Socrates
The protagonist of The
Diotima
A woman from Mantinea whom Socrates claims once to have met, and who taught him everything he knows on the subject of Love. There is very good reason to doubt if Diotima is meant to represent any real person, especially since her speech is so authoritative and oracular. Just as Diotima passed her wisdom on to Socrates, so Socrates passes this wisdom on to his friends.
Agathon
Probably the most significant Greek tragedian after Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, Agathon is presented here as celebrating after his first victory in the dramatic festival. Agathon is presented as young, beautiful, and very clever with words. He is the passive partner in a life-long relationship with Pausanias. None of Agathon's plays survive today.
Aristophanes
The greatest comic poet of ancient times, Aristophanes (445 - 385 BCE) exercised a tremendous influence on the course of comedy in the Western tradition. Many of his plays survive, and in one,
Alcibiades
A familiar figure to any reader of the Athenian historian Thucydides, Alcibiades (c. 450 - 404 BCE) was a charismatic politician who played a prominent role in the Pelopennesian War. He was responsible for a disastrous attack on Sicily and even turned on Athens and sided with Sparta for a time. He was a friend of Socrates', and his dishonor was one of the factors responsible for Socrates' trial and execution. In The
Eryximachus
A doctor and a guest at the symposium. He is presented throughout as rather pompous, confident in his medical skills, and insistent on maintaining order.
Pausanias
The life-long lover of Agathon, Pausanias is another guest in The Symposium.
Phaedrus
The main interlocutor of the Platonic dialogue that bears his name, Phaedrus is a handsome young man and an admirer of Socrates. He suggests that all the guests should make speeches in praise of Love.
Aristodemus
Another guest found in The Symposium, Aristodemus is a great admirer of Socrates, and the first-level narrator of the events.
Apollodorus
The second-level narrator of The