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Philo of Larissa (c.159–c.83 BC)

DOI
10.4324/9780415249126-A083-1
DOI: 10.4324/9780415249126-A083-1
Version: v1,  Published online: 1998
Retrieved March 29, 2024, from https://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/biographical/philo-of-larissa-c-159-c-83-bc/v-1

Article Summary

Philo, head of the Academy from 110 to 88 bc, likened philosophy to medicine. No doubt he was a conscientious therapist himself; but we know little enough about his methods and practices. For most of his life he seems to have been a happy sceptic, and an unremarkable one. But towards the end of his career he introduced – or was deemed to have introduced – startling innovations into the Academy: in particular, by rejecting or modifying the reigning definition of knowledge he was able to separate himself from the scepticism of his school and to rewrite its history.

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Citing this article:
Barnes, Jonathan. Philo of Larissa (c.159–c.83 BC), 1998, doi:10.4324/9780415249126-A083-1. Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Taylor and Francis, https://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/biographical/philo-of-larissa-c-159-c-83-bc/v-1.
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