Plato began his career as a creator of tragedies, but, inspired by means of Socrates, left that at the back of and started out writing philosophical dialogues. Other writers also wrote about Socrates and his speeches. Plato's use of him as a prime person won't have handled the historic parent, but as a substitute supplied Plato's ideas on philosophical subjects, particularly in his later works. Symposium, a work from the middle of Plato's writings, presumably implements Socrates as a person to v...