Plotinus' Cosmology: A Study of Ennead II.1 (40): Text, Translation, and Commentary
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Author Description
In Ennead II.1 (40) Plotinus is primarily concerned to argue for the everlastingness of the universe, the heavens, and the heavenly bodies as individual substances. Here he must grapple both with the philosophical issue of personal identity through time and with the rich tradition of cosmology which pitted the Platonists against the Aristotelians and Stoics. What results is a historically informed cosmological sketch explaining the constitution of the heavens as well as sublunar and celestial motion. This book contains an extensive introduction aimed at providing the necessary background in Platonic, Aristotelian, and Stoic cosmology, the text itself, and a line-by-line commentary designed to elucidate its philosophical, philological and historical details.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This study investigates the core question of how Plotinus reconciles the everlasting nature of the universe and celestial bodies with the philosophical challenges of personal identity and competing cosmological traditions. James Wilberding, a scholar of ancient philosophy, provides a rigorous framework that situates Ennead II.1 (40) within the broader intellectual landscape of Platonism, Aristotelianism, and Stoicism to clarify the text's arguments on motion and substance.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- A comprehensive introduction to the cosmological traditions of the Platonic, Aristotelian, and Stoic schools.
- The original Greek text of Ennead II.1 (40) alongside a new English translation.
- A detailed line-by-line commentary addressing philosophical, philological, and historical nuances.
Scope Limits
- The analysis is strictly confined to the specific arguments presented in Ennead II.1 (40) rather than a general survey of all Plotinian thought.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and students of Neoplatonism frequently cite this work as a precise resource for navigating the technical complexities of Plotinus' cosmological arguments. The text is noted for its academic density and its utility as a foundational reference for those examining the intersection of ancient physics and metaphysics.
Page Count:
288
Publication Date:
2006-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0191569291
ISBN-13:
9780191569296
Philosophy
Cosmology
Neoplatonism
History & Surveys
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