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INTRODUCTION

Source: Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies. Supplement, No. 78, ANCIENT
APPROACHES TO PLATO'S "TIMAEUS" (2003), pp. 1-3
Published by: Wiley
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INTRODUCTION

The Timaeus is distinctive among Plato's works because of its subject-m


part of it is devoted to an exposition in the form of a monologue, in which
to Athens from Italy experienced in both politics and philosophy (20a), g
how rational design, attributed to a divine craftsman, and necessity intera
of the physical world and of the human body. Concern with divine agency in
alien to Plato's other writings, including the so-called 'critical dialogues' (
and Philebus 30ad, as well as Laws 10), or indeed to the historical Socrat
believe Xenophon ( Memorabilia 1.4 and 4.3), but nowhere else has Plato
detailed account. Consequently the Timaeus was of particular interest to s
in the ancient world who were concerned with the physical structure of real
include reference to Plato in their discussions, whether for the sake of co
or because they regarded him as a major authority on all the topics which
or because, like the Neoplatonists, they regarded him as the philosopher
the truth on all topics, even while also regarding the themes of the Timaeu
in the hierarchy of being and the work itself as therefore not among his
For the ancients the topics considered in the Timaeus formed part of ph
are subject to change in the use and understanding of that term as of ever
some quarters at least for much of the second half of the last century
regarded as almost an embarrassment. Influential here, though subject to
soon as it appeared, was a famous article of G. E. L. Owen, who spoke in
'delivering] our interpretation of the critical dialogues from the shadow
is time ... to leave the profoundly important late dialogues to their own
objection was to the metaphysics shared by the Timaeus and the Republ
interpreters at least the issue may have been a dislike of metaphysics, a
metaphysics with a theological cast, in general. One is at times reminded of t
in the same period, reference to Metaphysics A in the course of discuss
metaphysics seemed somehow eccentric.
Temporary neglect brings with it the possibility of the excitement of redi
Metaphysics A and the Timaeus have enjoyed a recent revival of interest.

1 G. E. L. Owen ('The place of the Timaeus in Plato's dialogues', CQ n.s. 3 (1953) 79-95, re
Plato's Metaphysics , ed. R. E. Allen (London 1965) 313-38 (338). Harold Cherniss's respons
Timaeus to Plato's later dialogues', AJPh 78 (1957) 225-66, reprinted in Allen 339-78) in
comment, which we quote here because of its wider significance for the theme of this volume, t
Platonic interpretation ... has been ... a series of insistently charitable efforts on the part of weste
to baptize Plato in his particular faith.' (347 of the reprint).

Ancient approaches to Plato's 'Timaeus'


1

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2 ANCIENT APPROACHES TO PLATO' S TIMAEUS

Timaeus this has owed not a little to the recognition2 that Plat
creations rather than straightforward expositions, and that
in the first instance on their own terms, rather than assesse
within a picture of Plato's overall philosophical develop
accordingly. Both the approach to the dialogues as individual
Plato's philosophical development, are different from those
whom Plato's works were expressions of a single understand
interpreter to elucidate; though in attempting to place each w
and account for its individual character, in accordance with t
commentary,3 the ancient approach was perhaps, paradoxica
to the 'developmental' approach.
The selection of the Timaeus and the ancient commentary tra
for the Institute of Classical Studies research seminar in anci
year 2000-2001 was influenced by several factors: the renew
general; the fact that, both in London and elsewhere, a consi
working either on the ancient commentary tradition or on the
(two topics themselves closely intertwined); and, as an imme
to a Frances Yates Fellowship at the Warburg Institute, like
a part of the School of Advanced Study of the University o
was already developing new insights into Calcidius' commen
value of MSS annotations as evidence for its medieval recep
In the event the seminar series was so successful that it exten
from October 2000 to December 2001. The majority of the p
included in this volume; some could not be because they
publication elsewhere. The latter included: The Recepti
Academy', by John Dillon (Trinity College Dublin);4 'Seneca
Sedley (University of Cambridge);5 'Early medieval readings (
Timaeus and Calcidius's Commentary ', by Anna Somf
'Discussions concerning the cosmos and the soul in Souther
the twelfth century', by Charles Burnett (Warburg Institute

2 Emphasised in particular by Christopher Rowe: cf. his (ed.) Plato: Phaedo (


structure and form', in C. Gill and M. M. McCabe, eds, Form and argum
(153).
3 Cf. I. Hadot, Simplicius : commentaire sur les Catégories, fase. 1, Leiden
questions to be settled before the study of an author or a text , Leiden 1994

4 To appear in Plato's Timaeus as Cultural Icon , ed. G. J. Reydams-Schil


5 To appear in the Festschrift for Richard Sorabji being edited by Ricardo S

6 To be incorporated in two forthcoming papers: A. Somfai, 'Plato's Timaeu


ninth to eleventh centuries', to appear in the Journal of the Warburg and
Somfai, 'The Brussels gloss: a tenth-century reading of the geometrical
Commentary (ca. 400 AD) to Plato's Timaeus' to appear in the proceedings o
the development of scientific ideas from late antiquity to the Renaissance , a c
University of London, 20-21 April 2001.
7 To be incorporated in the preface of a new edition of Pseudo-Bede, De mu
and De solis affectibus , which Professor Burnett is preparing.

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INTRODUCTION 3

omissions has been to focus


narrowly than the seminar
with interpretation of the
interpretation, to varying
reception. Moreover, the an
ranging from formal comm
the title of the present volum

RWS
ADRS

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