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Books > Philosophy > Western philosophy > Ancient Western philosophy to c 500
The Stoic philosopher Epictetus has been one of the most
influential of ancient thinkers, both in antiquity itself and in
modern times. Theodore Scaltsas and Andrew S. Mason present ten
specially written papers which discuss Epictetus' thought on a wide
range of subjects, including ethics, logic, theology, and
psychology; explore his relations to his predecessors (including
his two philosophical heroes, Socrates and Diogenes the Cynic, as
well as the earlier Stoic tradition); and examine his influence on
later thinkers. Written by some of the leading experts in the
field, the essays in this volume will be a fascinating resource for
students and scholars of ancient philosophy, and anyone with in an
interest in the Stoic attitude to life.
A. A. Long, one of the world's leading writers on ancient
philosophy, presents eighteen essays on the philosophers and
schools of the Hellenistic and Roman periods--Epicureans, Stoics,
and Sceptics. The discussion ranges over four centuries of
innovative and challenging thought in ethics and
politics, psychology, epistemology, and cosmology.
Metaphysics and Hermeneutics in the Medieval Platonic Tradition
consists of twelve essays originally published between 2006 and
2015, dealing with main trends and specific figures within the
medieval Platonic tradition. Three essays provide general surveys
of the transmission of late ancient thought to the Middle Ages with
emphasis on the ancient authors, the themes, and their medieval
readers, respectively. The remaining essays deal especially with
certain major figures in the Platonic tradition, including
pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, Iohannes Scottus Eriugena, and
Nicholas of Cusa. The principal conceptual aim of the collection is
to establish the primacy of hermeneutics within the philosophical
program developed by these authors: in other words, to argue that
their philosophical activity, substantially albeit not exclusively,
consists of the reading and evaluation of authoritative texts. The
essays also argue that the role of hermeneutics varies in the
course of the tradition between being a means towards the
development of metaphysical theory and being an integral component
of metaphysics itself. In addition, such changes in the status and
application of hermeneutics to metaphysics are shown to be
accompanied by a shift from emphasizing the connection between
logic and philosophy to emphasizing that between rhetoric and
philosophy. The collection of essays fills in a lacuna in the
history of philosophy in general between the fifth and the
fifteenth centuries. It also initiates a dialogue between the
metaphysical hermeneutics of medieval Platonism and certain modern
theories of hermeneutics, structuralism, and deconstruction. The
book will be of special interest to students of the classical
tradition in western thought, and more generally to students of
medieval philosophy, theology, history, and literature. (CS1094).
C. C. W. Taylor presents a clear and faithful new translation of
one of the most famous and influential texts in the history of
Western thought, accompanied by an analytical and critical
commentary focusing on philosophical issues. In Books II to IV of
the Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle gives
his account of virtue of character, which is central to his ethical
theory as a whole and a key topic in much modern ethical writing.
This Key Concepts pivot discusses the contemporary relevance of the
ancient Chinese concept of Tianxia or 'All-Under-Heaven' and argues
the case for a new global political philosophy. 'All-under-heaven'
is a conceptualization of the world as the composition of three
realms: the physical, psychological and political, which places
inclusivity and harmony at the heart of a global world view above
other considerations, transcending the notion of nation state. In a
highly interconnected and globalized world, the idea of Tianxia can
offer a new 21st century vision of international relations and
world order, based on a harmonized global organization defined by
the "all-inclusiveness principle." Promoting the ontology of
co-existence and relational rationality hand in hand with rational
risk aversion in a globalized world, this pivot makes the case that
Tianxia could offer a new vision for contemporary world order,
redefining the universality and legitimacy of politics.
Blends expert insights on ancient Greek thought and modern
psychoanalysis; focuses on expanding analytic theory and clinical
practice; contains rich clinical material
Moses Mendelssohn (1729-86) is considered the father of the Jewish
Enlightenment and the last great Leibnizian in the German
philosophical tradition. One of his most successful works was this
dialogue on the immortality of the soul, modelled on Plato's
"Phaedo". Mendelssohn sought to recast Plato's proofs of the soul's
immortality by adding "such arguments as are supplied by modern
philosophy". Like its ancient ancestor, Mendelssohn's dialogue
includes an account of the death of Socrates - an important figure
in 18th-century Europe. ""Ph don": or, "The Death of Socrates"",
originally published in German in 1767 and translated by Charles
Cullen in 1789, has never been rendered into modern English.
Cullen's translation is thus the only recourse for present-day
scholars who cannot read German. It is long out of print and
difficult to find, even in the largest academic libraries. Now that
the Englishspeaking philosophical world is delving ever more deeply
into the history of German philosophy, this facsimile of the 1789
edition - newly introduced by Curtis Bowman - should be widely
welcomed.
The first monograph devoted to the theology of the Epinomis,
offering an insight into its philosophical and historical context
and solidfying the role of this work as a major step towards the
cosmic theology of the Hellenistic period.
