Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato’s Parmenides to Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics, 2022
By: Helmig, Christoph, Lammer, Andreas (Ed.), Jas, Mareike (Ed.)
Title Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato’s Parmenides to Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2022
Published in Received Opinions: Doxography in Antiquity and the Islamic World
Pages 175-206
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s) Lammer, Andreas , Jas, Mareike
Translator(s)
[Introduction, p. 9: Likewise examining Simplicius and his “rather exceptional role in the doxographical tradition,” Christoph Helmig focuses on the reception of Parmenides’ poem. In this, Helmig’s aim is twofold: on the one hand, he assesses Simplicius’ position in the tradition as such, differentiating between a number of different ways of handling received materials. On the other hand, he addresses the question of how the doxographical reception of Parmenides’ philosophy in particular ought to be delineated (and of course, what role Simplicius played) by subsequently examining Plato’s approach towards Parmenides, then Aristotle’s (which can be interpreted variously), and then, via Middle Platonism, to Simplicius’. As is shown, Simplicius is guided by his ideology to search for a greater harmony among ancient philosophical knowledge, most particularly among Plato and Aristotle.]

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Simplicius, 2020
By: Helmig, Christoph, Zalta, Edward N. (Ed.)
Title Simplicius
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2020
Published in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s) Zalta, Edward N.
Translator(s)
Simplicius of Cilicia (ca. 480–560 CE), roughly a contemporary of John Philoponus, is without doubt the most important Neoplatonic commentator on Aristotle and one of the two most influential exegetes within the Aristotelian tradition, along with Alexander of Aphrodisias (around 200 CE). Simplicius’ works are an unmatched source for the intellectual traditions that preceded him: Presocratic, Platonic, and especially the Peripatetic tradition. He is also an independent thinker in his own right, with a coherent philosophical agenda. Best known for his tendency to harmonise Plato and Aristotle, he nevertheless criticised Aristotle on several occasions and considered himself a loyal follower of Plato. Writing in an age when Christianity was the dominant religious and political view, Simplicius aimed to show that the Hellenic tradition is not only much older, but also more venerable and more coherent than the Christian tradition. Unimpressed by charges of alleged contradictions among Greek philosophers, Simplicius repeatedly proclaimed that “the ancient wisdom (palaia philosophia) remains unrefuted” (In Phys. 77.11). It is also noteworthy that, like Proclus and other Neoplatonists, Simplicius presents himself as a thinker for whom philosophy and theology form a complete unity. As has frequently been observed, Simplicius’ works, despite their scholarly outlook, have an important spiritual dimension (see §5). Simplicius’ commentaries have only recently been studied with an eye to his own philosophical views. He was long considered a mere source for Greek philosophy, and, as noted by Baltussen (2010: 714), Simplicius’ importance as a source for ancient Greek philosophy and science has long overshadowed his contributions as an independent thinker. Nineteenth-century Quellenforschung was especially interested in his Commentary on the Physics, which was edited in two volumes (Simplicii in Aristotelis Physicorum libros quattuor priores/quattuor posteriores, comprising almost 1500 pages) by Hermann Diels; this commentary served as the basis for Diels’ edition of the Doxographi Graeci (Greek Doxographers), which includes the main doctrines on natural philosophy according to ancient doxographical compendia. One of the aims of this entry is to emphasise that Simplicius’ writings have much more to offer than a mere doxography of his predecessors—but always bearing in mind that it is only possible to appreciate how Simplicius arranges and interprets the material at his disposal by duly attending to his Neoplatonic agenda.

{"_index":"sire","_type":"_doc","_id":"1468","_score":null,"_source":{"id":1468,"authors_free":[{"id":2541,"entry_id":1468,"agent_type":"person","is_normalised":1,"person_id":146,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"},"free_name":"Helmig, Christoph","free_first_name":"Christoph","free_last_name":"Helmig","norm_person":{"id":146,"first_name":"Christoph","last_name":"Helmig","full_name":"Helmig, Christoph","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"http:\/\/d-nb.info\/gnd\/1107028760","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}},{"id":2542,"entry_id":1468,"agent_type":"person","is_normalised":1,"person_id":185,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"},"free_name":"Zalta, Edward N.","free_first_name":"Edward N.","free_last_name":"Zalta","norm_person":{"id":185,"first_name":"Edward N.","last_name":"Zalta","full_name":"Zalta, Edward N.","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"http:\/\/d-nb.info\/gnd\/132645920","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}}],"entry_title":"Simplicius","main_title":{"title":"Simplicius"},"abstract":"Simplicius of Cilicia (ca. 480\u2013560 CE), roughly a contemporary of John Philoponus, is without doubt the most important Neoplatonic commentator on Aristotle and one of the two most influential exegetes within the Aristotelian tradition, along with Alexander of Aphrodisias (around 200 CE). Simplicius\u2019 works are an unmatched source for the intellectual traditions that preceded him: Presocratic, Platonic, and especially the Peripatetic tradition. He is also an independent thinker in his own right, with a coherent philosophical agenda. Best known for his tendency to harmonise Plato and Aristotle, he nevertheless criticised Aristotle on several occasions and considered himself a loyal follower of Plato. Writing in an age when Christianity was the dominant religious and political view, Simplicius aimed to show that the Hellenic tradition is not only much older, but also more venerable and more coherent than the Christian tradition. Unimpressed by charges of alleged contradictions among Greek philosophers, Simplicius repeatedly proclaimed that \u201cthe ancient wisdom (palaia philosophia) remains unrefuted\u201d (In Phys. 77.11). It is also noteworthy that, like Proclus and other Neoplatonists, Simplicius presents himself as a thinker for whom philosophy and theology form a complete unity. As has frequently been observed, Simplicius\u2019 works, despite their scholarly outlook, have an important spiritual dimension (see \u00a75).\r\n\r\nSimplicius\u2019 commentaries have only recently been studied with an eye to his own philosophical views. He was long considered a mere source for Greek philosophy, and, as noted by Baltussen (2010: 714),\r\n\r\n Simplicius\u2019 importance as a source for ancient Greek philosophy and science has long overshadowed his contributions as an independent thinker.\r\n\r\nNineteenth-century Quellenforschung was especially interested in his Commentary on the Physics, which was edited in two volumes (Simplicii in Aristotelis Physicorum libros quattuor priores\/quattuor posteriores, comprising almost 1500 pages) by Hermann Diels; this commentary served as the basis for Diels\u2019 edition of the Doxographi Graeci (Greek Doxographers), which includes the main doctrines on natural philosophy according to ancient doxographical compendia.\r\n\r\nOne of the aims of this entry is to emphasise that Simplicius\u2019 writings have much more to offer than a mere doxography of his predecessors\u2014but always bearing in mind that it is only possible to appreciate how Simplicius arranges and interprets the material at his disposal by duly attending to his Neoplatonic agenda.","btype":2,"date":"2020","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/plato.stanford.edu\/archives\/sum2020\/entries\/simplicius\/","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":146,"full_name":"Helmig, Christoph","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}},{"id":185,"full_name":"Zalta, Edward N.","role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"}}],"book":null,"booksection":{"id":1468,"section_of":1350,"pages":"","is_catalog":null,"book":{"id":1350,"bilderberg_idno":null,"dare_idno":null,"catalog_idno":null,"entry_type":"reference","type":4,"language":"en","title":"The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy","title_transcript":"","title_translation":"","short_title":"","has_no_author":null,"volume":null,"date":"","edition_no":null,"free_date":null,"abstract":"","republication_of":null,"online_url":"","online_resources":"","translation_of":null,"new_edition_of":null,"is_catalog":0,"in_bibliography":0,"is_inactive":0,"notes":null,"doi_url":null,"book":null}},"article":null},"sort":[2020]}

Forms and Concepts. Concept Formation in the Platonic Tradition, 2012
By: Helmig, Christoph
Title Forms and Concepts. Concept Formation in the Platonic Tradition
Type Monograph
Language English
Date 2012
Publication Place Berlin
Publisher De Gruyter
Series Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca et Byzantina
Volume 5
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
Forms and Concepts is the first comprehensive study of the central role of concepts and concept acquisition in the Platonic tradition. It sets up a stimulating dialogue between Plato’s innatist approach and Aristotle’s much more empirical response. The primary aim is to analyze and assess the strategies with which Platonists responded to Aristotle’s (and Alexander of Aphrodisias’) rival theory. The monograph culminates in a careful reconstruction of the elaborate attempt undertaken by the Neoplatonist Proclus (6th century AD) to devise a systematic Platonic theory of concept acquisition.

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OMOΣE XΩΡEIN: Simplicius, Corollarium de loco 601.26–8 (Diels), 2011
By: Gregoric, Pavel, Helmig, Christoph
Title OMOΣE XΩΡEIN: Simplicius, Corollarium de loco 601.26–8 (Diels)
Type Article
Language English
Date 2011
Journal Classical Quarterly
Volume 61
Issue 2
Pages 722-730
Categories no categories
Author(s) Gregoric, Pavel , Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
The upshot of this article is that the treatment of the phrase ὁμόσε χωρεῖν in LSJ can be supplemented as far as later (Neoplatonic) authors are concerned. We have seen that the translation ‘to come to issue’ for the metaphorical meaning of the phrase is ambiguous and needs to be qualified according to the context. While the expression usually betrays an adversative connotation – to counter or refute an argument – later (Neoplatonic) authors also used it in a more neutral sense (‘to come to grips with an argument’). More to the point, the phrase can also have a concessive connotation, implying a concession or acceptance. It is precisely this latter connotation that we find in Simplicius’ Corollary on Place 601.26–8. [conclusion, p. 730]

