Order from disorder : Proclus' doctrine of evil and its roots in ancient platonism / by John Phillips.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Phillips, John.

Series:

Medieval philosophy, mathematics, and science ; v. 5.

Ancient Mediterranean and medieval texts and contexts, 1871-188X ; v. 5

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Good and evil.

Proclus, approximately 410-485.

Proclus.

Plato--Influence.

Plato.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (293 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2007.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This study places the doctrine of evil of the Neoplatonist Proclus in its proper context, the exegetical tradition as it developed within the various schools of ancient Platonism, from Middle Platonism to early Neoplatonism. With regard to the evil of the body, there are chapters on the various interpretations of Plato's notion of a pre-cosmic disorderly motion as the source of corporeal evil and on the role of what Platonists referred to as an irrational Nature in the origin of that motion. As for evil of the soul, there are chapters dealing with the concept of an evil World Soul and with the view that the evil that is ascribed to the human soul is a form of psychological weakness.

Contents:

Preliminary material / J. Phillips

Introduction / J. Phillips

Chapter One. Proclus’ doctrine of evil / J. Phillips

Chapter Two. Evil as privation / J. Phillips

Chapter Three. Evil as a disorderly motion / J. Phillips

Chapter Four. Irrational nature / J. Phillips

Chapter Five. The evil world soul / J. Phillips

Chapter Six. Evil as weakness of the human soul / J. Phillips

Conclusion / J. Phillips

Bibliography / J. Phillips

Index / J. Phillips.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [269]-276) and index.

ISBN:

1-281-92159-9

9786611921590

90-474-2112-4

OCLC:

646789794

Publisher Number:

10.1163/ej.9789004160187.i-281 DOI