Plato's Cosmology and its Ethical Dimensions

Plato's Cosmology and its Ethical Dimensions
Author: Gabriela Roxana Carone
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2005-10-31
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1107320739

Although a great deal has been written on Plato's ethics, his cosmology has not received so much attention in recent times and its importance for his ethical thought has remained underexplored. By offering accounts of Timaeus, Philebus, Politicus and Laws X, the book reveals a strongly symbiotic relation between the cosmic and human sphere. It is argued that in his late period Plato presents a picture of an organic universe, endowed with structure and intrinsic value, which both urges our respect and calls for our responsible intervention. Humans are thus seen as citizens of a university that can provide a context for their flourishing even in the absence of good political institutions. The book sheds light on many intricate metaphysical issues in late Plato and brings out the close connections between his cosmology and the development of his ethics.

Plato's Cosmology

Plato's Cosmology
Author: Plato
Publisher: Hackett Publishing
Total Pages: 398
Release: 1997-01-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9780872203860

A reprint of the Routledge edition of 1935.

Plato's Cosmology

Plato's Cosmology
Author: Francis MacDonald Cornford
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 402
Release: 2014-06-23
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1317830350

This is Volume IV of ten on a series of Ancient Philosophy. Originally published in 1937, this text offers Plato's 'Timaeus' translated with a running commentary discussing each problem of interpretation.

Plato's Natural Philosophy

Plato's Natural Philosophy
Author: Thomas Kjeller Johansen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 229
Release: 2004-07-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1107320119

Plato's dialogue the Timaeus-Critias presents two connected accounts, that of the story of Atlantis and its defeat by ancient Athens and that of the creation of the cosmos by a divine craftsman. This book offers a unified reading of the dialogue. It tackles a wide range of interpretative and philosophical issues. Topics discussed include the function of the famous Atlantis story, the notion of cosmology as 'myth' and as 'likely', and the role of God in Platonic cosmology. Other areas commented upon are Plato's concepts of 'necessity' and 'teleology', the nature of the 'receptacle', the relationship between the soul and the body, the use of perception in cosmology, and the work's peculiar monologue form. The unifying theme is teleology: Plato's attempt to show the cosmos to be organised for the good. A central lesson which emerges is that the Timaeus is closer to Aristotle's physics than previously thought.

One Book, the Whole Universe

One Book, the Whole Universe
Author: Richard D. Mohr
Publisher: Parmenides Publishing
Total Pages: 428
Release: 2010
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN:

"The most wide ranging and stimulating presentation of ancient and modern views on Plato's cosmological dialogue ever published. Highly recommended." David T. Runia, University of Melbourne --

Calcidius on Plato's Timaeus

Calcidius on Plato's Timaeus
Author: Gretchen Reydams-Schils
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2020-09-24
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1108356176

This is the first study to assess in its entirety the fourth-century Latin commentary on Plato's Timaeus by the otherwise unknown Calcidius, also addressing features of his Latin translation. The first part examines the authorial voice of the commentator and the overall purpose of the work; the second part provides an overview of the key themes; and the third part reassesses the commentary's relation to Stoicism, Aristotle, potential sources, and the Christian tradition. This commentary was one of the main channels through which the legacy of Plato and Greek philosophy was passed on to the Christian Latin West. The text, which also establishes a connection between Plato's cosmology and Genesis, thus represents a distinctive cultural encounter between the Greek and the Roman philosophical traditions, and between non-Christian and Christian currents of thought.

The Emergent Metaphysics in Plato's Theory of Disorder

The Emergent Metaphysics in Plato's Theory of Disorder
Author: Sarai Robin Charles
Publisher: Lexington Books
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2006
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9780739109113

The Emergent Metaphysics in Plato's Theory of Disorder presents for the first time Plato's theory of disorder as it pertains to his understanding of powerful causal forces at work within and outwith the cosmos and the soul of man. Divided into two Parts and presenting passages in both Greek and English, Plato's cosmology, the Timaeus, and his chief theological work, Laws X, are discussed in detail. In the Timaeus 'Ananke' is introduced as one of two powerful primal causes, a disordering force second only to the 'Demiurgos, ' an ordering power and 'father' of the universe. Ananke is presented as being responsible for the physical chaos that existed prior to the generation of the universe, as well as for any residual disorder left within the cosmos after its formation. However, later, in Laws X Plato hypothesizes a different sort of disordering power, a destructive force active long after the cosmos has been generated, a primal 'Soul' capable of endangering not just the physical universe, but also the soul of man. What ultimately arises from the juxtaposition of these two dialogues is a dynamic theory of disorder in which an epistemology is outlined, an ontology is given and from which, it is argued, a metaphysics of disorder emerges. Charles's work is a rich addition to the study of Plato and philosophy

Plato's Philosophy of Science

Plato's Philosophy of Science
Author: Andrew Gregory
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 380
Release: 2015-03-02
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1472502388

In this illuminating book Andrew Gregory takes an original approach to Plato's philosophy of science by reassessing Plato's views on how we might investigate and explain the natural world. He demonstrates that many of the common charges against Plato - disinterest, ignorance, dismissal of observation - are unfounded, and shows instead that Plato had a series of important and cogent criticisms to make of the early atomists and other physiologoi. Plato's views on science, and on astronomy and cosmology in particular, are shown to have developed in interesting ways. Thus, the book argues, Plato can best be seen as a philosopher struggling with the foundations of scientific realism, and as someone, moreover, who has interesting epistemological, cosmological and nomological reasons for his approach. Plato's Philosophy of Science is important reading for all those with an interest in Ancient Philosophy and the History of Science.