, a 2nd century papyrus roll containing the Symposium
Also known as	On the Good
Author(s)	Plato
Compiled by	Thrasyllus of Mendes
Language	Attic Greek
Date	c. 385 BC
Provenance	Byzantine Empire
Series	Dialogues of Plato
Manuscript(s)	List
Principal manuscript(s)	Codex Oxoniensis Clarkianus 39 (Oxford, Bodleian Library)
First printed edition	1513 by Aldus Manutius
Genre	Socratic dialogue
Subject	Eros, Platonic love
Setting	Ancient Athens
Personages	Socrates, Diotima, Alcibiades, Aristophanes
Text	Symposium at Wikisource

The Symposium (Ancient Greek: Συμπόσιον, Symposion) is a Socratic dialogue by Plato, dated c. 385 – 370 BC.^[1][2] It depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches given by a group of notable Athenian men attending a banquet. The men include the philosopher Socrates, the general and statesman Alcibiades, and the comic playwright Aristophanes. The panegyrics are to be given in praise of Eros, the god of love and sex.

In the Symposium, Eros is recognized both as erotic lover and as a phenomenon capable of inspiring courage, valor, great deeds and works, and vanquishing man's natural fear of death. It is seen as transcending its earthly origins and attaining spiritual heights. The extraordinary elevation of the concept of love raises a question of whether some of the most extreme extents of meaning might be intended as humor or farce. Eros is almost always translated as "love", and the English word has its own varieties and ambiguities that provide additional challenges to the effort to understand the Eros of ancient Athens.^[3][4][5]

The dialogue is one of Plato's major works, and is appreciated for both its philosophical content and its literary qualities.^[5]