Plotinus on self : the philosophy of the 'We' / Pauliina Remes.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Remes, Pauliina

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Plotinus.

Self (Philosophy).

Physical Description:

ix, 287 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Summary:

Plotinus, the founder of the Neoplatonic school of philosophy, conceptualises two different notions of self (or 'us'): the corporeal and the rational. Personality and imperfection mark the former, while goodness and a striving for understanding mark the latter. Dr Remes grounds the two selfhoods in deep-seated Platonic ontological commitments, following their manifestations, interrelations and sometimes uneasy coexistence in philosophical psychology, emotional therapy and ethics. Plotinus' interest lies in what it means for a human being to be a temporal and corporeal thing, yet capable of abstract and impartial reasoning, of self-government and perhaps even invulnerability. The book argues that this involves a philosophically problematic rupture within humanity which is, however, alleviated by the psychological similarities and points of contact between the two aspects of the self. The purpose of life is the cultivation of the latter aspect, the true self.

Contents:

Part I The Endowed Structures of Selfhood

1 Two lives, two identities: the ontological and anthropological setting 23

1.1 Eternal entities and temporal particulars 32

1.2 Human individuals and individuality 59

2 The conscious centre 92

2.1 From proprioception to self-awareness 96

2.2 Mental connectedness 110

3 The rational self and its knowledge of itself 125

3.1 The powers of intellect and reason 126

3.2 Self-knowledge of the thinking thing 156

Part II Constructing the Self: Between the World and the Ideal

4 Sculpting your self: self-determination, self-control and self-constitution 179

4.1 Freedom and self-determination 180

4.2 Therapy of emotions and what is up to us 185

5 Action and other people: the self as a citizen of two communities 213

6 Losing the limits of the self? 239.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

ISBN:

9780521867290

0521867290

OCLC:

86167474