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Look I know academics saying embarrassing things about "eros" or "erotics" in public is easy to dunk on and there's a time honored tradition of doing so
But you all know that it makes you look ignorant, right, and not just of PoMo 20th century "queer theory" shit
But you all know that it makes you look ignorant, right, and not just of PoMo 20th century "queer theory" shit
"Eros doesn't literally mean sex" goes back a LONG way
Freud and Jung, who were both very much NOT "postmodern" and who are in fact pretty old school, used "eros" consistently just to mean "desire" or "energy"
"Lust" in the sense of "lust for life", like Iggy Pop would say
Freud and Jung, who were both very much NOT "postmodern" and who are in fact pretty old school, used "eros" consistently just to mean "desire" or "energy"
"Lust" in the sense of "lust for life", like Iggy Pop would say
People like to use "erotic" in the modern sense as an antonym of "platonic", their word for a pure, nonsexual friendship
The problem is that "platonic" is named for Plato, and THE WORD PLATO HIMSELF USED FOR THAT KIND OF LOVE WAS "EROS"
The problem is that "platonic" is named for Plato, and THE WORD PLATO HIMSELF USED FOR THAT KIND OF LOVE WAS "EROS"
The ancient Greeks were ALL ABOUT the idea that eros and sex could be separated from each other!
This is why there's so much debate over whether or not they had a concept of being "gay" in the modern sense!
They were very willing to describe people as "lovers" without fucking!
This is why there's so much debate over whether or not they had a concept of being "gay" in the modern sense!
They were very willing to describe people as "lovers" without fucking!
In fact that's why there's so much disagreement over the most controversial "eros" in Greek culture, eros paidikos (pederasty, or "boy love")
Yes, they declared a man's love for an boy he "mentored" was the highest form of love
No, it's not clear this meant actual child rape
Yes, they declared a man's love for an boy he "mentored" was the highest form of love
No, it's not clear this meant actual child rape
Notably, because they themselves made crude jokes about it
Athenians and Spartans regularly accused each other of raping boys and making something foul of something beautiful
Athenians and Spartans regularly accused each other of raping boys and making something foul of something beautiful
Probably because there was in fact a lot of abuse going on and both sides were being hypocrites
But there is quite a bit of literary stuff about the duty of an erastes not to do anything "shameful" with an eromenos, leaving unspoken what exactly their culture found shameful
But there is quite a bit of literary stuff about the duty of an erastes not to do anything "shameful" with an eromenos, leaving unspoken what exactly their culture found shameful
