Ancient Self-Refutation: The Logic and History of the Self-Refutation Argument from Democritus to AugustineA 'self-refutation argument' is any argument which aims at showing that (and how) a certain thesis is self-refuting. This is the first book-length treatment of ancient self-refutation and provides a unified account of what is distinctive in the ancient approach to the self-refutation argument, on the basis of close philological, logical and historical analysis of a variety of sources. It examines the logic, force, and prospects of this original style of argumentation within the context of ancient philosophical debates, dispelling various misconceptions concerning its nature and purpose and elucidating some important differences which exist both within the ancient approach to self-refutation and between that approach, as a whole, and some modern counterparts of it. In providing a comprehensive account of ancient self-refutation, the book advances our understanding of influential and debated texts and arguments from philosophers like Democritus, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, the Stoics, the Academic sceptics, the Pyrrhonists and Augustine. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
TRUTH FALSEHOOD AND SELFREFUTATION II | 11 |
Dissoi Logoi 4 6 | 24 |
Plato | 31 |
Aristotle | 68 |
Sextus Empiricus | 95 |
Augustines turn | 121 |
Interim conclusions | 139 |
Must we philosophise? Aristotles protreptic argument | 187 |
how to prove ones existence | 197 |
operational selfrefutations in Plato | 205 |
SCEPTICISM AND SELFREFUTATION | 249 |
looking backwards | 308 |
Conclusion | 353 |
| 362 | |
| 380 | |
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Ancient Self-Refutation: The Logic and History of the Self-Refutation ... Luca Castagnoli No preview available - 2015 |
Common terms and phrases
absolute self-refutation admit Aenesidemus aÉt aÉt¼ affirmation analysis ancient self-refutation Antiphasis appearance is true Arcesilaus argued Aristotle Aristotle’s assertion Âti Augustine’s believe Burnyeat Carneades chapter Chrysippus concede conclusion Consequentia Mirabilis contradiction contradictory Democritus dilemma Diogenes Dionysodorus discussion Dissoi Logoi dogmatic dogmatist e²nai elenctic elenctic proof Epicurus Euthydemus Everything is false existence of proof express falsehood formulation gein impossible inconsistency interpretation jein jwna kaª l»gon l»gov late-learners logic Lucretius Mackie Mackie's McPherran monism not-p oÉd n m llon one’s operational self-refutation opponent Parmenides passage perª perigraj peritr peritrop philosophical Plato possible pr¼v pragmatic self-refutation premisses proposition Protagoras Pyrrhonian Pyrrhonism Pyrrhonist reconstruction refutation reversal Sceptic Sedley self-bracketing self-refutation argument self-refutation charge sense Sextan Sextus Sextus Empiricus simile Socrates someone Stoic suggest t¼n tän Theaetetus thesis toÓ toÓto truth utterance veritas verum