Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism

Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism

Author: Algis Uždavinys

Publisher: The Matheson Trust

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 117

ISBN-13: 1908092076

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A book on the religious, mystic origins and substance of philosophy. This is a critical survey of ancient and modern sources and of scholarly works dealing with Orpheus and everything related to this major figure of ancient Greek myth, religion and philosophy. Here poetic madness meets religious initiation and Platonic philosophy. This book contains fascinating insights into the usually downplaid relations between Egyptian initiation, Greek mysteries and Plato's philosophy and followers, right into Hellenistic Neoplatonic and Hermetic developments.


Book Synopsis Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism by : Algis Uždavinys

Download or read book Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism written by Algis Uždavinys and published by The Matheson Trust. This book was released on 2011 with total page 117 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book on the religious, mystic origins and substance of philosophy. This is a critical survey of ancient and modern sources and of scholarly works dealing with Orpheus and everything related to this major figure of ancient Greek myth, religion and philosophy. Here poetic madness meets religious initiation and Platonic philosophy. This book contains fascinating insights into the usually downplaid relations between Egyptian initiation, Greek mysteries and Plato's philosophy and followers, right into Hellenistic Neoplatonic and Hermetic developments.


The Roots of Platonism

The Roots of Platonism

Author: John Dillon

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2019-01-03

Total Pages: 121

ISBN-13: 1108426913

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Explores the process by which the intellectual speculations pursued by Plato assumed the nature of a philosophical system.


Book Synopsis The Roots of Platonism by : John Dillon

Download or read book The Roots of Platonism written by John Dillon and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2019-01-03 with total page 121 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the process by which the intellectual speculations pursued by Plato assumed the nature of a philosophical system.


The Roots of Platonism

The Roots of Platonism

Author: John Dillon

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2019-01-03

Total Pages: 121

ISBN-13: 1108665780

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How does a school of thought, in the area of philosophy, or indeed of religion, from roots that may be initially open-ended and largely informal, come to take on the features that later mark it out as distinctive, and even exclusive? That is the theme which is explored in this book in respect of the philosophical movement known as Platonism, stemming as it does from the essentially open-ended and informal atmosphere of Plato's Academy. John Dillon focuses on a number of key issues, such as monism versus dualism, the metaphysical underpinnings of ethical theory, the theory of Forms, and the reaction to the Sceptical 'deviation' represented by the so-called 'New Academy'. The book is written in the lively and accessible style of the lecture series in Beijing from which it originates.


Book Synopsis The Roots of Platonism by : John Dillon

Download or read book The Roots of Platonism written by John Dillon and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2019-01-03 with total page 121 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How does a school of thought, in the area of philosophy, or indeed of religion, from roots that may be initially open-ended and largely informal, come to take on the features that later mark it out as distinctive, and even exclusive? That is the theme which is explored in this book in respect of the philosophical movement known as Platonism, stemming as it does from the essentially open-ended and informal atmosphere of Plato's Academy. John Dillon focuses on a number of key issues, such as monism versus dualism, the metaphysical underpinnings of ethical theory, the theory of Forms, and the reaction to the Sceptical 'deviation' represented by the so-called 'New Academy'. The book is written in the lively and accessible style of the lecture series in Beijing from which it originates.


Aristotle and Other Platonists

Aristotle and Other Platonists

Author: Lloyd P. Gerson

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 2017-12-01

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 1501716964

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"Aristotle versus Plato. For a long time that is the angle from which the tale has been told, in textbooks on the history of philosophy and to university students. Aristotle's philosophy, so the story goes, was au fond in opposition to Plato's. But it was not always thus."—from the Introduction In a wide-ranging book likely to cause controversy, Lloyd P. Gerson sets out the case for the "harmony" of Platonism and Aristotelianism, the standard view in late antiquity. He aims to show that the twentieth-century view that Aristotle started out as a Platonist and ended up as an anti-Platonist is seriously flawed. Gerson examines the Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle based on their principle of harmony. In considering ancient studies of Aristotle's Categories, Physics, De Anima, Metaphysics, and Nicomachean Ethics, the author shows how the principle of harmony allows us to understand numerous texts that otherwise appear intractable. Gerson also explains how these "esoteric" treatises can be seen not to conflict with the early "exoteric" and admittedly Platonic dialogues of Aristotle. Aristotle and Other Platonists concludes with an assessment of some of the philosophical results of acknowledging harmony.


