Table Of ContentPhilosophy and Exegesis
in Simplicius
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PHILOSOPHY AND EXEGESIS
IN SIMPLICIUS
The Methodology of
a Commentator
Han Baltussen
B L O O M S B U R Y
LONDON • NEW DELHI • NEW YORK • SYDNEY
Bloomsbury Academic
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First published in 2008 by
Gerald Duckworth & Co. Ltd.
© Han Baltussen, 2008
Han Baltussen has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act,
1988, to be identifi ed as Author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: HB: 978-0-7156-3500-1
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Contents
Abbreviations viii
Preface ix
Introduction. Simplicius of Cilicia and Philosophy in Late
Antiquity 1
0.1 Philosophy in Late Antiquity: eclecticism, syncretism
and ‘post-classicism’ 10
0.2 Simplicius of Cilicia: life and works 12
0.3 Method and outline of this study 14
1. The Scholar and His Books 21
1.1 The author: philosophical and intellectual context 24
1.2 Scholarly pursuits: exegetical objectives and practices 31
1.3 A puzzle about location 48
1.4 Of books and men: Simplicius’ scholarly method 51
2. Rethinking Early Greek Philosophy? Origins of Ancient
Wisdom 54
2.1 What we have thanks to Simplicius 63
2.2 Two views on unity and plurality: Parmenides and
Empedocles 68
2.3 A special case: Anaxagoras 78
2.4 The unity of Greek philosophy 84
3. Towards a Canon: the Early Peripatetics 88
3.1 Succeeding Aristotle, understanding Aristotle 89
3.2 Teaching Aristotle: Theophrastus and Eudemus 91
3.3 Simplicius and the early Peripatetics 104
4. Ghost in the Machine? The Role of Alexander of
Aphrodisias 107
4.1 Two commentators, two traditions 111
4.2 Alexander the pioneer: exegetical format and style 114
4.3 Simplicius’ use of Alexander 121
4.4 Disagreeing with Alexander 129
4.5 The ghost in the machine and the making of
commentary 132
v
Contents
5. Platonist Commentators: Sources and Inspiration 136
5.1 A new Platonism: Plotinus 140
5.2 Harmonising strategies: from Porphyry to Proclus 147
5.3 Simplicius’ teachers 158
5.4 Two outsiders: Galen and Themistius 166
5.5 Platonist exegesis from Plotinus to Simplicius 169
6. Polemic and Exegesis in Simplicius: Defending Pagan
Theology 172
6.1 Polemic and philosophy: a very brief history 173
6.2 Against the Christian Philoponus: defending Platonism
or paganism? 176
6.3 Extensive quotation and disagreement: Alexander
revisited 188
6.4 The rhetoric of interpretation 193
Epilogue. Simplicius and Greek Philosophy: The Last
Pagan Gospel? 196
7.1 The commentator’s craft 197
7.2 Simplicius on Simplicius: self-image and
self-presentation 198
7.3 Exegesis and philosophy: a complex relationship 201
7.4 The methodology of a commentator: a final appraisal 208
Appendix I The ‘Library’ of Simplicius 211
Appendix II A. New Evidence on Alexander 216
B. Distribution of Alexander References in in Phys. 217
Appendix III Sumphônia in Simplicius 218
Notes 221
Bibliography 257
Index Locorum 283
Index of Names 288
Subject Index 290
vi
For
RICHARD SORABJI
‘philosopher, poet and expounder of mysteries’
Abbreviations
ACA = Ancient Commentators on Aristotle (London: Duckworth, 1987- )
CAG = Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca (Berlin: Reimer, 1882-1909)
DK = H. Diels and W. Kranz (eds) Fragmente der Vorsokratiker (Berlin,
1903 and many reprints)
D.L. = Diogenes Laertius, Lives of philosophers (c. 200 CE)
Enn. = Plotinus’ Enneads, Loeb edn, trans. A.H. Armstrong (Cambridge,
Mass: Harvard University Press, 1966-)
FHSG = W. Fortenbaugh, P. Huby, R. Sharples and D. Gutas (eds)
Theophrastus of Eresus: Sources for his Life, Writings, Thought and
Influence, 2 vols (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1992)
in Cat. = Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Categories
in DA = Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s De anima (authorship
disputed)
in DC = Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s De caelo
in Phys. = Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics
KRS = G.S. Kirk, J.E. Raven and M. Schofield, The Presocratic Philosophers:
A Critical History with a Selection of Texts, 2nd edn (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1984)
SVF = Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta, ed. H. von Arnim, 4 vols (Leipzig:
Teubner, 1903-24)
TLG = Thesaurus Linguae Graecae, searchable database on CD-ROM and
online
V.Plot. = Vita Plotini, ‘Life of Plotinus’, biographical sketch by Porphyry in
Enneads 1
V.Procl. = Vita Procli, ‘Life of Proclus’, biographical sketch by Marinus
Works of ancient authors (esp. Plato and Aristotle) are as a rule given
according to the form used in LSJ = Liddell-Scott-Jones, Greek-English
Lexicon (Oxford).
viii
Preface
This study offers an general assessment of the nature and purpose of the
works of Simplicius of Cilicia (c. 480-c. 540 CE), a Platonist author of late
antiquity. I came to this body of writings while studying the transmission
of Greek philosophical views. I went looking for a convenient study on the
sources, approach and methodology of Simplicius. Alas, such a study did
not exist in English or any other language. With the ever increasing
production in recent times of monographs and articles on the Platonism of
Late Antiquity and a growing interest in the formal features of these texts,
I decided the time was ripe for an accessible book on Simplicius. This
investigation, then, is the response to a genuine desideratum: it aims to
present Simplicius’ methodology in a comprehensive account and in the
best possible light in order to enhance our understanding of his value as a
scholar, exegete and philosopher.
To write a scholarly book on an ancient commentator in this day and
age may seem unusual and perhaps old-fashioned, but meta-narrative and
exegesis are still very much with us.1 Moreover, the commentaries fulfil a
special role in the continuation of the pagan religious perspective and thus
in the perennial debate on what constitutes the best spiritual outlook on
life. Current debates on the role of religion in society have hardly
quietened down and seem to tend in a direction opposite to that of
Simplicius, who as a pagan was forced to come to terms with the dominant
role of the Christian faith. The importance of Simplicius for the history of
early and classical Greek philosophy and the history of the philosophical
commentary is widely acknowledged, but only partially studied or under-
stood. Many have written on an aspect of his work, either in the context of
translating parts of his commentaries, or while evaluating the materials
he preserves of Greek philosophers. Yet anyone trying to understand the
nature of Simplicius’ reports of Presocratic and Peripatetic thinkers must
obtain a more ‘organic feel’ for the choices and strategies in these remark-
able writings. The important exception of a more focused investigation is
the collection of papers edited by I. Hadot (1987). The books on the
Categories commentary under her direction (2000-1) have also been valu-
able guides for this project. I could not have foreseen when I started work
on Simplicius in 1996 and this book in 2002, that during the process of
writing the study of late Platonism would experience such an upsurge, so
that keeping up with new publications over the past few years has proved
quite difficult.
ix
