This abstract was compiled from materials provided by the publisher.
Pagan Press has published a new edition of Percy Bysshe Shelley's translation of Plato's dialogue, The Banquet (more commonly known as The Symposium).
Witty, sexy, and radiantly beautiful, the Shelley translation of Plato's great Dialogue on Love is by far the best in the English language. It has been described as conveying “much of the vivid life, the grace of movement, and the luminous beauty of Plato” — “the poetry of a philosopher rendered by the prose of a poet.”
Although a masterpiece in its own right, the Shelley translation is unknown even to most students of English literature. Amazingly, it was suppressed and then bowdlerized for well over a century. In 19th century Britain, male love — at the heart of the dialogue — was unmentionable. Until the middle of the 19th century, males in that benighted country, including adolescent boys, were still being hanged for having sex with each other. The Banquet and Shelley's accompanying essay, "A Discourse on the Manners of the Antient Greeks", were not published in their entirety until 1931, and then in an edition of 100 copies intended “for private circulation only.”
For many years, the Shelley translation has been unobtainable, new or used. Pagan Press now offers a new edition, which is complete, authentic and readable.
John Lauritsen, editor and publisher of the new edition, has stated:
In the canon of great books dealing with male love, Shelley's translation of Plato's Banquet belongs at the head of the list. It is deplorable that this masterpiece has suffered first suppression, then bowdlerization, and finally neglect. I believe it should be available to readers now, and for so long as the English language lives.
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