Cosmology and Politics in Ancient Greek Thought

by Eugene Afonasin^1
1 Institute of Philosophy and Law SB RAS (Novosibirsk, Russia)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29202/phil-cosm/21/16
Received: March 28, 2018; accepted: April 23, 2018 / Published: August 30, 2018

The political dimension of Plato’s cosmological thought has been extensively explored as such and in its relation with Greek culture, but there remains a question of methodology. Which context will be more appropriate for Plato’s works? Shall we focus on their metaphysical features (most conspicuous in Aristotle and Plato’s immediate heirs in the Old Academy), or, alternatively, place them in a dialectical context (as in the case of the Skeptical Academy of Arcesilaus and Carneades)? Or, maybe, we have to plunge them in the depth of Greek cultural life and compare with technological advances of Greek civilization? This latter approach, having done properly, would be a real innovation, capable of, as it appears, presenting a fresh look at the familiar matters. This is exactly the task of a new project launched by Dominic O’Meara in the book under review. Plato’s cosmological and political ideas are successfully discussed here in their relation with ancient crafts, arts, and various peculiarities of social life of the Greek polis.

Keywords: philosophical cosmology, creationism, myth, religious festivals, western legal tradition

Afonasina, Anna (2018) Cosmology and Politics in Plato’s Later Works: Reflections on the book: O’Meara, D. Cosmology and politics in Plato’s later works. Cambridge, 2017. Schole, 12.2, 721–734.

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O’Meara, Dominic (2017) Cosmology and Politics in Plato’s Later Works. Cambridge University Press.

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O’Meara, Dominic (2003) Platonopolis: Political Philosophy in Late Antiquity. Oxford.

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Afonasin, Eugene (2018) Cosmology and Politics in Ancient Greek Thought. Philosophy and Cosmology, Volume 21, 153-158. https://doi.org/10.29202/phil-cosm/21/16