The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon

The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon PDF Author: Vojt?ch Hladký
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317021487
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 402

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Book Description
George Gemistos Plethon (c. 1360-1454) was a remarkable and influential thinker, active at the time of transition between the Byzantine Middle Ages and the Italian Renaissance. His works cover literary, historical, scientific, but most notably philosophical issues. Plethon is arguably the most important of the Byzantine Platonists and the earliest representative of Platonism in the Renaissance, the movement which generally exercised a huge influence on the development of early modern thought. Thus his treatise on the differences between Plato and Aristotle triggered the Plato-Aristotle controversy of the 15th century, and his ideas impacted on Italian Renaissance thinkers such as Ficino. This book provides a new study of Gemistos’ philosophy. The first part is dedicated to the discussion of his 'public philosophy'. As an important public figure, Gemistos wrote several public speeches concerning the political situation in the Peloponnese as well as funeral orations on deceased members of the ruling Palaiologos family. They contain remarkable Platonic ideas, adjusted to the contemporary late Byzantine situation. In the second, most extensive, part of the book the Platonism of Plethon is presented in a systematic way. It is identical with the so-called philosophia perennis, that is, the rational view of the world common to various places and ages. Throughout Plethon’s writings, it is remarkably coherent in its framework, possesses quite original features, and displays the influence of ancient Middle and Neo-Platonic discussions. Plethon thus turns out to be not just a commentator on an ancient tradition, but an original Platonic thinker in his own right. In the third part the notorious question of the paganism of Gemistos is reconsidered. He is usually taken for a Platonizing polytheist who gathered around himself a kind of heterodox circle. The whole issue is examined in depth again and all the major evidence discussed, with the result that Gemistos seems rat

The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon

The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon PDF Author: Vojt?ch Hladký
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317021487
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 402

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Book Description
George Gemistos Plethon (c. 1360-1454) was a remarkable and influential thinker, active at the time of transition between the Byzantine Middle Ages and the Italian Renaissance. His works cover literary, historical, scientific, but most notably philosophical issues. Plethon is arguably the most important of the Byzantine Platonists and the earliest representative of Platonism in the Renaissance, the movement which generally exercised a huge influence on the development of early modern thought. Thus his treatise on the differences between Plato and Aristotle triggered the Plato-Aristotle controversy of the 15th century, and his ideas impacted on Italian Renaissance thinkers such as Ficino. This book provides a new study of Gemistos’ philosophy. The first part is dedicated to the discussion of his 'public philosophy'. As an important public figure, Gemistos wrote several public speeches concerning the political situation in the Peloponnese as well as funeral orations on deceased members of the ruling Palaiologos family. They contain remarkable Platonic ideas, adjusted to the contemporary late Byzantine situation. In the second, most extensive, part of the book the Platonism of Plethon is presented in a systematic way. It is identical with the so-called philosophia perennis, that is, the rational view of the world common to various places and ages. Throughout Plethon’s writings, it is remarkably coherent in its framework, possesses quite original features, and displays the influence of ancient Middle and Neo-Platonic discussions. Plethon thus turns out to be not just a commentator on an ancient tradition, but an original Platonic thinker in his own right. In the third part the notorious question of the paganism of Gemistos is reconsidered. He is usually taken for a Platonizing polytheist who gathered around himself a kind of heterodox circle. The whole issue is examined in depth again and all the major evidence discussed, with the result that Gemistos seems rat

Radical Platonism in Byzantium

Radical Platonism in Byzantium PDF Author: Niketas Siniossoglou
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107013038
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 471

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Book Description
A groundbreaking approach to late Byzantine intellectual history and the philosophy of visionary reformer Gemistos Plethon.

George Gemistos Plethon

George Gemistos Plethon PDF Author: Christopher Montague Woodhouse
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 424

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Book Description
This study of the Byzantine philosopher George Gemistos Plethon includes the first complete translation of his treatise, On the Differences of Aristotle from Plato, and summarizes all his other works. Woodhouse emphasizes Plethon's controversy with George Scholarios on the respective merits of Plato and Aristotle and his important impact on the Italian humanists during the Council of Union at Ferrara and Florence in 1438-9. Though Plethon's ambition to create a new religion based on Neoplatonism was never realized, his ideas had a significant influence on the western Renaissance.

The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon

The Philosophy of Gemistos Plethon PDF Author: Vojtěch Hladký
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781472402929
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
George Gemistos Plethon (c. 1360-1454) was a remarkable and influential thinker, active at the time of transition between the Byzantine Middle Ages and the Italian Renaissance. His works cover literary, historical, scientific, but most notably philosophical issues. Plethon is arguably the most important of the Byzantine Platonists and the earliest representative of Platonism in the Renaissance, the movement which generally exercised a huge influence on the development of early modern thought. Thus his treatise on the differences between Plato and Aristotle triggered the Plato-Aristotle controversy of the 15th century, and his ideas impacted on Italian Renaissance thinkers such as Ficino. This book provides a new study of Gemistos philosophy. The first part is dedicated to the discussion of his 'public philosophy'. As an important public figure, Gemistos wrote several public speeches concerning the political situation in the Peloponnese as well as funeral orations on deceased members of the ruling Palaiologos family. They contain remarkable Platonic ideas, adjusted to the contemporary late Byzantine situation. In the second, most extensive, part of the book the Platonism of Plethon is presented in a systematic way. It is identical with the so-called philosophia perennis, that is, the rational view of the world common to various places and ages. Throughout Plethon s writings, it is remarkably coherent in its framework, possesses quite original features, and displays the influence of ancient Middle and Neo-Platonic discussions. Plethon thus turns out to be not just a commentator on an ancient tradition, but an original Platonic thinker in his own right. In the third part the notorious question of the paganism of Gemistos is reconsidered. He is usually taken for a Platonizing polytheist who gathered around himself a kind of heterodox circle. The whole issue is examined in depth again and all the major evidence discussed, with the result that Gemistos seems rat"