Book Synopsis Aristotle and Other Platonists by : Lloyd P. Gerson

Download or read book Aristotle and Other Platonists written by Lloyd P. Gerson and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2017-12-01 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Aristotle versus Plato. For a long time that is the angle from which the tale has been told, in textbooks on the history of philosophy and to university students. Aristotle's philosophy, so the story goes, was au fond in opposition to Plato's. But it was not always thus."—from the Introduction In a wide-ranging book likely to cause controversy, Lloyd P. Gerson sets out the case for the "harmony" of Platonism and Aristotelianism, the standard view in late antiquity. He aims to show that the twentieth-century view that Aristotle started out as a Platonist and ended up as an anti-Platonist is seriously flawed. Gerson examines the Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle based on their principle of harmony. In considering ancient studies of Aristotle's Categories, Physics, De Anima, Metaphysics, and Nicomachean Ethics, the author shows how the principle of harmony allows us to understand numerous texts that otherwise appear intractable. Gerson also explains how these "esoteric" treatises can be seen not to conflict with the early "exoteric" and admittedly Platonic dialogues of Aristotle. Aristotle and Other Platonists concludes with an assessment of some of the philosophical results of acknowledging harmony.


Philosophy 101

Philosophy 101

Author: Paul Kleinman

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2013-09-18

Total Pages: 401

ISBN-13: 1440567689

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Discover the world's greatest thinkers and their groundbreaking notions! Too often, textbooks turn the noteworthy theories, principles, and figures of philosophy into tedious discourse that even Plato would reject. Philosophy 101 cuts out the boring details and exhausting philosophical methodology, and instead, gives you a lesson in philosophy that keeps you engaged as you explore the fascinating history of human thought and inquisition. From Aristotle and Heidegger to free will and metaphysics, Philosophy 101 is packed with hundreds of entertaining philosophical tidbits, illustrations, and thought puzzles that you won't be able to find anywhere else. So whether you're looking to unravel the mysteries of existentialism, or just want to find out what made Voltaire tick, Philosophy 101 has all the answers--even the ones you didn't know you were looking for.


Book Synopsis Philosophy 101 by : Paul Kleinman

Download or read book Philosophy 101 written by Paul Kleinman and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-09-18 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discover the world's greatest thinkers and their groundbreaking notions! Too often, textbooks turn the noteworthy theories, principles, and figures of philosophy into tedious discourse that even Plato would reject. Philosophy 101 cuts out the boring details and exhausting philosophical methodology, and instead, gives you a lesson in philosophy that keeps you engaged as you explore the fascinating history of human thought and inquisition. From Aristotle and Heidegger to free will and metaphysics, Philosophy 101 is packed with hundreds of entertaining philosophical tidbits, illustrations, and thought puzzles that you won't be able to find anywhere else. So whether you're looking to unravel the mysteries of existentialism, or just want to find out what made Voltaire tick, Philosophy 101 has all the answers--even the ones you didn't know you were looking for.


From Plato to Platonism

From Plato to Platonism

Author: Lloyd P. Gerson

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 2013-11-27

Total Pages: 360

ISBN-13: 0801469171

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Was Plato a Platonist? While ancient disciples of Plato would have answered this question in the affirmative, modern scholars have generally denied that Plato’s own philosophy was in substantial agreement with that of the Platonists of succeeding centuries. In From Plato to Platonism, Lloyd P. Gerson argues that the ancients are correct in their assessment. He arrives at this conclusion in an especially ingenious manner, challenging fundamental assumptions about how Plato’s teachings have come to be understood. Through deft readings of the philosophical principles found in Plato's dialogues and in the Platonic tradition beginning with Aristotle, he shows that Platonism, broadly conceived, is the polar opposite of naturalism and that the history of philosophy from Plato until the seventeenth century was the history of various efforts to find the most consistent and complete version of "anti-naturalism." Gerson contends that the philosophical position of Plato—Plato’s own Platonism, so to speak—was produced out of a matrix he calls "Ur-Platonism." According to Gerson, Ur-Platonism is the conjunction of five "antis" that in total arrive at anti-naturalism: anti-nominalism, anti-mechanism, anti-materialism, anti-relativism, and anti-skepticism. Plato’s Platonism is an attempt to construct the most consistent and defensible positive system uniting the five "antis." It is also the system that all later Platonists throughout Antiquity attributed to Plato when countering attacks from critics including Peripatetics, Stoics, and Sceptics. In conclusion, Gerson shows that Late Antique philosophers such as Proclus were right in regarding Plotinus as "the great exegete of the Platonic revelation."


