| Title | Book review: Simplicius on Aristotle Physics 8.1-5, written by Istvan Bodnár, Michael Chase and Michael Share |
| Type | Article |
| Language | English |
| Date | 2015 |
| Journal | The International Journal of the Platonic Tradition |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 124 –125 |
| Categories | no categories |
| Author(s) | Hatzistavrou, Antony |
| Editor(s) | |
| Translator(s) |
| This is a fine addition to the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle series, which is under the general editorship of Richard Sorabji. The volume contains a translation of Simplicius’ commentary on the first five chapters of the eighth book of Aristotle’s Physics. The translators are Michael Chase (who has been involved in the translation of most of the chapters), Istvan Bodnár, and Michael Slate. The translation is accompanied by a series of notes. Some of the notes identify the ancient texts Simplicius refers to in his commentary, while others are primarily of philological interest. There is also a number of exegetical notes that are particularly useful in helping the reader understand the logic of Simplicius’ arguments and in elucidating the conceptual apparatus of his commentary. The volume also includes: A preface by Richard Sorabji, which explains the importance of the commentary for scholarship on the ancient commentators on Aristotle. An introduction by Michael Chase, which focuses on Simplicius’ polemic against Philoponus. A list of departures of the translation from Diels’ edition of Simplicius’ commentary. An English-Greek glossary. A Greek-English index. A subject index. A bibliography. The volume is clearly designed with the needs of the specialist scholar in mind and aims to become the primary reference text in English for the study of Simplicius’ commentary. Where does the importance of Simplicius’ commentary lie? It is instructive that both Sorabji, in his preface, and Chase, in his introduction, focus on its importance for the history of philosophy in late antiquity. First, it sheds light on an aspect of the philosophical and ideological debate between pagan and Christian thinkers at the end of antiquity concerning the intelligibility of the creation of the world. In Physics 8.1, Aristotle argues that time and motion are eternal. For any arbitrarily chosen moment in time or motion in space, one will always be able to identify a preceding and a subsequent moment or motion. This means that the world as a whole is eternal. Philoponus understood Aristotle’s arguments for the eternity of the universe to pose problems for a creationist account of the world, as advocated by the Judeo-Christian religion. In his polemic Against Aristotle On the Eternity of the World, Philoponus undertakes the task of defending a creationist account of the world by attacking Aristotle’s arguments for the eternity of motion and time. In his commentary, Simplicius attacks Philoponus, accusing him, among other things, of failing to understand and thus misrepresenting Aristotle’s position. A primary aim of his commentary on Physics 8.1 is, on the one hand, to identify and correct what he takes to be Philoponus’ distortions of Aristotle’s arguments and, on the other hand, to vindicate the cogency of Aristotle’s theory against Philoponus’ polemic. Simplicius makes no attempt to conceal his disdain for Philoponus’ scholarly abilities and intellectual integrity, describing his arguments as "garbage" and accusing him of being motivated by his "zeal for contradicting." In his introduction, Michael Chase clarifies that Simplicius’ attack is not restricted to issues concerning the proper interpretation of Aristotle’s theory but has a wider scope. It is meant as an attack on Philoponus’ Christian faith. In this attack, Simplicius occasionally reveals himself to be conversant with intricate Christian theological debates, such as the debate concerning the nature of Christ (i.e., whether Christ was begotten or made). Second, as Richard Sorabji mentions in his preface, Simplicius’ commentary reports and makes extensive use of Alexander of Aphrodisias’ lost commentary on Aristotle’s Physics. On Sorabji’s view, Simplicius, on the whole, reports Alexander’s views accurately. Furthermore, despite occasional disagreements about the interpretation of Aristotle’s philosophy, Simplicius shows respect for Alexander’s abilities as a commentator and values his intellectual integrity. Simplicius’ attitude towards Alexander