
Plato's Unwritten Doctrines
Carl Sean O'Brien(Author)
Cambridge University Press
Published on 16. October 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
80 pages
978-1-009-50620-5 (ISBN)
Description
This Element examines the arguments advanced by the Tuebingen-Milan School in support of the claim that Plato had Unwritten Doctrines (agrapha dogmata), revealed in Aristotle and other testimonia and indicated - but not explicitly treated - in some of his dialogues. The Unwritten Doctrines are primarily concerned with Plato's Theory of Principles of (the One and the Indefinite Dyad) which accounts for unity and multiplicity respectively. This Element considers two opposing approaches to reading Plato: that of sola scriptura (through the writings alone) or via the tradition. While it may appear counter-intuitive to privilege other sources over Plato's own works, his criticism of writing in the Phaedrus and the 'deliberate gaps', where he teases the reader with the possibility of a fuller response than that provided on the current occasion, firmly indicate the existence of doctrines not committed to his dialogues.
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Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 5 mm
Weight
131 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-009-50620-5 (9781009506205)
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Carl Sean O'Brien
Plato's Unwritten Doctrines
Book
10/2025
Cambridge University Press
€75.10
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Content
1. What are the unwritten doctrines?; 2. Plato's criticism of writing; 3. Plato's theory of principles and the testimonia; 4. Consequences of the Tuebingen school approach for later Platonism; 5. Critics of the unwritten doctrines; 6. Conclusion; List of abbreviations; References.