The word myth is commonly thought to mean a fictional story, but few know that Plato was the first to use the term muthos in that sense. He also used muthos to describe the practice of making and telling stories, the oral transmission of all that a community keeps in its collective memory. In the first part of Plato the Myth Maker , Luc Brisson reconstructs Plato's multifaceted description of muthos in light of the latter's Atlantis story. The second part (...) of the book contrasts this sense of myth with another form of speech that Plato believed was far superior: the logos of philosophy. Gerard Naddaf's substantial introduction shows the originality and importance both of Brisson's method and of Plato's analysis and places it in the context of contemporary debates over the origin and evolution of the oral tradition. "[Brisson] contrasts muthos with the logos found at the heart of the philosophical reading. [He] does an excellent job of analyzing Plato's use of the two speech forms, and the translator's introduction does considerable service in setting the tone."-- Library Journal. (shrink)

In the present article, we consider the question of the primary elements in Plato’s Timaeus, the components of the whole universe reduced, by an extraordinarily elegant construction, to two right triangles. But how does he reconcile such a model with the infinite diversity of the universe? A large part of this study is devoted to Cornford’s explanation in his commentary of the Timaeus and its shortcomings, in order to finally propose a revised one, which we think to be entirely consistent (...) with Plato’s text. This analysis is an essential step for the understanding of the connection between the sensible world and the mathematical principles that underlies Timaeus’ cosmological account. (shrink)

Die vorliegende Sammlung von Aufsätzen einiger der weltbesten Spezialisten der antiken griechischen Philosophie konzentriert sich auf die philosophischen Texte, die während der hellenistischen und kaiserlichen Zeit Pythagoras und den Pythagoreern zugeschrieben wurden. Ihre unbekannten Verfasser behaupten, die Positionen der ursprünglichen pythagoreischen Schule zur Metaphysik, Theologie, Zahlenphilosophie, Physik, Logik, politischen Philosophie, Ethik und zur richtigen Lebensweise zu vermitteln. Die kühnsten unter ihnen präsentieren sich als die Quellen, aus denen Platon und Aristoteles die Inspiration für den Timaios und die Kategorien geschöpft haben. (...) Da sie von den meisten antiken Denkern als maßgebend angesehen wurden, führte dies zu einer Renaissance der platonischen und pythagoreischen Tradition. (shrink)

In Plato’s eponymous dialogue, Timaeus, the main character presents the universe as an (almost) perfect sphere filled by tiny, invisible particles having the form of four regular polyhedrons. At first glance, such a construction may seem close to an atomistic theory. However, one does not find any text in Antiquity that links Timaeus’ cosmology to the atomists, while Aristotle opposes clearly Plato to the latter. Nevertheless, Plato is commonly presented in contemporary literature as some sort of atomist, sometimes as supporting (...) a form of so-called ‘mathematical atomism’. However, the term ‘atomism’ is rarely defined when applied to Plato. Since it covers many different theories, it seems that this term has almost as different meanings as different authors. The purpose of this article is to consider whether it is correct to connect Timaeus’ cosmology to some kind of ‘atomism’, however this term may be understood. Its purpose is double: to obtain a better understanding of the cosmology of the Timaeus, and to consider the different modern ‘atomistic’ interpretations of this cosmology. In short, we would like to show that such a claim, in any form whatsoever, is misleading, an impediment to the understanding of the dialogue, and more generally of Plato’s philosophy. (shrink)

When, in Plato’s Parmenides 155e4–157b5, Parmenides refers to the instant (ἐξαίφνης), he is alluding to a paradox of Zeno, and not to an argument of Plato. Thus, in the second part of the Parmenides, the speaker is a fair representation of the historical Parmenides, and not a figment of Plato’s imagination.