is thus sharply contrasted with his attitude towards Philoponus. Scholars interested in the debate between pagan and Christian philosophers at the end of antiquity and in the history of the ancient commentators on Aristotle will welcome the translation into English of Simplicius’ commentary. They may also find much material in the notes to the translation to grapple with. The volume will also appeal to anyone interested in Aristotle’s natural philosophy and, more specifically, in Aristotle’s views about the eternity of the world and the prime mover. The detailed English-Greek glossary and the indices make the volume a significant research tool likely to become a reference point in relevant scholarship. In addition, the volume is nicely produced. [the entire review] |
| Online Resources | https://uni-koeln.sciebo.de/s/um5b6staCmgDtbZ |
{"_index":"sire","_id":"1014","_score":null,"_source":{"id":1014,"authors_free":[{"id":1530,"entry_id":1014,"agent_type":null,"is_normalised":null,"person_id":173,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"},"free_name":"Hatzistavrou, Antony","free_first_name":"Antony","free_last_name":"Hatzistavrou","norm_person":{"id":173,"first_name":"Antony","last_name":"Hatzistavrou","full_name":"Hatzistavrou, Antony","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}}],"entry_title":"Book review: Simplicius on Aristotle Physics 8.1-5, written by Istvan Bodn\u00e1r, Michael Chase and Michael Share","main_title":{"title":"Book review: Simplicius on Aristotle Physics 8.1-5, written by Istvan Bodn\u00e1r, Michael Chase and Michael Share"},"abstract":"This is a fine addition to the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle series, which is under the general editorship of Richard Sorabji. The volume contains a translation of Simplicius\u2019 commentary on the first five chapters of the eighth book of Aristotle\u2019s Physics. The translators are Michael Chase (who has been involved in the translation of most of the chapters), Istvan Bodn\u00e1r, and Michael Slate. The translation is accompanied by a series of notes. Some of the notes identify the ancient texts Simplicius refers to in his commentary, while others are primarily of philological interest. There is also a number of exegetical notes that are particularly useful in helping the reader understand the logic of Simplicius\u2019 arguments and in elucidating the conceptual apparatus of his commentary. The volume also includes:\r\n\r\n A preface by Richard Sorabji, which explains the importance of the commentary for scholarship on the ancient commentators on Aristotle.\r\n An introduction by Michael Chase, which focuses on Simplicius\u2019 polemic against Philoponus.\r\n A list of departures of the translation from Diels\u2019 edition of Simplicius\u2019 commentary.\r\n An English-Greek glossary.\r\n A Greek-English index.\r\n A subject index.\r\n A bibliography.\r\n\r\nThe volume is clearly designed with the needs of the specialist scholar in mind and aims to become the primary reference text in English for the study of Simplicius\u2019 commentary.\r\n\r\nWhere does the importance of Simplicius\u2019 commentary lie? It is instructive that both Sorabji, in his preface, and Chase, in his introduction, focus on its importance for the history of philosophy in late antiquity. First, it sheds light on an aspect of the philosophical and ideological debate between pagan and Christian thinkers at the end of antiquity concerning the intelligibility of the creation of the world. In Physics 8.1, Aristotle argues that time and motion are eternal. For any arbitrarily chosen moment in time or motion in space, one will always be able to identify a preceding and a subsequent moment or motion. This means that the world as a whole is eternal. Philoponus understood Aristotle\u2019s arguments for the eternity of the universe to pose problems for a creationist account of the world, as advocated by the Judeo-Christian religion. In his polemic Against Aristotle On the Eternity of the World, Philoponus undertakes the task of defending a creationist account of the world by attacking Aristotle\u2019s arguments for the eternity of motion and time.