The Enneads of Plotinus, Volume 1
A Commentary
Published on 12. October 2014
Book
Hardback
728 pages
978-0-691-15421-3 (ISBN)
Description
This is the first volume of a groundbreaking commentary on one of the most important works of ancient philosophy, the Enneads of Plotinus--a text that formed the basis of Neoplatonism and had a deep influence on early Christian thought and medieval and Renaissance philosophy. This volume covers the first three of the six Enneads, as well as Porphyry's Life of Plotinus, a document in which Plotinus's student--the collector and arranger of the Enneads--introduces the philosopher and his work. A landmark contribution to modern Plotinus scholarship, Paul Kalligas's commentary is the most detailed and extensive ever written for the whole of the Enneads. For each of the treatises in the first three Enneads, Kalligas provides a brief introduction that presents the philosophical background against which Plotinus's contribution can be assessed; a synopsis giving the main lines and the articulation of the argument; and a running commentary placing Plotinus's thought in its intellectual context and making evident the systematic association of its various parts with each other.
Reviews / Votes
"Kalligas's commentaries are a major event in the study of Plotinus. Kalligas is sensitive to the demands of exegesis, philology, and history, but also to the more subtle and challenging demands of philosophical analysis. His commentary displays extraordinary mastery of the full text of the Enneads and a sophisticated appreciation of the relevant contexts-from Plato, Aristotle, and Stoicism to skepticism, Middle Platonism, and the entire tradition of Neoplatonism."-Alexander P. D. Mourelatos, University of Texas, AustinMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Product notice
Trade binding
Illustrations
1 Maps
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 152 mm
Weight
1139 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-15421-3 (9780691154213)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
07/2015
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€199.95
Available for download
Person
Paul Kalligas is associate professor of ancient philosophy at the University of Athens. Since 1991, he has published six volumes of a new edition of Plotinus's works, with modern Greek translations, ancient Greek texts, and commentary. Kalligas is the editor in chief of the Greek philosophical journal Deucalion.
Content
Preface to the English Edition vii Translator's Preface xvii Main Abbreviations xix Porphyry: On the Life of Plotinus and the Order of His Books Introduction The Author, His Times, and His Work 3 The Composition and Character of the VP 4 The Organization and Sources of the VP 5 The System of Dating 7 Chronological Table 9 Map 16 Other Testimonies concerning the Life of Plotinus 18 Commentary 19 Appendixes A. Iulius Firmicus Maternus, Mathesis I 7, 13-22 93 B. The Figural Representations of Plotinus 94 C. Porphyry in Sicily and His Literary Activity There 95 First Ennead I 1 [53]. What Is the Living Being, and What Is Man? 101 I 2 [19]. On Virtues 131 I 3 [20]. On Dialectic 148 I 4 [46]. On Well-Being 161 I 5 [36]. On Whether Well-Being Increases with Time 187 I 6 [1]. On Beauty 192 I 7 [54]. On the Primal Good and the Other Goods 219 I 8 [51]. On What Are and Whence Come Evils 223 I 9 [16]. On Going out of the Body 241 Second Ennead II 1 [40]. On Heaven 249 II 2 [14]. On the Movement of Heaven 267 II 3 [52]. On Whether the Stars Are Causes 277 II 4 [12]. On Matter 304 II 5 [25]. On What Exists Potentially and What Actually 327 II 6 [17]. On Substance, or on Quality 336 II 7 [37]. On Complete Transfusion 346 II 8 [35]. On Sight, or How Distant Objects Appear Small 353 II 9 [33]. Against the Gnostics 363 Third Ennead III 1 [3]. On Destiny 413 III 2-3 [47-48]. On Providence, Books I-II 440 III 4 [15]. On Our Allotted Guardian Spirit 481 III 5 [50]. On Love 501 III 6 [26]. On the Impassibility of Things without Body 534 III 7 [45]. On Eternity and Time 577 III 8 [30]. On Nature and Contemplation and the One 620 III 9 [13]. Various Considerations 646 List of Variant Readings 657 Key to the Chronological Order of Plotinus' Treatises 669 Suggested Further Readings on Individual Treatises 671 Figures 679 Index of Passages Cited 681