Les etudes ici reunies rendent compte de ce que furent le contexte historique et litteraire de la redaction des dialogues platoniciens, puis de la maniere dont leur auteur a choisi de confronter sa philosophie a la mythologie, afin de mener une enquete sur le monde, l'ame et la cite. Ces lectures veulent prendre ainsi la mesure de ce qui nous eloigne aujourd'hui de Platon, mais suggerer encore qu'une histoire de la philosophie qui cherche a s'affranchir de l'anachronisme trace un chemin (...) vers la philosophie. (shrink)

This study explains how the myths of Greece and Rome were transmitted from antiquity to the Renaissance. Luc Brisson argues that philosophy was ironically responsible for saving myth from historical annihilation. Although philosophy was initially critical of myth because it could not be declared true or false and because it was inferior to argumentation, mythology was progressively reincorporated into philosophy through allegorical exegesis. Brisson shows to what degree allegory was employed among philosophers and how it enabled myth to take on (...) a number of different interpretive systems throughout the centuries: moral, physical, psychological, political, and even metaphysical. How Philosophers Saved Myths also describes how, during the first years of the modern era, allegory followed a more religious path, which was to assume a larger role in Neoplatonism. Ultimately, Brisson explains how this embrace of myth was carried forward by Byzantine thinkers and artists throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance after the triumph of Chistianity, Brisson argues, myths no longer had to agree with just history and philosophy but the dogmas of the Church as well. (shrink)

These are inventions of the human mind. The scientific knowledge of the universe is entirely composed in a series of axioms and rules of inference underlying a formalized system.

This chapter contains sections titled: Going Beyond Nature in Order to Explain it Technē, epistēmē and alēthēs doxa Mathematics, pure and applied Observation and Experimental Verification Bibliography.

L'article s'attaque aux racines mêmes du « mystère platonicien » en partant du constat de son caractère proprement « inexplicable »: qu'un auteur, dont on possède l'ensemble de l'œuvre écrite autorise des lectures, non seulement diverses, ce qui est légitime, mais également contradictoires, n'a aucun sens. L'article indique brièvement les éléments qui expliquent cette situation paradoxale et met en valeur les contributions de l'École de Tübingen (Krämer, Gaiser), qui insistent sur les « auto-témoignages » de Platon et sur la tradition (...) indirecte en vue d'une compréhension tout à fait nouvelle de Platon. L'auteur tente ensuite de dissiper quelques-unes des équivoques les plus graves qui grèvent le débat qu'elles ont suscité. L'article expose les analyses de Reale, qui éclairent d'un jour nouveau la valeur paradigmatique de cette nouvelle position, et l'apport de Szlezák, qui produit l'analyse des techniques d'écriture employées par Platon. Les commentaires de Movia et de Migliori prouvent finalement la puissance herméneutique du « nouveau paradigme » et apportent une série d'approfondissements explicatifs, surtout au sujet de la dialectique. The article tackles the roots of the « Plato mystery », beginning with its « inexplicable » existence. It is a nonsensical that an author, whose written corpus we possess, is not only open to different valid interpretations, but even to contradictory ones. After pointing out the elements behind this paradoxical situation, the contributions of the Tübingen school (Krämer, Gaiser) that enhance Plato's own testimony and the indirect tradition in respect of a renewed Platonic comprehension, are underlined. The author then attempts to eliminate some of the major misunderstandings which blocked the previous debate. The article exposes Reale's analysis, who clarifies the paradigmatic value of the new proposal, and the Szlezák's contribution, who threats the analysis of the writing techniques of Plato. Finally Movia's and Migliori's commentaries verify the hermeneutical capabilities of the « new paradigma » and bring a set of thorough examination of the dialectic mainly. (shrink)

For Plato in the Philebus, envious jealousy (φθόνος) is a state of mind or a disposition of the soul, in which pain is mixed with pleasure, because one affected by envious jealousy is rejoicing at the misfortunes of those around him and being sad at their happiness. For Plato, to reject the envious jealousy is to express his will to establish new relationships between the gods − including universe − and human beings on the one hand, and between human beings (...) on the other, whether individuals or groups. In this context, competition (ἀγών), which played such an important role in the culture of ancient Greece, is evacuated, except, perhaps, from the field of virtue. (shrink)

