Sunday, June 26, 2005
The Origin of Love
I doubt that it was mere coincidence that I happen to stumble upon references to Aristophanes' explanation of the origin of love repeatedly within 2 days. A book on Buddhism and Japanese fiction were the most unlikely match, except for their distinct mention of Plato's Symposium.
According to Aristophanes, humans had a different form in the time of the Greek gods - there were three types: a male-male, female-female, and a male-female. These beings were ajoined physically, possessing 4 arms, 4 legs, 2 faces, etc. However, they caused much havoc to the gods, so Zeus split each apart with his lightning bolts to punish and to debilitate them.
Ever since, they longed to be united in their original form.
"...human nature was originally one and we were a whole, and the desire and pursuit of the whole is called love."
Romantically, this can be the model explanation of soul mates. Finding the other half that completes you.
Physiologically (in ancient Greece), this was a way of explaining homo-eroticism as a completely natural process (if you read further, you will find Aristophanes' defense of his homosexual peers and even some chiding of heterosexual promiscuity).
It's a story that I have yet to draw a personal conclusion out of. A non-believer misses out on the better story, Pi says. The coincidence of the double references still puzzles me - it makes me think that cotu would be better at enlightening such phenomenons. In the meanwhile, I proceed to lighter reading - Malgudi Schooldays: The Adventures of Swami and His Friends
According to Aristophanes, humans had a different form in the time of the Greek gods - there were three types: a male-male, female-female, and a male-female. These beings were ajoined physically, possessing 4 arms, 4 legs, 2 faces, etc. However, they caused much havoc to the gods, so Zeus split each apart with his lightning bolts to punish and to debilitate them.
Ever since, they longed to be united in their original form.
"...human nature was originally one and we were a whole, and the desire and pursuit of the whole is called love."
Romantically, this can be the model explanation of soul mates. Finding the other half that completes you.
Physiologically (in ancient Greece), this was a way of explaining homo-eroticism as a completely natural process (if you read further, you will find Aristophanes' defense of his homosexual peers and even some chiding of heterosexual promiscuity).
It's a story that I have yet to draw a personal conclusion out of. A non-believer misses out on the better story, Pi says. The coincidence of the double references still puzzles me - it makes me think that cotu would be better at enlightening such phenomenons. In the meanwhile, I proceed to lighter reading - Malgudi Schooldays: The Adventures of Swami and His Friends
// posted by sakit @ 6:18 PM 
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you should check out the film "hedwig and the angry inch" it's one of my favorites. the movie is loosely based on that. they have a nice little catchy song called " the origin of love" which is based on the theory that you wrote about. it is also a play which came to austin once but unfortunately i was out of town and didn't get to go. i <3 drag queens.
"Hedwig..." is something that I have been meaning to watch but never got around to. Now I have another good reason to force myself.
Secondly... you stumped me, Duylinh. Aristophanes never did get around to explaining bisexuality and polyamorism.
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Secondly... you stumped me, Duylinh. Aristophanes never did get around to explaining bisexuality and polyamorism.
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