Diotima's Love Is Not About Possession, but About Beauty

Diotima alludes to aristophane's idea directly and disagrees with him too. She says that if i desire something, that can't be simply because it is a part of me, but because i consider it to be good. After all, she points out, i'm happy to amputate a limb if it's infected. Love, then, is not about possession. It is about seeking what is beautiful, what is good. This kind of lover will wish to educate his beloved and not just sleep with him. In praising this sort of impulse, diotima seems to give qualified platonic approval to the peterasticpa es of his culture.