\r\n\r\nIn his commentary, Simplicius attacks Philoponus, accusing him, among other things, of failing to understand and thus misrepresenting Aristotle\u2019s position. A primary aim of his commentary on Physics 8.1 is, on the one hand, to identify and correct what he takes to be Philoponus\u2019 distortions of Aristotle\u2019s arguments and, on the other hand, to vindicate the cogency of Aristotle\u2019s theory against Philoponus\u2019 polemic. Simplicius makes no attempt to conceal his disdain for Philoponus\u2019 scholarly abilities and intellectual integrity, describing his arguments as \"garbage\" and accusing him of being motivated by his \"zeal for contradicting.\" In his introduction, Michael Chase clarifies that Simplicius\u2019 attack is not restricted to issues concerning the proper interpretation of Aristotle\u2019s theory but has a wider scope. It is meant as an attack on Philoponus\u2019 Christian faith. In this attack, Simplicius occasionally reveals himself to be conversant with intricate Christian theological debates, such as the debate concerning the nature of Christ (i.e., whether Christ was begotten or made).\r\n\r\nSecond, as Richard Sorabji mentions in his preface, Simplicius\u2019 commentary reports and makes extensive use of Alexander of Aphrodisias\u2019 lost commentary on Aristotle\u2019s Physics. On Sorabji\u2019s view, Simplicius, on the whole, reports Alexander\u2019s views accurately. Furthermore, despite occasional disagreements about the interpretation of Aristotle\u2019s philosophy, Simplicius shows respect for Alexander\u2019s abilities as a commentator and values his intellectual integrity. Simplicius\u2019 attitude towards Alexander is thus sharply contrasted with his attitude towards Philoponus.\r\n\r\nScholars interested in the debate between pagan and Christian philosophers at the end of antiquity and in the history of the ancient commentators on Aristotle will welcome the translation into English of Simplicius\u2019 commentary. They may also find much material in the notes to the translation to grapple with. The volume will also appeal to anyone interested in Aristotle\u2019s natural philosophy and, more specifically, in Aristotle\u2019s views about the eternity of the world and the prime mover. The detailed English-Greek glossary and the indices make the volume a significant research tool likely to become a reference point in relevant scholarship. In addition, the volume is nicely produced. [the entire review]","btype":3,"date":"2015","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/um5b6staCmgDtbZ","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":173,"full_name":"Hatzistavrou, Antony","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}}],"book":null,"booksection":null,"article":{"id":1014,"journal_id":null,"journal_name":"The International Journal of the Platonic Tradition","volume":"9","issue":"1","pages":"124 \u2013125"}},"sort":[2015]}
| Title | Book review: Simplicius on Aristotle Physics 8.1-5, written by Istvan Bodnár, Michael Chase and Michael Share |
| Type | Article |
| Language | English |
| Date | 2015 |
| Journal | The International Journal of the Platonic Tradition |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 124 –125 |
| Categories | no categories |
| Author(s) | Hatzistavrou, Antony |
| Editor(s) | |
| Translator(s) |
This is a fine addition to the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle series, which is under the general editorship of Richard Sorabji. The volume contains a translation of Simplicius’ commentary on the first five chapters of the eighth book of Aristotle’s Physics. The translators are Michael Chase (who has been involved in the translation of most of the chapters), Istvan Bodnár, and Michael Slate. The translation is accompanied by a series of notes. Some of the notes identify the ancient texts Simplicius refers to in his commentary, while others are primarily of philological interest. There is also a number of exegetical notes that are particularly useful in helping the reader understand the logic of Simplicius’ arguments and in elucidating the conceptual apparatus of his commentary. The volume also includes:
A preface by Richard Sorabji, which explains the importance of the commentary for scholarship on the ancient commentators on Aristotle.
An introduction by Michael Chase, which focuses on Simplicius’ polemic against Philoponus.
A list of departures of the translation from Diels’ edition of Simplicius’ commentary.
An English-Greek glossary.
A Greek-English index.
A subject index.
A bibliography.
The volume is clearly designed with the needs of the specialist scholar in mind and aims to become the primary reference text in English for the study of Simplicius’ commentary.
