Plato And The Stoics

PLATO AND THE STOICS Plato was central both to the genesis of Stoic theory and to subsequent debates within the Stoa. These essays provide new and detailed explorations of the complex relationship between Plato and the Greek and Roman Stoic traditions, and together they show the directness and independence with which Stoics examined Plato’s writing. What were the philosophical incentives for consulting and then returning to Plato’s dialogues? To what extent did Plato, rather than Xenophon or Antisthenes, control Stoic reconstructions of Socrates’ ethics? What explains the particular focus of Stoic polemic against Plato, and how strong is the evidence for a later reconciliation between Plato and Stoicism? This book will be important for all scholars and advanced students interested in the relationship between a major philosopher and one of the most important philosophical movements. a.g. long is Lecturer in Classics at the University of St Andrews. His other books are Conversation and Self-Sufficiency in Plato (2013) and a translation, with David Sedley, of Plato: Meno and Phaedo (2010) for Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy. PLATO AND THE STOICS edited by A.G. LONG University Printing House, Cambridge cb2 8bs, United Kingdom Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107040595 © Cambridge University Press 2013 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2013 Printed in the United Kingdom by CPI Group Ltd, Croydon CR0 4YY A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library isbn 978-1-107-04059-5 Hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Contents page vi List of contributors List of abbreviations vii 1 Introduction a.g. long 1. Cardinal virtues: a contested Socratic inheritance 11 m a l c o l m sc h o f i e l d 2. The Academy, the Stoics and Cicero on Plato’s Timaeus 29 g . re yd a m s - s ch i l s 3. Chrysippus and Plato on the fragility of the head 59 jenny bryan 4. Plato and the Stoics on limits, parts and wholes 80 p au l s ca de 5. Subtexts, connections and open oppo