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Placita

By Aetius
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Placita by Aetius is a philosophical work that encapsulates ancient Greek thought through a compilation of various doctrines and beliefs of philosophers. This comprehensive survey provides a panoramic view of the differing ideas on natural philosophy, metaphysics, ethics, and psychology held by philosophers of antiquity, presenting a tapestry of intellectual history.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy exploring the ideas of early Greek philosophy, as it captures the diverse perspectives of ancient philosophers on various topics. Ideal for those intrigued by the foundational thoughts and theories that have shaped philosophical inquiry over the centuries.

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Aëtius’ Placita (ca. AD 100) is a reconstructed compendium summarizing the principal doctrines and opinions of the Greek philosophers, which served as a multi-purpose manual both for study and for personal enlightenment and which remains a valuable source for our knowledge of Presocratic and Hellenistic philosophy.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

An ancient compendium of ancient philosophy.

Placita (Tenets), generally attributed to an author named Aëtius and dating from the late first or early second century AD, was a compendium setting out in summary fashion the principal doctrines and opinions of philosophers and philosophical schools in response to questions and topics in the domain of natural philosophy. Now lost, Placita can be largely reconstructed from the work of three authors working in the period from the second to the fifth century (Pseudo-Plutarch, Stobaeus, and Theodoret) who quote from it extensively.

Placita is organized into five books: First Principles; Cosmology; Meteorology and the Earth; Psychology; and Physiology. Each chapter contains a list of short opinions or tenets, which are ascribed to an individual philosopher and/or school and usually arranged in sections that stress the variety and contrast of the teachings concerned.

Designed as a multi-purpose resource, Placita long served as a manual of neatly packaged doxographic material on a wide variety of topics, to be used for study, as an aide-mémoire, for displays of erudition, for persuasion in rhetorical or apologetic contexts, and for personal enlightenment, and it remains a valuable source for our knowledge of Presocratic and Hellenistic philosophy.

This edition of Aëtius' Placita offers a fresh translation, ample annotation, and a text fully informed by the latest scholarship.

Series: Loeb Classical Library

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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

An excellent edition of an interesting and curious work.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780674997592

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 12 December 2023

Country: United States

Imprint: Harvard University Press

Contributors:

  • Edited and translated by Jaap Mansfeld
  • Edited and translated by David Runia

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 108.0mm

Height: 162.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 624

About the Author

Jaap Mansfeld is Professor Emeritus of the History of Ancient and Patristic Philosophy, Utrecht University. David T. Runia is Professorial Fellow, University of Melbourne.

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