The Embodied Soul in Plato's Later ThoughtIn this book, Chad Jorgenson challenges the view that for Plato the good life is one of pure intellection, arguing that his last writings increasingly insist on the capacity of reason to impose measure on our emotions and pleasures. Starting from an account of the ontological, epistemological, and physiological foundations of the tripartition of the soul, he traces the increasing sophistication of Plato's thinking about the nature of pleasure and pain and his developing interest in sciences bearing on physical reality. These theoretical shifts represent a movement away from a conception of human happiness as a purification or flight of the soul from the sensible to the intelligible, as in the Phaedo, towards a focus on the harmony of the individual as a psychosomatic whole under the hegemonic power of reason. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
Chapter 1 Thymos | 6 |
Chapter 2 Appetitive Soul | 39 |
Chapter 3 Rational Soul | 60 |
Chapter 4 Measuring Pleasure | 88 |
Chapter 5 Eudaimonia | 118 |
Chapter 6 The Political Sphere | 141 |
Chapter 7 Eschatology | 164 |
Conclusion | 201 |
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Common terms and phrases
Adeimantus afterlife appetitive soul argues argument become beliefs bodily pleasure body Callicles Callipolis Cephalus characterized claim conception condition constitution contrast cosmos critique death Delcomminette desire dialectical discussion distinction divine episteme eschatological myths ethical eudaimonia existence Frede function Glaucon godlike gods Gorg Gorgias Hades hedonism hedonist Homeric honor human identify immortality individual insofar intellectual intelligible justice knowledge late dialogues live lower sciences means medicine mortal motions Myth of Er nature nonetheless object ontological ousia particular passage Phaed Phaedo Phaedrus Phil Philebus Philosopher Kings phronesis physical Plato pleasure and pain pleasures of philosophy Plotinus political possess possible principle Prot Protagoras Protarchos provides punishment pure pleasures pure thought rational soul reality reason reference reincarnation Republic role rule Sedley seems sensations sense perception sensible Socrates structure suggests Symp Tartarus Theaetetus thumotic thymos Timaeus timocratic tion tripartite true ultimately virtue whole World Soul