À la différence de la plupart des autres commentateurs, je soutiens que l’histoire de l’univers évoquée dans le mythe du Politique comprend trois périodes : le règne de Kronos décrit en 271c3-272d6, le monde laissé à lui-même évoqué en 272d6-273e4 et le règne de Zeus, le nôtre, décrit en 273e4-274d7. La période d’abandon ne peut correspondre à la nôtre, au cours de laquelle, suivant Platon, les dieux sont actifs et jouent un rôle important. Un passage du Timée et surtout le (...) dixième livre des Lois laissent en effet entendre qu’il s’agit là d’une « expérience de pensée », destinée à illustrer dans quel état serait le monde s’il était livré a lui-même. (shrink)

Chez les interprètes récents du Timée de Platon, le terme « téléologie », inventé au xviiie siècle, a pris une place déterminante. Mais l’usage de ce terme trahit une interprétation aristotélicienne de la figure du démiurge qu’il s’agit d’assimiler au premier moteur, dans le contexte de la cause finale. On s’interrogera ici sur l’origine de ce terme, et sur la pertinence de son usage pour comprendre le rôle que joue le démiurge dans le Timée.

Il faut aborder avec scepticisme les quelques références à Pythagore et aux Pythagoriciens contenues dans les dialogues de Platon, car il est difficile de prendre la mesure effective d'une influence pythagoricienne sur l'Athénien. En fait, les seules références explicites à Pythagore (Rép. X 600a-b) et aux Pythagoriciens (Rép. VII 530c-531a) ne nous disent pas grand-chose et, concernant les personnages traditionnellement considérés comme pythagoriciens, nos informations sont peu fiables, incertaines et temps contradictoires. Une telle prudence est particulièrement utile dans le cas (...) de Timée et du caractère homonyme de ce dialogue, dont le pythagorisme, bien que largement accepté par les commentateurs, semble hautement discutable. Ainsi, seule l'application d'une méthode historique prudente et lucide peut éviter cette dérive qui identifie comme pythagoricienne toute référence à la transmigration de l'âme et aux mathématiques au sens large. (shrink)

How was the Neoplatonic School of Athens able to maintain itself for more than a century at Athens, in a hostile environment, while being the target of the opposition of the Christians who were not only in the majority, but also held political power? These are the questions this text seeks to answer. Although it does not promise any earth-shaking discovery, it will try to sketch a clear and precise portrait of the Neoplatonic School of Athens on the family, political (...) and economic level. (shrink)

Les Eléments de théologie de Proclus constituent un monument philosophique radicalement singulier tant par son architecture propre que par la façon dont la tradition l'a revisité. Ordonnant, sous une forme géométrique, les principes de la métaphysique néoplatonicienne, ils ont à la fois constitué celle-ci en système et opéré comme le principal relais de sa transmission aux pensées byzantine, arabe et occidentale. Ce sont ces effets d'héritage et d'adaptation que les textes ici réunis visent à évaluer. Du Liber de causis à (...) Hegel en passant par Thomas d'Aquin, Dietrich de Freiberg, Giordano Bruno, les Platoniciens de Cambridge et Leibniz, se reconstitue ainsi une a grande chaîne des "êtres", réarticulée par la chaîne des raisons, et à chaque fois revivifiée par celle de la transmission. (shrink)

