Plato's Erotic World by Jill Gordon
Plato's entire fictive world is permeated with philosophical concern for Eros, well beyond the so-called erotic dialogues. Several metaphysical, epistemological and cosmological conversations - Timaeus, Cratylus, Parmenides, Theaetetus and Phaedo - demonstrate that Eros lies at the root of the human condition and that properly guided Eros is the essence of a life well lived. This book presents a holistic vision of Eros, beginning with the presence of Eros at the origin of the cosmos and the human soul, surveying four types of human self-cultivation aimed at good guidance of Eros and concluding with human death as a return to our origins. The book challenges conventional wisdom regarding the 'erotic dialogues' and demonstrates that Plato's world is erotic from beginning to end: the human soul is primordially erotic and the well-cultivated erotic soul can best remember and return to its origins, its lifelong erotic desire.
..The book provides a clear interpretation of the role of eros in these dialogues; additionally it helps to situate the place of homosocial relations and activities such as war and gymnastics in relation to Plato's conception of philosophy. This is a well-written analysis and interpretation that brings together the cultural and philosophical dimensions of eros in Plato's thought.... Recommended... --C. R. McCall, Elmira College, CHOICE
Jill Gordon is the Charles A. Dana Professor of Philosophy at Colby College, Maine. She is the author of Turning Toward Philosophy: Literary Device and Dramatic Structure in Plato's Dialogues (1999).
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781107423572 |
| ISBN 10 | 1107423570 |
| Title | Plato's Erotic World |
| Author | Jill Gordon |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| Year published | 2014-11-27 |
| Number of pages | 254 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |