Plato’s Seventh Letter

181 Pages·1966·3.883 MB·English

by  Ludwig Edelstein

PLATO'S SEVENTH LETTER
PHILOSOPHIA ANTIQUA
A SERIES OF MONOGRAPHS
ON ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
EDITED BY
W. J. VERDENIUS AND J. H. WASZINK
VOLUME XIV
LUDWIG EDELSTEIN
PLATO'S SEVENTH LETTER
LEIDEN
E. J. BRILL
1966
PLATO'S
SEVENTH LETTER
BY
LUDWIG EDELSTEIN
LEIDEN
E. J. BRILL
1966
Copyright I966 by E. ]. Brill, Leiden, Netherlands.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or
translated in any form, by print, photoprint, microfilm or any other
means without written permission from the publisher.
PRINTED IN THE NETHERLANDS
Haroldo Frederico Cherniss
per dies faustos infaustosque
arnico firrno ac fideli

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface. . . IX
Introduction I
I. The Historical Narrative. 5
1. Plato's Youth and Early Manhood 5
2. The First Journey to Sicily and the Motives for the
Second. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IS
3. The Counsel to Dion's Followers . . . . . . 24
4. Plato's Relation to Dion and to Dionysius; the
Portrayal of Plato. . . . . . . . . . . 39
5. The Motives for the Writing of the Letter 56
II. The Philosophical Digression . . . . . . . 70
1. The Philosophical Test. . . . . . . . 70
2. Plato's Views on Philosophical Writing. 76
3. The Doctrine of the Fifth . . . . . . 85
4. The Import of the so-called Philosophical Digression 108
Ill. The Other Platonic Letters in their Relation to the
Autobiography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
1. The Letters to Philosophers and Statesmen outside
the Sicilian Circle. . . . . . 122
2. Letters to Archytas and Dion. . . . . . . . 127
3. Letters to Dionysius. . . . . . . . . . . . 131
4. The Second Letter to Dion and his Followers . 145
5. The Background of the Collection of Letters 156
6. Conclusion. 161
Conclusion. 166
Appendix . 170

PREFACE
The first outline of this book was written during my stay at the
Institute for Advanced Study in 1959-1960, and so I should like
first to express my gratitude to the Faculty of the Institute, who
made it possible for me to devote this whole year to research.
I also owe much to the conversations on Plato and many another
subject that I had during that time with members of the Institute,
especially with G.M.A. Grube and Erwin Panofsky.
But I must mention too my indebtedness to those with whom I
discussed the Seventh Epistle long before the writing of the book
was undertaken. In 1939, Paul Friedlander spent several months
with Mrs. Edelstein and myself reading and interpreting Plato's
"autobiography." In later years, between 1948 and 1950, many
an hour was passed in controversy over the document with Ernst
Kantorowicz, P. Friedlander, and Father A. J. Festugiere. None of
them, I am afraid, was in agreement with the views which have
now found expression in this study. But they made me see difficult
ies I would otherwise not have noted and I have tried to learn
from their objections.
The dedication expresses a debt of gratitude that arises out of a
long fellowship in work and life. But I should say that when I was
in Princeton, I often talked to Harold Cherniss about the Seventh
Letter; he has also read over the finished manuscript and given
me his advice on controversial points. And when I was writing and
revising the text I had the constant help of Miss Caroline Clauser.
Her devotion to the work and her vigilance saved me from many
an error in thought and expression.
New York, March Il, L964
L.E.
An untimely death prevented Professor Edelstein from seeing his
book through the press. The editors of this series therefore took upon
themselves the correction of the proofs as against the manuscript as
submitted by the author.