Platonic love

Platonic love in its modern sense is an affectionate relationship into which the sexual element does not enter, especially in cases where one might easily assume otherwise.

Related Topics:
Affection - Sex

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The term amor platonicus was coined as early as the 15th Century by Marsilio Ficino, as a synonym for "amor socraticus", referring to the affection between Socrates and his pupils. This type of love dictates a non-sexual relationship between an older member and younger member of the same gender.

Related Topics:
15th Century - Marsilio Ficino - Socrates

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The English term dates back as far as Sir William Davenant's Platonic Lovers (1636). It is derived from the concept in Plato's Symposium, of the love of the idea of good which lies at the root of all virtue and truth. However it is not clear that Plato's own concept of love was as non-sexual as that which later generations of Platonists thought to derive from his works.

Related Topics:
William Davenant - 1636 - Plato - Symposium

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A simple example of platonic relationships is friendship between two heterosexual people of the opposite sexes.

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