The Secret Texts of Hellenic Polytheism

The Secret Texts of Hellenic Polytheism PDF Author: John Opsopaus
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN: 0738771066
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
A Complete Translation of the Surviving Contents of Plethon's Renaissance-Era Book of Laws George Gemistos (c. 1355–1452), who called himself "Plethon," helped trigger the Renaissance by reawakening an interest in Platonism, but his secret book on its Neopagan theology was burned after his death. Only sixteen chapters of Plethon's Book of Laws escaped the flames and, for the first time ever, they have been translated into English in their entirety. Through translations and commentary by John Opsopaus, PhD, you can immerse yourself in Plethon's complete system of theology and religious practice focused on the Hellenic pantheon and deeply rooted in ancient Greek Paganism. This impressive guide features rituals, prayers, invocations, and hymns for daily and holiday use along with Plethon's complete sacred calendar. Featuring instructions from the Book of Laws on conducting ceremonies, rites, and more, The Secret Texts of Hellenic Polytheism enhances your spiritual practice and understanding of Neoplatonic philosophy.

Philosophy of Religion in the Renaissance

Philosophy of Religion in the Renaissance PDF Author: Mr Paul Richard Blum
Publisher: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN: 1409480712
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 222

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Book Description
The Philosophy of Religion is one result of the Early Modern Reformation movements, as competing theologies purported truth claims which were equal in strength and different in contents. Renaissance thought, from Humanism through philosophy of nature, contributed to the origin of the modern concepts of God. This book explores the continuity of philosophy of religion from late medieval thinkers through humanists to late Renaissance philosophers, explaining the growth of the tensions between the philosophical and theological views. Covering the work of Renaissance authors, including Lull, Salutati, Raimundus Sabundus, Plethon, Cusanus, Valla, Ficino, Pico, Bruno, Suárez, and Campanella, this book offers an important understanding of the current philosophy/religion and faith/reason debates and fills the gap between medieval and early modern philosophy and theology.

Byzantine Philosophy and Its Ancient Sources

Byzantine Philosophy and Its Ancient Sources PDF Author: Katerina Ierodiakonou
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN: 0199269718
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description
Byzantine philosophy is an almost unexplored field. Being regarded either as mere scholars or as primarily religious thinkers, Byzantine philosophers, for the most part, have not been studied on their own philosophical merit, and their works have hardly been scrutinized as works of philosophy.Thus, although distinguished scholars in the past have tried to reconstruct the intellectual life of the Byzantine period, there is no question that we still lack even the beginnings of a systematic understanding of the philosophy of the Byzantines.Byzantine Philosophy and its Ancient Sources is conceived as a concerted attempt in this direction. It examines the attitude the Byzantines took towards the ancient philosophical tradition and the specific ancient sources which they relied upon to form their theories. But did the Byzantines merelycopy ancient philosophers or interpret them the way they already had been interpreted in late antiquity? Does Byzantine philosophy as a whole lack a distinctive character which differentiates it from the previous periods in the history of philosophy?Eleven scholars, representing different disciplines from philosophy and history to classics and medieval studies, approach these questions by thoroughly investigating particular topics which give us some insight as to the directions in which we should look for possible answers. These topics range,in modern terms, from philosophy of language, theory of knowledge, and logic, to political philosophy, ethics, natural philosophy, and metaphysics. The philosophers whose works our contributors study belong to all periods from the beginnings of Byzantine culture in the fourth century to the demiseof the Byzantine Empire in the fifteenth century.

Interpreting Proclus

Interpreting Proclus PDF Author: Stephen Gersh
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521198496
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 421

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Book Description
Stephen Gersch charts the influence of the late Greek philosopher Proclus from his own lifetime down to the Renaissance (500-1600 CE).

Plato and Theodoret

Plato and Theodoret PDF Author: Niketas Siniossoglou
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521880734
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 201

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Book Description
A summary of the late antique Hellenic-Christian conflict regarding the compatability of Platonism and Christianity.

Hermes in the Academy

Hermes in the Academy PDF Author: Wouter J. Hanegraaff
Publisher: Amsterdam University Press
ISBN: 9056295721
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 165

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Book Description
"Hermes in the Academy" commemorates the tenth anniversary of the Center for History of Hermetic Philosophy and related Currents (GHF) at the University of Amsterdam. The center devotes itself to the study of Western esotericism, which includes topics such as Hermetic philosophy, Christian kabbalah and occultism. This volume shows how, over the past ten years, the GHF has developed into the leading international center for research and teaching in this domain.