Read more
Zusatztext ... a lucid! orderly and comprehensive survey ... Erudite and judicious. Klappentext Conventional wisdom suggests that the Platonist philosophers of Late Antiquity! from Plotinus (third century) to the sixth-century schools in Athens and Alexandria! neglected the political dimension of their Platonic heritage in their concentration on an otherworldly life. But Dominic O'Meara presents a revelatory reappraisal of these thinkers! arguing that their otherworldliness involved rather than excluded political ideas! and he reconstructs for the first time a coherent political philosophy of Late Platonism. Zusammenfassung Discusses topics such as: philosopher-kings and queens; political goals and levels of reform: law, constitutions, justice, and penology; the political function of religion; and the limits of political science and action. The author explores various reactions to the political ideas in the works of Christian and Islamic writers. Inhaltsverzeichnis INTRODUCTION 1: The Two Functions of Political Philosophy 2: Neoplatonist Philosophers in Time, Place, and Social Context NEOPLATONIC POLITICAL THEORY RECONSTRUCTED I. THE DIVINIZATION OF SOUL 3: Divinization in Greek Philosophy 4: The Scale of Virtues 5: The Scale of Sciences 6: The Curriculum II. THE DIVINIZATION OF STATE 7: Philosopher-Kings and Queens 8: Political Science: Legislative 9: Political Science: Judicial 10: The Political Function of Religion 11: The Limits of Political Action PLATONOPOLIS IN CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM 12: Eusebius and Augustine 13: Ideals of Church and State in the Sixth Century 14: Platonopolis in Islam: Al-Farabi's Perfect State Conclusion Appendix I: Themistus and Neoplatonic Political Philosophy Appendix II: Notes on a Platonist Rhetor: Sopatros 3 Bibliography Index
