Plotinus and the Presocratics

A Philosophical Study of Presocratic Influences in Plotinus' Enneads

Giannis Stamatellos

• Publisher: SUNY Press
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780791470626, 9780791470619
• eBook ISBN: 9780791480311
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Greek Ancient History

The first book-length philosophical study on the Presocratic influences in Plotinus' Enneads.

Filling the void in the current scholarship, Giannis Stamatellos provides the first book-length study of the Presocratic influences in Plotinus' Enneads. Widely regarded as the founder of Neoplatonism, Plotinus (204–270 AD) assimilated eight centuries of Greek thought into his work. In this book Stamatellos focuses on eminent Presocratic thinkers who are significant in Plotinus' thought, including Heraclitus, Parmenides, Empedocles, Anaxagoras, the early Pythagoreans, and the early Atomists. The Presocratic references found in the Enneads are studied in connection with Plotinus' fundamental theories of the One and the unity of being, intellect and the structure of the intelligible world, the nature of eternity and time, the formation of the material world, and the nature of the ensouled body. Stamatellos concludes that, contrary to modern scholarship's dismissal of Presocratic influence in the Enneads, Presocratic philosophy is in fact an important source for Plotinus, which he recognized as valuable in its own right and adapted for key topics in his thought.

Table of contents

• Plotinus and the Presocratics
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• 1. The Origins of Plotinus’ Philosophy
• 2. One and Unity
• 3. Intellect and Being
• 4. Eternity and Time
• 5. Matter and Soul
• 6. Conclusion
• Appendix: Text of Presocratic Fragmentsin Plotinus’ Enneads
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index Fontium
• Index