Where does the importance of Simplicius’ commentary lie? It is instructive that both Sorabji, in his preface, and Chase, in his introduction, focus on its importance for the history of philosophy in late antiquity. First, it sheds light on an aspect of the philosophical and ideological debate between pagan and Christian thinkers at the end of antiquity concerning the intelligibility of the creation of the world. In Physics 8.1, Aristotle argues that time and motion are eternal. For any arbitrarily chosen moment in time or motion in space, one will always be able to identify a preceding and a subsequent moment or motion. This means that the world as a whole is eternal. Philoponus understood Aristotle’s arguments for the eternity of the universe to pose problems for a creationist account of the world, as advocated by the Judeo-Christian religion. In his polemic Against Aristotle On the Eternity of the World, Philoponus undertakes the task of defending a creationist account of the world by attacking Aristotle’s arguments for the eternity of motion and time.
In his commentary, Simplicius attacks Philoponus, accusing him, among other things, of failing to understand and thus misrepresenting Aristotle’s position. A primary aim of his commentary on Physics 8.1 is, on the one hand, to identify and correct what he takes to be Philoponus’ distortions of Aristotle’s arguments and, on the other hand, to vindicate the cogency of Aristotle’s theory against Philoponus’ polemic. Simplicius makes no attempt to conceal his disdain for Philoponus’ scholarly abilities and intellectual integrity, describing his arguments as "garbage" and accusing him of being motivated by his "zeal for contradicting." In his introduction, Michael Chase clarifies that Simplicius’ attack is not restricted to issues concerning the proper interpretation of Aristotle’s theory but has a wider scope. It is meant as an attack on Philoponus’ Christian faith. In this attack, Simplicius occasionally reveals himself to be conversant with intricate Christian theological debates, such as the debate concerning the nature of Christ (i.e., whether Christ was begotten or made).
Second, as Richard Sorabji mentions in his preface, Simplicius’ commentary reports and makes extensive use of Alexander of Aphrodisias’ lost commentary on Aristotle’s Physics. On Sorabji’s view, Simplicius, on the whole, reports Alexander’s views accurately. Furthermore, despite occasional disagreements about the interpretation of Aristotle’s philosophy, Simplicius shows respect for Alexander’s abilities as a commentator and values his intellectual integrity. Simplicius’ attitude towards Alexander is thus sharply contrasted with his attitude towards Philoponus.
Scholars interested in the debate between pagan and Christian philosophers at the end of antiquity and in the history of the ancient commentators on Aristotle will welcome the translation into English of Simplicius’ commentary. They may also find much material in the notes to the translation to grapple with. The volume will also appeal to anyone interested in Aristotle’s natural philosophy and, more specifically, in Aristotle’s views about the eternity of the world and the prime mover. The detailed English-Greek glossary and the indices make the volume a significant research tool likely to become a reference point in relevant scholarship. In addition, the volume is nicely produced. [the entire review] |
| Online Resources | https://uni-koeln.sciebo.de/s/um5b6staCmgDtbZ |
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The volume contains a translation of Simplicius\u2019 commentary on the first five chapters of the eighth book of Aristotle\u2019s Physics. The translators are Michael Chase (who has been involved in the translation of most of the chapters), Istvan Bodn\u00e1r, and Michael Slate. The translation is accompanied by a series of notes. Some of the notes identify the ancient texts Simplicius refers to in his commentary, while others are primarily of philological interest. There is also a number of exegetical notes that are particularly useful in helping the reader understand the logic of Simplicius\u2019 arguments and in elucidating the conceptual apparatus of his commentary. The volume also includes:\r\n\r\n A preface by Richard Sorabji, which explains the importance of the commentary for scholarship on the ancient commentators on Aristotle.\r\n An introduction by Michael Chase, which focuses on Simplicius\u2019 polemic against Philoponus.