How does Plato define ‘eros’?

Victoria asked:

How would Plato define ‘Eros’ in a couple sentences?

Answer by Jürgen Lawrenz

‘Eros’ is the word for desire.

In Plato’s use, you will find many different kinds of eros, because we have many desires.

There is an eros for knowledge, for poetry, for travel, for science and so on. And, of course, for sex.

in the modern world, we only associate sex with eros, as in ‘erotic’.

But you can see from the examples I have given that there is another word which we use in replacement.

This is ‘passion’.

There is a passion for knowledge, for travel etc.

So Platonic ‘eros’ = modern ‘passion’.

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