Bøger i Continuum Studies in Ancient Philosophy serien

Aristotle's "Nicomachean Ethics" is devoted to the topic of human happiness. This book examines Aristotle's views on ethics and human nature, an issue central to his thought. It offers a fresh interpretation of Aristotle's account of happiness - one which incorporates Aristotle's views about the biological development of human beings.

Provides an approach to understanding the relationship between Aristotle's political philosophy and the natural law tradition. This book offers an examination of Aristotle's political thought and its relationship to the natural law tradition.

Presents an examination of the early Stoic theory of virtue. This book emphasizes in particular the theological underpinning of Stoic ethics, which Jedan contends has been underestimated in various accounts of Stoic ethics. It argues that the theological motifs in Stoic ethics are in fact pivotal to a complete understanding of Stoic ethics.

This book presents a fresh exploration of happiness through the ideas of the ancient Greek philosophers. It introduces readers to the main currents of Greek ethical thought (Socratic living, Platonism, Aristotelianism, Epicureanism, Scepticism, Stoicism, Cynicism) and takes a close look at characters such as Socrates, Diogenes and Alexander the Great. Yet Happiness and Greek Ethical Thought is much more than just a casual stroll through ancient thinking. It attempts to show how certain common themes in Greek thought are essential for living a happy life in any age. The author maintains that, in many respects, the Greek integrative ideal, contrary to the hedonistic individualism that many pluralistic societies at least implicitly advocate, is a much richer alternative that warrants honest reconsideration today.

Develops an interpretation of the puzzling claim that virtue is knowledge, while also providing a reading of the dialogues as a whole which harmonizes the apparently diverse statements of their various characters. This work examines dialogues from Plato's early and middle periods, emphasizing the role knowledge plays in each.

Develops an account of Socratic method, based on a psychological model of Plato's dramatic depiction of Socrates' character and conduct. Socratic method is seen as a blend of three types of philosophical discourse: refutation, truth-seeking, and persuasion. This book focuses on the persuasive features of the method.

Informed by a hermeneutic perspective, this title presents a survey of the Pre-Socratic thinkers, the contexts from which they emerged and their influence. It calls into question a longstanding mythology that the 'Pre-Socratics had the grandiose audacity to break with all traditional forms of knowledge' (Badiou).

Presenting an account of 'Aristotle's Ethics', this book argues for the importance of the concept of 'techne' in constructing an understanding of Aristotle's moral philosophy. It explores the importance of 'techne' in the Platonic and pre-Platonic intellectual context in which Aristotle was writing.

In a fresh interpretation of Parmenides' philosophical poem "On Nature", this book considers Parmenides as a thinker of mortal singularity, a thinker who is concerned with the fate of irreducibly unique individuals. It also includes a substantial overview and bibliography of contemporary scholarship on Parmenides.

Becoming god was an ideal of many ancient Greek philosophers, as was the life of reason, which they often equated with divinity. This book presents their rival accounts of god, reason, and the best life, arguing that each depended on an attitude toward time. It is suitable for students from across the fields of Philosophy and Classical Studies.

While many schools of thought arose on the subject, Stoicism and Epicureanism dominated the philosophical landscape for nearly 500 years, often locked in bitter rivalry with each other. This work explores the moral philosophy of Epictetus, a former Roman slave and Stoic teacher whose writings are the most compelling defence of ancient Stoicism.

A monograph that explores the ways in which the concept of transmigration represents the fundamental meaning of Pythagorean thought. It explores the ways in which the concept of transmigration is a central motif in Pythagoras' philosophy, representing its fundamental meaning.

Presents a historical and philosophical reading of Parmenides of Elea by exploring the significance and dynamics of the oral tradition of ancient Greece. This book explores the aural and oral components of the poem and its performance in terms of their significance to Parmenides' philosophy.

Examines Plato's contribution to virtue ethics and shows how his dialogues contain interesting insights into philosophical concerns. Through a reading of the "Crito", "Menexenus", "Gorgias", "Republic", "Statesman and Laws", this book shows how Plato proposes several ways in which we can understand the law from the perspective of virtue ethics.

Aristotle maintains that biological organisms are compounds of matter and form and that compounds that have the same form are individuated by their matter. This book addresses a difficulty in Aristotle's metaphysics, namely the possibility that two organisms of the same species might share the same matter.

Pursues a different interpretation of logos in Aristotle. Rather than a reading of rationality that cleaves human beings from nature, this interpretation suggests that, for Aristotle, consistent and dependable rational arguments reveal a dependency upon nature.

Offers an interpretation of the ideas (forms, eide) in Plato's writings. This study is of interest to anyone involved in the study of Ancient Philosophy.

Provides an account of the role of pleasure and desire in Aristotle's ethics. This book seeks to overcome common impasses in the mainstream interpretation of Aristotle's ethical philosophy through the study of Aristotle's account of pleasure in the human, but not merely human, good.

A monograph on Plato's metaphysics, focusing on the theory of the forms, which is the central philosophical concept in Plato's theory. It examines Plato's epistemology and shows that Plato also regards knowledge as the mind being directly acquainted with its object.

This book presents a fresh exploration of happiness through the ideas of the ancient Greek philosophers.

Parmenides of Elea is regarded as an important Presocratic philosopher. He is famous, or notorious, for asserting that change, movement, generation and perishing are illusions arising from our senses, that past and future do not exist, and that the universe is a single, homogeneous, static sphere. This book explores the limits of Parmenides ideas.

The work of Aristotle (384-322 BC) is considered to be one of the great achievements of the ancient world. Although Aristotle left significant material on almost all branches of learning, what has survived is a somewhat disorganized collection of notes and lectures. This book provides an organized account of Aristotle's theory of knowledge.