Platonism, Early and Middle

By Dillon, John

Platonism is the body of doctrine developed in the school founded by Plato, both before and (especially) after his death in 347 bc. The first phase, usually ...

Antiochus (c.130–68 BC)

By Barnes, Jonathan

For most of his career the Greek philosopher Antiochus of Ascalon, a pupil of Philo of Larissa, was an orthodox ‘sceptical’ Academic. He then changed his philosophy: some ...

Theophrastus (c.372–c.287 BC)

By Huby, Pamela M.

Theophrastus, the pupil and successor of Aristotle, shared all the latter’s interests, and produced a large number of works on the same topics. Some, like the extant botanical ...

Plotinus (AD 204/5–70)

By Emilsson, Eyjólfur Kjalar

Plotinus was the founder of Neoplatonism, the dominant philosophical movement of the Graeco-Roman world in late antiquity, and the most significant thinker of the movement. He is sometimes ...

Speusippus (c.410–339 BC)

By Dillon, John

The Greek philosopher Speusippus was the second head of the Platonic Academy. Succeeding his uncle Plato on the latter’s death, he developed his thought in interesting directions. He ...

Eriugena, Johannes Scottus (c.800–c.877)

By Moran, Dermot

Johannes Scottus Eriugena is the most important philosopher writing in Latin between Boethius and Anselm. A Christian Neoplatonist, he developed a unique synthesis between the Neoplatonic traditions of ...

Plato (427–347 BC)

By Schofield, Malcolm

Plato was an Athenian Greek of aristocratic family, active as a philosopher in the first half of the fourth century bc. He was a devoted follower of ...

Plato (427–347 BC)

Plato was an Athenian Greek of aristocratic family, active as a philosopher in the first half of the fourth century bc. He was a devoted follower of ...

Plutarch of Chaeronea (c. AD 45–c.120)

By Dillon, John

The Greek biographer and philosopher Plutarch of Chaeronea is the greatest Greek literary figure of the first century ad. He is properly called Plutarch of Chaeronea, to ...

Xenocrates (396–314 BC)

By Dillon, John

The Greek philosopher Xenocrates was the third head of the Platonic Academy. Like his predecessor Speusippus, he further developed Plato’s philosophy, but along more orthodox lines. Indeed, Xenocrates ...

Themistius (c. AD 317–c. AD 388)

By Bussanich, John

As a pagan philosopher and adviser to Christian Roman emperors, Themistius aimed at making the celebrated writings of his heroes Plato and Aristotle more accessible through explanatory paraphrase. ...

Neo-Pythagoreanism

By Schibli, Hermann S.

Neo-Pythagoreanism is a term used by modern scholars to refer to the revival of Pythagorean philosophy and way of life in the first century bc. It coincides ...

Zeno of Citium (334–262 BC)

By Sedley, David

Zeno of Citium, a Greek philosopher from Cyprus, founded the Stoic school in Athens c.300 bc. His background and training lay in various branches of the ...

Ancient philosophy

By Sedley, David

The philosophy of the Greco-Roman world from the sixth century bc to the sixth century ad laid the foundations for all subsequent Western philosophy. Its greatest ...

Ariston of Chios (early to mid 3rd century BC)

By Sedley, David

The Greek philosopher Ariston (alternatively Aristo), from the Aegean island of Chios, was an exceptionally independent-minded member of the early Stoic school. A pupil of the founder Zeno ...

Encyclopedists, medieval

By Barnish, Samuel

The modern encyclopedic genre was unknown in the classical world. In the grammar-based culture of late antiquity, learned compendia, by both pagan and Christian writers, were organized around ...

Forms, Platonic

By Brennan, Tad

Plato thought that in addition to the changeable, extended bodies we perceive around us, there are also unchangeable, extensionless entities, not perceptible by the senses, that structure the ...

Foucher, Simon (1644–96)

By Nadler, Steven

Simon Foucher, Canon of Dijon, was a sceptical thinker, active in intellectual circles in Paris. His main philosophical project was the revival of Academic scepticism, and he emerged ...

Logos

By Stead, Christopher

The noun logos derives from the Greek verb legein, meaning ‘to say’ something significant. Logos developed a wide variety of senses, including ‘description’, ‘theory’ (sometimes ...

Origen (c.185–c.254)

By Hause, Jeffrey

An ascetic Christian, prodigious scholar and dedicated teacher, Origen devoted his life to exploring God’s revelation. Much of his work takes the form of commentaries on Scripture. He ...

Academy

By Barnes, Jonathan

The Academy was a public gymnasium in northwest Athens. Plato taught there, and the Academy remained the centre of Platonic philosophizing until the first century bc. Hence ...

Alcinous (c. 2nd century AD)

By Dillon, John

Long misidentified with the Middle Platonist philosopher Albinus, Alcinous is author of a ‘handbook of Platonism’, which gives a good survey of Platonist doctrine as it was understood ...

Calcidius (c. 4th century AD)

By Dillon, John

The Platonist Calcidius (sometimes less correctly spelt Chalcidius) was the author of a Latin work containing a partial translation of, and partial commentary on, Plato’s Timaeus. Although of ...

Celsus (late 2nd century AD)

By Dillon, John

The Greek philosopher Celsus of Alexandria was a Middle Platonist, known only for his anti-Christian work The True Account. The work is lost, but we have Origen’s reply ...

Metaphysics

By Craig, Edward

Metaphysics is a broad area of philosophy marked out by two types of inquiry. The first aims to be the most general investigation possible into the nature of ...