Mortal and divine in early greek epistemology: a study of Hesiod, Xenophenes and Parmenides

This Book Demonstrates That We Need Not Choose Between Seeing So-called Presocratic Thinkers As Rational Philosophers Or As Religious Sages. In Particular, It Rethinks Fundamentally The Emergence Of Systematic Epistemology And Reflection On Speculative Inquiry In Hesiod, Xenophanes And Parmenides. Shaul Tor Argues That Different Forms Of Reasoning, And Different Models Of Divine Disclosure, Play Equally Integral, Harmonious And Mutually Illuminating Roles In Early Greek Epistemology. Throughout, The Book Relates These Thinkers To Their Religious, Literary And Historical Surroundings. It Is Thus Also, And Inseparably, A Study Of Poetic Inspiration, Divination, Mystery Initiation, Metempsychosis And Other Early Greek Attitudes To The Relations And Interactions Between Mortal And Divine. The Engagements Of Early Philosophers With Such Religious Attitudes Present Us With Complex Combinations Of Criticisms And Creative Appropriations. Indeed, The Early Milestones Of Philosophical Epistemology Studied Here Themselves Reflect An Essentially Theological Enterprise And, As Such, One Aspect Of Greek Religion. Machine Generated Contents Note: 1. Rationality And Irrationality, Philosophy And Religion -- 1.1. Rationality And Irrationality -- 1.2. Some Promising Candidates? Milesians, Hippocratics And Myth-critics -- 1.3. Philosophy And Religion -- 1.4. Rationality And Irrationality: Religious Belief -- 1.5. Hesiod And Philosophy -- 2. Hesiodic Epistemology -- 2.1. Semantic Overview: Pseudea, Alethea, Etyma, Homoia -- 2.2. The Muses' Address And Divine Dispensation In Hesiod -- 2.3. The Theogony: Conclusions -- 2.4. Epistemological Optimism In The Works And Days And Final Remarks -- 3. Xenophanes On Divine Disclosure And Mortal Inquiry -- 3.1. Divination -- 3.2. Against A Notion Of Disclosure -- 3.3. Setting The Limits -- 3.4. Divine Disclosure And Mortal Inquiry -- 3.5. A52 Revisited: A Clean Sweep? -- Introduction To The Chapters On Parmenides -- 4. Why Did Parmenides Write Doxa? -- 4.1. Approaches To The Aetiological Question -- 4.2. Parmenides' Theory Of Human Cognition -- 4.3. Cognition, Krisis, Sense-perception -- 4.4. Ineluctability And Volition In The Mortal's Relation To Doxa -- 4.5. Conclusions: Why Did Parmenides Write Doxa? -- 5. How Could Parmenides Have Written Aletheia? -- 5.1. Recap And Introduction: Some Resolutions Of The Paradoxical Implications Of Parmenides' Theory Of Human Cognition -- 5.2. Parmenides On The Soul: Hot Metempsychosis And The Physiology Of Divinisation -- 5.3. The Proem In Its Time And Place -- 5.4. Conclusions: How Could Parmenides Have Written Aletheia? -- 5.5. The Ontological Question; Being, Intelligence And Intelligibility In Aletheia -- 6. Retrospect And Prospect -- 6.1. Interrelations -- 6.2. The Daimon And Muse Of Empedocles -- 6.3. Final Remarks: Reason And Revelation, Philosophy And Religion Again. Shaul Tor, King's College London. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 360-386) And Index. Cover 1 Half-title page 3 Series page 4 Title page 5 Copyright page 6 Dedication 7 Contents 9 Preface and Acknowledgements 11 List of Abbreviations 14 Introduction 17 1 Rationality and Irrationality, Philosophy and Religion 26 1.1 Rationality and Irrationality 26 1.2 Some Promising Candidates? Milesians, Hippocratics and Myth-Critics 35 1.3 Philosophy and Religion 52 1.4 Rationality and Irrationality: Religious Belief 64 1.5 Hesiod and Philosophy 68 2 Hesiodic Epistemology 77 2.1 Semantic Overview: pseudea, alêthea, etyma, homoia 81 2.2 The Muses’ Address and Divine Dispensation in Hesiod 88 2.3 The Theogony: Conclusions 106 2.4 Epistemological Optimism in the Works and Days and Final Remarks 111 3 Xenophanes on Divine Disclosure and Mortal Inquiry 120 3.1 Divination 124 3.2 Against a Notion of Disclosure 132 3.3 Setting the Limits 144 3.4 Divine Disclosure and Mortal Inquiry 149 3.5 A52 Revisited: A Clean Sweep? 160 Introduction to the Chapters on Parmenides 171 4 Why Did Parmenides Write Doxa? 179 4.1 Approaches to the Aetiological Question 179 4.2 Parmenides’ Theory of Human Cognition 185 4.3 Cognition, krisis, Sense-Perception 199 4.4 Ineluctability and Volition in the Mortal’s Relation to Doxa 212 4.5 Conclusions: Why Did Parmenides Write Doxa? 231 5 How Could Parmenides Have Written Alêtheia? 238 5.1 Recap and Introduction: Some Resolutions of the Paradoxical Implications of Parmenides’ Theory of Human Cognition 238 5.2 Parmenides on the Soul: Hot Metempsychosis and the Physiology of Divinisation 243 5.3 The Proem in Its Time and Place 266 5.4 Conclusions: How Could Parmenides Have Written Alêtheia? 293 5.5 The Ontological Question; Being, Intelligence and Intelligibility in Alêtheia 301 6 Retrospect and Prospect 325 6.1 Interrelations 325 6.2 The daimôn and Muse of Empedocles 334 6.3 Final Remarks: Reason and Revelation, Philosophy and Religion Again 355 Appendix: The Trajectory of the kouros’ Journey and Eschatological Topography in Parmenides: Some Inconclusive Remarks 363 Bibliography 376 Index locorum 403 General Index 415 This book explores how different forms of reasoning and of divine disclosure played equally integral and harmonious roles in the emergence of systematic epistemology in archaic Greece, and particularly in Hesiod, Xenophanes and Parmenides. Provides a fresh perspective on long-standing questions of rationality and irrationality, philosophy and religion.