\r\n A list of departures of the translation from Diels\u2019 edition of Simplicius\u2019 commentary.\r\n An English-Greek glossary.\r\n A Greek-English index.\r\n A subject index.\r\n A bibliography.\r\n\r\nThe volume is clearly designed with the needs of the specialist scholar in mind and aims to become the primary reference text in English for the study of Simplicius\u2019 commentary.\r\n\r\nWhere does the importance of Simplicius\u2019 commentary lie? It is instructive that both Sorabji, in his preface, and Chase, in his introduction, focus on its importance for the history of philosophy in late antiquity. First, it sheds light on an aspect of the philosophical and ideological debate between pagan and Christian thinkers at the end of antiquity concerning the intelligibility of the creation of the world. In Physics 8.1, Aristotle argues that time and motion are eternal. For any arbitrarily chosen moment in time or motion in space, one will always be able to identify a preceding and a subsequent moment or motion. This means that the world as a whole is eternal. Philoponus understood Aristotle\u2019s arguments for the eternity of the universe to pose problems for a creationist account of the world, as advocated by the Judeo-Christian religion. In his polemic Against Aristotle On the Eternity of the World, Philoponus undertakes the task of defending a creationist account of the world by attacking Aristotle\u2019s arguments for the eternity of motion and time.\r\n\r\nIn his commentary, Simplicius attacks Philoponus, accusing him, among other things, of failing to understand and thus misrepresenting Aristotle\u2019s position. A primary aim of his commentary on Physics 8.1 is, on the one hand, to identify and correct what he takes to be Philoponus\u2019 distortions of Aristotle\u2019s arguments and, on the other hand, to vindicate the cogency of Aristotle\u2019s theory against Philoponus\u2019 polemic. Simplicius makes no attempt to conceal his disdain for Philoponus\u2019 scholarly abilities and intellectual integrity, describing his arguments as \"garbage\" and accusing him of being motivated by his \"zeal for contradicting.\" In his introduction, Michael Chase clarifies that Simplicius\u2019 attack is not restricted to issues concerning the proper interpretation of Aristotle\u2019s theory but has a wider scope. It is meant as an attack on Philoponus\u2019 Christian faith. In this attack, Simplicius occasionally reveals himself to be conversant with intricate Christian theological debates, such as the debate concerning the nature of Christ (i.e., whether Christ was begotten or made).\r\n\r\nSecond, as Richard Sorabji mentions in his preface, Simplicius\u2019 commentary reports and makes extensive use of Alexander of Aphrodisias\u2019 lost commentary on Aristotle\u2019s Physics. On Sorabji\u2019s view, Simplicius, on the whole, reports Alexander\u2019s views accurately. Furthermore, despite occasional disagreements about the interpretation of Aristotle\u2019s philosophy, Simplicius shows respect for Alexander\u2019s abilities as a commentator and values his intellectual integrity. Simplicius\u2019 attitude towards Alexander is thus sharply contrasted with his attitude towards Philoponus.\r\n\r\nScholars interested in the debate between pagan and Christian philosophers at the end of antiquity and in the history of the ancient commentators on Aristotle will welcome the translation into English of Simplicius\u2019 commentary. They may also find much material in the notes to the translation to grapple with. The volume will also appeal to anyone interested in Aristotle\u2019s natural philosophy and, more specifically, in Aristotle\u2019s views about the eternity of the world and the prime mover. The detailed English-Greek glossary and the indices make the volume a significant research tool likely to become a reference point in relevant scholarship. In addition, the volume is nicely produced. [the entire review]","btype":3,"date":"2015","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/um5b6staCmgDtbZ","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":173,"full_name":"Hatzistavrou, Antony","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}}],"book":null,"booksection":null,"article":{"id":1014,"journal_id":null,"journal_name":"The International Journal of the Platonic Tradition","volume":"9","issue":"1","pages":"124 \u2013125"}},"sort":["Book review: Simplicius on Aristotle Physics 8.1-5, written by Istvan Bodn\u00e1r, Michael Chase and Michael Share"]}