Since its original publication in France in 1963, Pierre Hadot's lively philosophical portrait of Plotinus remains the preeminent introduction to the man and his thought. Michael Chase's lucid translation—complete with a useful chronology and analytical bibliography—at last makes this book available to the English-speaking world.
Hadot carefully examines Plotinus's views on the self, existence, love, virtue, gentleness, and solitude. He shows that Plotinus, like other philosophers of his day, believed that Plato and Aristotle had already articulated the essential truths; for him, the purpose of practicing philosophy was not to profess new truths but to engage in spiritual exercises so as to live philosophically. Seen in this light, Plotinus's counsel against fixation on the body and all earthly matters stemmed not from disgust or fear, but rather from his awareness of the negative effect that bodily preoccupation and material concern could have on spiritual exercises.
By:
Pierre Hadot Translated by:
Michael Chase Imprint: Chicago University Press Country of Publication: United States Edition: New edition Dimensions:
Height: 22mm,
Width: 14mm,
Spine: 1mm
Weight: 198g ISBN:9780226311944 ISBN 10: 0226311945 Pages: 144 Publication Date:28 April 1998 Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
,
A / AS level
,
Further / Higher Education
Format:Other merchandise Publisher's Status: Active
Translator's Preface Abbreviations Used in References Introduction: Reading Hadot Reading Plotinus by Arnold I. Davidson 1: Portrait 2: Levels of the Self 3: Presence 4: Love 5: Virtues 6: Gentleness 7: Solitude Postface to the Third Edition Chronological Biography Analytical Bibliography References Index of Plotinian Quotations Index