An Ancient Guide to Good Politics: A Literary and Ethical Reading
of Cicero's De Republica illuminates Cicero's subtlety of craft and
thought in his most painstakingly written dialogue. As
Cicero-notable among ancient thinkers for his accomplishments as a
statesman and as a philosopher-has enjoyed a resurgence of interest
in recent decades, scholars are discovering in Cicero's De
Republica (On the Republic) an original, insightful, and relevant
teaching on republicanism, liberty, leadership, and citizenship.
Through a close reading of this work, Moryam VanOpstal highlights
Cicero's ingenuity in addressing age-old philosophical and
political questions related to the best way of life, the
relationship of justice and law, the founding of republics, the
cycles of regimes, the guide of the republic, and the mixed regime.
Instead of offering simplistic teachings on duty, power, and
justice, Cicero presents us with reflections and puzzles that turn
the question back to us, pointing us to deeper unities than the
disparate appearances of things might suggest. VanOpstal shows that
Cicero intended his dialogue as a provocation for us to live lives
that are more fully characterized by noble thought and thoughtful
deed.
June 18-. Squire Hawkins sat upon the pyramid of large blocks,
called the "stile," in front of his house, contemplating the
morning. The locality was Obedstown, East Tennessee. You would not
know that Obedstown stood on the top of a mountain, for there was
nothing about the landscape to indicate it-but it did: a mountain
that stretched abroad over whole counties, and rose very gradually.
The district was called the "Knobs of East Tennessee," and had a
reputation like Nazareth, as far as turning out any good thing was
concerned. The Squire's house was a double log cabin, in a state of
decay; two or three gaunt hounds lay asleep about the threshold,
and lifted their heads sadly whenever Mrs. Hawkins or the children
stepped in and out over their bodies. Rubbish was scattered about
the grassless yard; a bench stood near the door with a tin wash
basin on it and a pail of water and a gourd; a cat had begun to
drink from the pail, but the exertion was overtaxing her energies,
and she had stopped to rest. There was an ash-hopper by the fence,
and an iron pot, for soft-soap-boiling, near it.
William of Moerbeke was a prolific medieval translator of Aristotle
and other ancient philosophical and scientific authors from Greek
into Latin, and he played a decisive role in the acceptance of
Aristotelian philosophy in the Latin world. He is often criticized
for an allegedly deficient translation method. However, this book
argues that his approach was a deliberate attempt to allow readers
to reach the correct understanding of the source texts in
accordance with the medieval view of the role of the translator.
William's project to make all genuine works of Aristotle - and also
of other important authors from Antiquity - available in Latin is
framed against the background of intellectual life in the 13th
century, the deliberate policy of his Dominican order to reconcile
Christian doctrine with worldly knowledge, and new trends in book
production that influenced the spread of the new translations.
William of Moerbeke's seemingly modest acts of translation started
an intellectual revolution, the impact of which extended from the
Middle Ages into the early modern era. The Friar and the
Philosopher will appeal to researchers and students alike
interested in Medieval perceptions of Aristotle, as well as other
works from Antiquity.
 |
De Caelo
(Hardcover)
Aristotle; Edited by D.J. Allan
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R1,182
Discovery Miles 11 820
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Ships in 12 - 17 working days
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This book offers an original philosophical perspective on
exemplarity. Inspired by Wittgenstein's later work and Derrida's
theory of deconstruction, it argues that examples are not static
entities but rather oscillate between singular and universal
moments. There is a broad consensus that exemplary cases mediate
between singular instances and universal concepts or norms. In the
first part of the book, Macha contends that there is a kind of
differance between singular examples and general exemplars or
paradigms. Every example is, in part, also an exemplar, and vice
versa. Furthermore, he develops a paracomplete approach to the
logic of exemplarity, which allows us to say of an exemplar of X
neither that it is an X nor that it is not an X. This paradox is
structurally isomorphic to Russell's paradox and can be addressed
in similar ways. In the second part of the book, Macha presents
four historical studies that exemplify the ideas developed in the
first part. This part begins with Plato's Forms, understood as
standards/paradigms, before considering Kant's theory of reflective
judgment as a general epistemological account of exemplarity. This
is then followed by analyses of Hegel's conceptual moment of
particularity and Kuhn's concept of paradigm. The book concludes by
discussing the speculative hypothesis that all our knowledge is
based on paradigms, which, following the logic of exemplarity, are
neither true nor false. The Philosophy of Exemplarity will be of
interest to scholars and advanced students working in philosophy of
language, logic, history of philosophy, and literary theory.
This is the first collection of essays devoted to the thought of
Anselm W. Muller. It brings to the attention of the
English-speaking world an influential and highly regarded
philosopher who has made important contributions to a wide range of
philosophical debates. Arguably, Muller's most important
contributions are to the philosophy of action and virtue ethics.
