Flow and flux in Plato's philosophy / Andrew J. Mason.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mason, Andrew J., author.

Series:

Issues in ancient philosophy

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Plato.

Physical Description:

xi, 215 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2016.

Summary:

In this bold new study, Andrew J. Mason seeks both to shed light on the key issue of flux in Plato's work, and to show that there is also in Plato a notion of flow that needs to be distinguished from flux. Mason brings out the importance of this hitherto neglected distinction, and proposes on its basis a new way of understanding the development of Plato's thought. The opposition between the 'being' of Forms and the 'becoming' or 'flux' of sensibles has been fundamental to the understanding of Plato from Aristotle to the present day. One key concern of this book is to clarify which kinds or levels of flux Plato accepts in sensibles. In addition, Mason argues that this traditional approach is unsatisfactory, as it leaves out the important notion of flow. Unlike flux, flow is a kind of motion that does not entail intrinsic change. It is also not restricted to the sensible, but covers motions of soul as well, including the circular motion of nous (intelligence) that is crucial in Plato's later thought, particularly his cosmology. In short, flow is not incompatible with 'being', and in this study Plato's development is presented, largely, as his arrival at this view, in correction of his earlier conflation of flux and flow in establishing the claim that being is set apart from all motion. Mason's study offers fresh insights into many dialogues and difficult passages in Plato's oeuvre, and situates Plato's conception and usage of 'flow' and 'flux' in relation to earlier usage in the Greek poetic tradition and the Pre-Socratic thinkers, particularly Heraclitus. The first study of its kind, Flow and Flux in Plato's Philosophy uncovers dimensions of Plato's thinking that may reshape the way his philosophy is understood. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 Aspects of the problem 1

2 The conceptual difference between flux and flow 7

3 Pre-Platonic usage of pon, pεω etc. 9

4 The philosophical importance of the flux/flow distinction 18

5 Methodological considerations, and the orientation of this study 23

1 Everflowing being in the Laws 30

1 The recapitulation at Laws 966d-e 31

2 Excursus: The crux at Laws 89-b1-3 37

3 Everflowing being and the eternal running of divine soul 44

4 Looking backwards 47

2 The pursuit of flow via etymology in the Cratylus 53

1 The status of the etymologies 53

2 The structure of the etymological discussion 56

3 Cosmic flow: The divine / cosmic etymologies 58

4 Going with the flow: The words concerning virtue 73

5 Divine wandering 84

6 From flow to flux: The argument and the aporia at the end of the Cratylus 89

3 Flow and the Form of Beauty in the Phaedrus 104

1 Flux and flow in the middle dialogues 104

2 The Form of Beauty in the Phaedrus 108

3 The role of flow in the second speech 112

4 The Phaedrus in the development of Plato's thought 118

4 Flux and flow in the Timaeus 126

1 Necessity and its compliance with nous 127

2 Human physiology: Implications for the macrocosm? 141

3 The theories of perception in the Timaeus and Theaetetus 143

5 The problem of natural catastrophe in the late dialogues 152

1 The 'end' of the Critias 153

2 The flawed world-soul of the Statesman myth 157

3 The Laws revisited 165

6 Plato and the question of natural justice 177

1 An energetics of being just and unjust: Republic 613b-c 180

2 Plato's trajectory viewed from the perspective of the problem of natural justice 184.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781138918184

1138918180

OCLC:

916684793