Book Synopsis From Plato to Platonism by : Lloyd P. Gerson

Download or read book From Plato to Platonism written by Lloyd P. Gerson and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2013-11-27 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Was Plato a Platonist? While ancient disciples of Plato would have answered this question in the affirmative, modern scholars have generally denied that Plato’s own philosophy was in substantial agreement with that of the Platonists of succeeding centuries. In From Plato to Platonism, Lloyd P. Gerson argues that the ancients are correct in their assessment. He arrives at this conclusion in an especially ingenious manner, challenging fundamental assumptions about how Plato’s teachings have come to be understood. Through deft readings of the philosophical principles found in Plato's dialogues and in the Platonic tradition beginning with Aristotle, he shows that Platonism, broadly conceived, is the polar opposite of naturalism and that the history of philosophy from Plato until the seventeenth century was the history of various efforts to find the most consistent and complete version of "anti-naturalism." Gerson contends that the philosophical position of Plato—Plato’s own Platonism, so to speak—was produced out of a matrix he calls "Ur-Platonism." According to Gerson, Ur-Platonism is the conjunction of five "antis" that in total arrive at anti-naturalism: anti-nominalism, anti-mechanism, anti-materialism, anti-relativism, and anti-skepticism. Plato’s Platonism is an attempt to construct the most consistent and defensible positive system uniting the five "antis." It is also the system that all later Platonists throughout Antiquity attributed to Plato when countering attacks from critics including Peripatetics, Stoics, and Sceptics. In conclusion, Gerson shows that Late Antique philosophers such as Proclus were right in regarding Plotinus as "the great exegete of the Platonic revelation."


Words and Ideas

Words and Ideas

Author: Fritz-Gregor Herrmann

Publisher: Classical Press of Wales

Published: 2007-12-31

Total Pages: 368

ISBN-13: 1910589446

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Plato did not create his philosophy ex nihilo, but rather drew on four centuries of literary production in epic and lyric poetry, on ethnography and historiography, tragedy and comedy, medical and mathematical research, oratory and rhetorical theory, as well as on Presocratic philosophy. Words & Ideas offers a study of Plato's philosophical language against this cultural background, retracing to their origins the history and development of the key terms of the Theory of Forms as presented in the Phaedo. 'Form' or 'idea', 'ousia' or 'being', 'participation', 'presence' and 'community' are among the concepts investigated. The aim is to determine both the connotations of Plato's philosophical terms and the precise historical and philosophical contexts on which Plato drew in the formulation of his thoughts. In tracing the roots of Plato's philosophy, Words & Ideas demarcates afresh Plato's position regarding the protagonists of pre-Socratic philosophy: Parmenides and the Eleatics, Anaxagoras and Diogenes of Apollonia, Leucippus and Democritus, Philolaus and the Pythagoreans. This identifcation of his sources allows us, in many cases for the first time, to judge what in the arguments of the dialogues is Plato's own contribution and what is there only as part of a philosophical or pre-philosophical inheritance.


Book Synopsis Words and Ideas by : Fritz-Gregor Herrmann

Download or read book Words and Ideas written by Fritz-Gregor Herrmann and published by Classical Press of Wales. This book was released on 2007-12-31 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Plato did not create his philosophy ex nihilo, but rather drew on four centuries of literary production in epic and lyric poetry, on ethnography and historiography, tragedy and comedy, medical and mathematical research, oratory and rhetorical theory, as well as on Presocratic philosophy. Words & Ideas offers a study of Plato's philosophical language against this cultural background, retracing to their origins the history and development of the key terms of the Theory of Forms as presented in the Phaedo. 'Form' or 'idea', 'ousia' or 'being', 'participation', 'presence' and 'community' are among the concepts investigated. The aim is to determine both the connotations of Plato's philosophical terms and the precise historical and philosophical contexts on which Plato drew in the formulation of his thoughts. In tracing the roots of Plato's philosophy, Words & Ideas demarcates afresh Plato's position regarding the protagonists of pre-Socratic philosophy: Parmenides and the Eleatics, Anaxagoras and Diogenes of Apollonia, Leucippus and Democritus, Philolaus and the Pythagoreans. This identifcation of his sources allows us, in many cases for the first time, to judge what in the arguments of the dialogues is Plato's own contribution and what is there only as part of a philosophical or pre-philosophical inheritance.


Platonic Mysticism

Platonic Mysticism

Author: Arthur Versluis

Publisher: SUNY Press

Published: 2017-08-16

Total Pages: 174

ISBN-13: 1438466331

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Restores the Platonic history and context of mysticism and shows how it helps us understand more deeply the humanities as a whole, from philosophy and literature to art. In Platonic Mysticism, Arthur Versluisclearly and tautly argues that mysticism must be properly understood as belonging to the great tradition of Platonism. He demonstrates how mysticism was historically understood in Western philosophical and religious traditions and emphatically rejects externalist approaches to esoteric religion. Instead he develops a new theoretical-critical model for understanding mystical literature and the humanities as a whole, from philosophy and literature to art. A sequel to his Restoring Paradise, this is an audacious book that places Platonic mysticism in the context of contemporary cognitive and other approaches to the study of religion, and presents an emerging model for the new field of contemplative science. “An important work on the mystical experience delving deep into its history, particularly from the Platonic perspective. An essential text for anyone interested in mysticism and its relationship to philosophy and creative expression.” — Andrew Newberg, author of How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain: The New Science of Transformation “The present work, the latest from the pen of Arthur Versluis, provides a trenchant, learned, and illuminating analysis of the origins of Western mysticism in the Platonist tradition, relayed through such figures as Plotinus and Dionysius the Areopagite, down through Meister Eckhart and others, while suitably excoriating the attempts of certain modern philosophers and sociologists of religion to ‘deconstruct’ it from a materialist perspective. I found it a rattling good read!” — John Dillon, author of The Heirs of Plato: A Study of the Old Academy (347–274 BC)