Platão foi o primeiro a utilizar o termo mito no sentido que continuamos a dar a esse termo nas linguas modemas. Utilizando mito Platão descreve um certo tipo de discurso, fabricado pelos poetas na sociedade onde ele vive, a fim de substituí-lo por um outro, o Aóyos produzido pelos filósofos. Mesmo se mostrando muito crítico a respeito dos poetas que fabricam os mitos, Platão reconhece que os filósofos não podem viver sem os mitos. Assim, ele se inspira nos poetas para (...) desenvolver certos pontos de sua doutrina, chegando mesmo a fabricar mitos, porque reconhece sua eficácia no dominio da ética e da política. (shrink)

É no Timeu de Platão encontra sua origem o que nomeamos «matéria», termo que traduz o que Aristóteles nomeou húle, e é conveniente precisar que se trata da «matéria primeira». Como a hipótese da «matéria primeira» é destinada a resolver um problema metafísico, o do substrato da mudança física, compreende-se bem por que a ciência moderna se desinteresou da questão, considerando que, se aceitamos o princípio segundo o qual «nada nasce nem perece, pois tudo se transforma», é suficiente descrever e (...) mensurar a quantidade de matéria que se transforma sem que se coloque a questão da natureza do substrato que se transforma, uma tal questão se situando além da física. (shrink)

Neste artigo, tenciono mostrar que é impossível concluir, como fez André Grabar, que há uma mudança da atitude de Plotino em relação à obra de arte. Plotino coloca sob o vocábulo tékhne toda uma série de atividades humanas associando artes, ofícios e inclusive ciências que não apresentam nenhum traço comum além daquele da competência. Além do mais, a tékhne não é associada à produção artística. Enfim, em Plotino assim como em Platão, a natureza precede sempre a tékhne; com efeito, somente (...) a natureza tem uma ação espontânea, contínua e dispensadora de vida e de potência. (shrink)

In the Corpus Hippocraticum and in tragedy, γκος is difficult to translate, for it corresponds to a very primitive notion, intuitively implying a confusion between two aspects that were gradually distinguished: 1) a thing's bulk or extension, and 2) an appreciation, as a function of its bulk and its extension, of the load represented by this thing, or its weight. This explains why the term usually designates something that has a certain mass. As an indefinite quantity of formless matter, this (...) is probably a notion which was used by medio-Platonists, strongly influenced by Stoicism, to understand matter the Timaeus . In Plotinus' polemic against the Stoics, γκος, which refers to a magnitude with resistance bereft of qualities, is thus situated at a level intermediate between matter (λη), bereft of all determination, and the body (σμα), which is endowed with magnitude and qualities. In the Sentences , Porphyry uses the term γκος 30 times in its technical sense, almost as often as Plotinus in the whole of the Enneads . This is probably because he felt uncomfortable with Plotinus' notion of matter bereft of all determination, including magnitude. (shrink)

This memorial essay on the French historian of philosophy Pierre Hadot (1922–2010) explores his life and work. Starting out from an ecclesiastical background and education, Hadot's interest in mysticism led him to study the late Greek Neoplatonists Plotinus and Porphyry, as well as the Latin Church Fathers. Elected first to the École pratique des hautes études and then to the Collège de France, Hadot developed his most influential idea, that ancient philosophy was not the construction of an abstract system of (...) ideas, but a concrete, lived practice intended to transform the perception and being of the practitioner, and thereby to ensure his or her happiness. Later in his career, Hadot, influenced by German Romanticism and above all by Goethe, turned to study the history of the concept of nature from classical to modern times. The breadth of his interests and the novelty of his approach account for the wide interest in his works, extending to circles that extend far beyond the disciplines of classical studies and the history of philosophy. (shrink)

In this paper, a pluralistic explanation of the sources of evil according to Plato is offered, which takes into account not only ethics, but also cosmology. In Plato, one must distinguish between negative evils, which result from the inherent distortion of images, that is, of bodies, as compared to their model, that is, of intelligible reality; and positive evils, whose ultimate cause is the soul. In the case of the soul of the world, one must speak of relative positive evils (...) that are the consequence of its degraded power, and in the case of man, of absolute positive evils, which are the consequence of error. (shrink)