The contributors, who include friends, colleagues, and former
students, engage with different aspects of Muller's thought in
these areas. Subjects include his interpretation of Aristotle and
Wittgenstein, the teleology of thought and action, the Aristotelian
distinction between poiesis and praxis and its application to
ethical upbringing, and the possibility of practical knowledge and
practical truth. Teleological Structures in Human Life will be of
interest to researches and advanced students working on virtue
ethics, philosophy of action, and practical reasoning.
This 2005 book is a critical examination of Michel Foucault's
relation to ancient Greek thought, in particular his famous
analysis of Greek history of sexuality. Wolfgang Detel offers an
understanding of Foucault's theories of power and knowledge based
on modern analytical theories of science and concepts of power. He
offers a complex reading of the texts which Foucault discusses,
covering topics such as Aristotle's ethics and theory of sex,
Hippocratic dietetics, the earliest treatises on economics, and
Plato's theory of love. The result is a philosophically rich and
probing critique of Foucault's later writings, and a persuasive
account of the relation between ethics, power and knowledge in
classical antiquity. His book will have a wide appeal to readers
interested in Foucault and in Greek thought and culture.
We might think we are through with the past, but the past isn't
through with us. Tragedy permits us to come face to face with the
things we don't want to know about ourselves, but which still make
us who we are. It articulates the conflicts and contradictions that
we need to address in order to better understand the world we live
in. A work honed from a decade's teaching at the New School, where
'Critchley on Tragedy' is one of the most popular courses, Tragedy,
the Greeks and Us is a compelling examination of the history of
tragedy. Simon Critchley demolishes our common misconceptions about
the poets, dramatists and philosophers of Ancient Greece - then
presents these writers to us in an unfamiliar and original light.
This study contributes substantially to research on Aristotelian
logic in Byzantium. It includes a critical edition of the
commentary by Leo Magentenos, the Metropolitan of Mytilene (twelfth
c.?) on Book II of the Prior Analytics along with an edition of the
syllogism diagram attributed to this work in the manuscript
tradition of this work.
- integrates relevant philosophy in a way that makes it
understandable and palatable to psychoanalytic readers - there
isn't much direct competition to this book; it's an original
contribution
In a sustained study of the Sophist and Statesman, this book
explores the use of paradigm, logos, and myth. Plato introduces in
these dialogues the term "paradigm" to signify an image or model
that can be used to yield insight into higher, ethical realities
that are themselves beyond direct visual portrayal. He employs the
term to signify an inductive example that can be defined. Finally,
Plato shows how to rework existing narrative and myth to an
ethically appropriate end. Since this exercise in the Statesman is
described as training in dialectic, in Paradigm, Logos, and Myth in
Plato's Sophist and Statesman Conor Barry demonstrates how these
later works expand the compass of dialectic beyond narrow
conceptions that restrict the scope of dialectic to the use of
logical techniques. Rather, dialectic is the practice of dialogue
as portrayed in the Platonic dialogues, which can involve appeal to
analogies and figurative expressions in the search for an
understanding of the ethical good. Plato's dialogues, as works of
literary art, aim to lead people to seek such understanding.
Nevertheless, insofar as the dialogues are themselves artistic
productions, they must also be objects of critical scrutiny and
questioning.
Initiates a dialogue spanning time and space between Chinese
philosophy and European philosophy. A discussion of European
philosophy from a Chinese perspective and Chinese philosophy from a
European perspective. Integrates history and logic in a powerful
way.
In Predication and Ontology A. Kalbarczyk provides the first
monograph-length study of the Arabic reception of Aristotle's
Categories. At the center of attention is the critical reappraisal
of that treatise by Ibn Sina (d. 428 AH/1037 AD), better known in
the Latin West as Avicenna. Ibn Sina's reading of the Categories is
examined in the context of his wider project of rearranging the
transmitted body of philosophical knowledge. Against the background
of the late ancient commentary tradition and subsequent exegetical
efforts, Ibn Sina's Kitab al-Maqulat of the Sifa' is interpreted as
a milestone in the gradual reshuffle of the relationship between
logic proper and ontology. In order to assess the philosophical
impact of this realignment, some of the subsequent developments in
Ibn Sina's writings and in the emerging post-Avicennian tradition
are also taken into account. The thematic focus lies on the two
fundamental classification schemes which Aristotle introduces in
the treatise: the fourfold division of Cat. 2 ("of a subject"/"in a
subject") and the tenfold scheme of Cat. 4 (i.e., substance and the
nine genera of accidents). They both pose the question of whether
and how the manner in which an expression is predicated relates to
extra-linguistic reality. As the study intends to show, this
question is one of the driving forces of Ibn Sina's momentous
reform of the Aristotelian curriculum. This monograph has been
awarded the Iran World Award for Book of the Year (2020).
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