Book Synopsis Platonic Mysticism by : Arthur Versluis

Download or read book Platonic Mysticism written by Arthur Versluis and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2017-08-16 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Restores the Platonic history and context of mysticism and shows how it helps us understand more deeply the humanities as a whole, from philosophy and literature to art. In Platonic Mysticism, Arthur Versluisclearly and tautly argues that mysticism must be properly understood as belonging to the great tradition of Platonism. He demonstrates how mysticism was historically understood in Western philosophical and religious traditions and emphatically rejects externalist approaches to esoteric religion. Instead he develops a new theoretical-critical model for understanding mystical literature and the humanities as a whole, from philosophy and literature to art. A sequel to his Restoring Paradise, this is an audacious book that places Platonic mysticism in the context of contemporary cognitive and other approaches to the study of religion, and presents an emerging model for the new field of contemplative science. “An important work on the mystical experience delving deep into its history, particularly from the Platonic perspective. An essential text for anyone interested in mysticism and its relationship to philosophy and creative expression.” — Andrew Newberg, author of How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain: The New Science of Transformation “The present work, the latest from the pen of Arthur Versluis, provides a trenchant, learned, and illuminating analysis of the origins of Western mysticism in the Platonist tradition, relayed through such figures as Plotinus and Dionysius the Areopagite, down through Meister Eckhart and others, while suitably excoriating the attempts of certain modern philosophers and sociologists of religion to ‘deconstruct’ it from a materialist perspective. I found it a rattling good read!” — John Dillon, author of The Heirs of Plato: A Study of the Old Academy (347–274 BC)


From the Old Academy to Later Neo-Platonism

From the Old Academy to Later Neo-Platonism

Author: Harold Tarrant

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 384

ISBN-13:

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Collects a set of papers on ancient Platonism that span the nine centuries between Plato himself and his commentator Olympiodorus in the 6th century. This title deals with Socrates, Plato and the Old Academy, the Platonic revival and the 2nd century AD, and later Neoplatonism.


Book Synopsis From the Old Academy to Later Neo-Platonism by : Harold Tarrant

Download or read book From the Old Academy to Later Neo-Platonism written by Harold Tarrant and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2011 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Collects a set of papers on ancient Platonism that span the nine centuries between Plato himself and his commentator Olympiodorus in the 6th century. This title deals with Socrates, Plato and the Old Academy, the Platonic revival and the 2nd century AD, and later Neoplatonism.


Order From Disorder. Proclus' Doctrine of Evil and its Roots in Ancient Platonism

Order From Disorder. Proclus' Doctrine of Evil and its Roots in Ancient Platonism

Author: John Phillips

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2007-06-30

Total Pages: 293

ISBN-13: 9047421124

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This study places the doctrine of evil of the Neoplatonist Proclus in its proper context, the exegetical tradition as it developed within the various schools of ancient Platonism, from Middle Platonism to early Neoplatonism. With regard to the evil of the body, there are chapters on the various interpretations of Plato's notion of a pre-cosmic disorderly motion as the source of corporeal evil and on the role of what Platonists referred to as an irrational Nature in the origin of that motion. As for evil of the soul, there are chapters dealing with the concept of an evil World Soul and with the view that the evil that is ascribed to the human soul is a form of psychological weakness.


Book Synopsis Order From Disorder. Proclus' Doctrine of Evil and its Roots in Ancient Platonism by : John Phillips

Download or read book Order From Disorder. Proclus' Doctrine of Evil and its Roots in Ancient Platonism written by John Phillips and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2007-06-30 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study places the doctrine of evil of the Neoplatonist Proclus in its proper context, the exegetical tradition as it developed within the various schools of ancient Platonism, from Middle Platonism to early Neoplatonism. With regard to the evil of the body, there are chapters on the various interpretations of Plato's notion of a pre-cosmic disorderly motion as the source of corporeal evil and on the role of what Platonists referred to as an irrational Nature in the origin of that motion. As for evil of the soul, there are chapters dealing with the concept of an evil World Soul and with the view that the evil that is ascribed to the human soul is a form of psychological weakness.