Plato's Timaeus is one of the most influential – and difficult – texts in the history of philosophy. Here Plato presents his philosophy of nature, which serves as a means for further developing many other areas of his philosophical system, including metaphysics, theology, psychology and even ethics. The interpretation of this text was a hot topic of debate even in antiquity. To take just one example: Plato describes God creating the sensible world – comparable in some respects to the divine creation of the world in the book of Genesis – but many scholars (then as now) believe that this descripting is merely a didactic measure and that Plato genuinely believes that the sensible world has always existed. In this seminar we shall discuss this and many other issues, while carefully reading the text in its entirety. The seminar will be held in English. No knowledge of ancient Greek is required, but the Greek text will occasionally be discussed.
All participants are expected to have read the Timaeus at least once before the start of the semester.
The recommended translation is:
D.J. Zeyl. Plato. Timaeus. Hackett 2000.
For background and analysis the following studies are recommended:
R.D. Archer-Hind. The Timaeus of Plato. Macmillan 1888.
F.M. Cornford. Plato's Cosmology. Routledge 1935.
T.K. Johansen. Plato's Natural Philosophy. A study of the Timaeus-Critias. Cambridge 2004.
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