Synopses & Reviews
This anthology presents the early sages of Western philosophy and science who paved the way for Plato and Aristotle and their successors. Democritus's atomic theory of matter, Zeno's dazzling "proofs" that motion is impossible, Pythagorean insights into mathematics, Heraclitus's haunting and enigmatic epigrams-all form part of a revolution in human thought that relied on reasoning, forged the first scientific vocabulary, and laid the foundations of Western philosophy. Jonathan Barnes has painstakingly brought together the surviving Presocratic fragments in their original contexts, utilizing the latest research and a newly discovered major papyrus of Empedocles.
This anthology presents the early sages of Western philosophy and science who paved the way for Plato and Aristotle and their successors. Democritus's atomic theory of matter, Zeno's dazzling "proofs" that motion is impossible, Pythagorean insights into mathematics, Heraclitus's haunting and enigmatic epigrams-all form part of a revolution in human thought that relied on reasoning, forged the first scientific vocabulary, and laid the foundations of Western philosophy. Jonathan Barnes has painstakingly brought together the surviving Presocratic fragments in their original contexts, utilizing the latest research and a newly discovered major papyrus of Empedocles.
Synopsis
The works collected in this volume form the true foundation of Western philosophy the base upon which Plato and Aristotle and their successors would eventually build. Yet the importance of the Pre-Socratics thinkers lies less in their influence great though that was than in their astonishing intellectual ambition and imaginative reach. Zeno's dizzying 'proofs' that motion is impossible; the extraordinary atomic theories of Democritus; the haunting and enigmatic epigrams of Heraclitus; and the maxims of Alcmaeon: fragmentary as they often are, the thoughts of these philosophers seem strikingly modern in their concern to forge a truly scientific vocabulary and way of reasoning.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust theseries to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-datetranslations by award-winning translators."
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. 261-268) and indexes.
About the Author
Jonathan Barnes is professor of ancient philosophy at the University of Geneva. He has also taught at the University of Chicago, the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, the University of Massachusetts, and the University of Texas. His publications include The Cambridge Companion to Aristotle and The Presocratic Philosophers.
Table of Contents
Early Greek Philosophy Map
Preface to the Second Edition
Introduction
Synopsis
Note to the Reader
Part I
1. Precursors
2. Thales
3. Anaximander
4. Anaximenes
5. Pythagoras
6. Alcmaeon
7. Xenophanes
8. Heraclitus
Part II
9. Parmenides
10. Melissus
11. Zeno
Part III
12. Empedocles
13. Fifth-century Pythagoreanism
14. Hippasus
15. Philolaus
16. Ion of Chios
17. Hippo
18. Anaxagoras
19. Archelaus
20. Leucippus
21. Democritus
22. Diogenes of Apollonia
Appendix: The Sources
Further Reading
Subject Index
Index of Quoted Texts
Index to Diels-Kranz B-Texts