15 Relationships of Characters in Symposium
- Pausanias: life long lover of Agathon
- Agathon: the beloved of Pausanias and significant Greek tragedian. He is celebrating his first victory in the dramatic fesstival of Athens at the symposium- he is why they are gathered.
- Erixymachus: doctor and is the lover of Phaedrus
- Phaedrus: beloved of Erixymachus and is portrayed as a very beautiful young man and admirer of Socrates.
- Socrates: protagonist of the Symposium and usually shares his opinions through stories of others, as he does with Diotima in Symposium. Historically, he is the teacher of Plato.
- Alcibiades: Very strong attraction to Socrates and wants to be his beloved. Historically, he is a politician who turned on Athens in the Pelopennesian War to fight for Sparta. As he was a friend of Socrates, his dishonor contributed to Socrates’ execution fro corruption of youth and denying the existence of the gods.
- Aristophanes: one of the greatest comedic poets in ancient Athens. One of his most famous plays, The Clouds, makes great fun of Socrates in a satirical manner. They are not portrayed as having a poor relationship in Symposium. He is not in a relationship with anyone at the dinner party.