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Neue Forschungen zum Neuplatonismus (1995-2003). Teil II, 2004
By: Steel, Carlos, Helmig, Christoph
Title Neue Forschungen zum Neuplatonismus (1995-2003). Teil II
Type Article
Language German
Date 2004
Journal Allgemeine Zeitschrift für Philosophie
Volume 29
Pages 225-247
Categories no categories
Author(s) Steel, Carlos , Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)

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  • PAGE 1 OF 1
Forms and Concepts. Concept Formation in the Platonic Tradition, 2012
By: Helmig, Christoph
Title Forms and Concepts. Concept Formation in the Platonic Tradition
Type Monograph
Language English
Date 2012
Publication Place Berlin
Publisher De Gruyter
Series Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca et Byzantina
Volume 5
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
Forms and Concepts is the first comprehensive study of the central role of concepts and concept acquisition in the Platonic tradition. It sets up a stimulating dialogue between Plato’s innatist approach and Aristotle’s much more empirical response. The primary aim is to analyze and assess the strategies with which Platonists responded to Aristotle’s (and Alexander of Aphrodisias’) rival theory. The monograph culminates in a careful reconstruction of the elaborate attempt undertaken by the Neoplatonist Proclus (6th century AD) to devise a systematic Platonic theory of concept acquisition.

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Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato’s Parmenides to Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics, 2022
By: Helmig, Christoph, Lammer, Andreas (Ed.), Jas, Mareike (Ed.)
Title Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato’s Parmenides to Simplicius’ Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2022
Published in Received Opinions: Doxography in Antiquity and the Islamic World
Pages 175-206
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s) Lammer, Andreas , Jas, Mareike
Translator(s)
[Introduction, p. 9: Likewise examining Simplicius and his “rather exceptional role in the doxographical tradition,” Christoph Helmig focuses on the reception of Parmenides’ poem. In this, Helmig’s aim is twofold: on the one hand, he assesses Simplicius’ position in the tradition as such, differentiating between a number of
different ways of handling received materials. On the other hand, he addresses
the question of how the doxographical reception of Parmenides’ philosophy in
particular ought to be delineated (and of course, what role Simplicius played)
by subsequently examining Plato’s approach towards Parmenides, then Aristotle’s (which can be interpreted variously), and then, via Middle Platonism,
to Simplicius’. As is shown, Simplicius is guided by his ideology to search for
a greater harmony among ancient philosophical knowledge, most particularly
among Plato and Aristotle.]

{"_index":"sire","_type":"_doc","_id":"1520","_score":null,"_ignored":["booksection.book.abstract.keyword"],"_source":{"id":1520,"authors_free":[{"id":2638,"entry_id":1520,"agent_type":"person","is_normalised":1,"person_id":146,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"},"free_name":"Helmig, Christoph","free_first_name":"Christoph","free_last_name":"Helmig","norm_person":{"id":146,"first_name":"Christoph","last_name":"Helmig","full_name":"Helmig, Christoph","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"http:\/\/d-nb.info\/gnd\/1107028760","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}},{"id":2641,"entry_id":1520,"agent_type":"person","is_normalised":1,"person_id":565,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"},"free_name":"Lammer, Andreas","free_first_name":"Andreas","free_last_name":"Lammer","norm_person":{"id":565,"first_name":"Andreas","last_name":"Lammer","full_name":"Lammer, Andreas","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"https:\/\/d-nb.info\/gnd\/1031936807","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}},{"id":2642,"entry_id":1520,"agent_type":"person","is_normalised":1,"person_id":564,"institution_id":null,"role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"},"free_name":"Jas, Mareike ","free_first_name":"Mareike","free_last_name":"Jas","norm_person":{"id":564,"first_name":"Mareike","last_name":"Jas","full_name":"Jas, Mareike ","short_ident":"","is_classical_name":null,"dnb_url":"https:\/\/d-nb.info\/gnd\/116742073X","viaf_url":"","db_url":"","from_claudius":null}}],"entry_title":"Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato\u2019s Parmenides to Simplicius\u2019 Commentary on Aristotle\u2019s Physics","main_title":{"title":"Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato\u2019s Parmenides to Simplicius\u2019 Commentary on Aristotle\u2019s Physics"},"abstract":"[Introduction, p. 9: Likewise examining Simplicius and his \u201crather exceptional role in the doxographical tradition,\u201d Christoph Helmig focuses on the reception of Parmenides\u2019 poem. In this, Helmig\u2019s aim is twofold: on the one hand, he assesses Simplicius\u2019 position in the tradition as such, differentiating between a number of\r\ndifferent ways of handling received materials. On the other hand, he addresses\r\nthe question of how the doxographical reception of Parmenides\u2019 philosophy in\r\nparticular ought to be delineated (and of course, what role Simplicius played)\r\nby subsequently examining Plato\u2019s approach towards Parmenides, then Aristotle\u2019s (which can be interpreted variously), and then, via Middle Platonism,\r\nto Simplicius\u2019. As is shown, Simplicius is guided by his ideology to search for\r\na greater harmony among ancient philosophical knowledge, most particularly\r\namong Plato and Aristotle.]","btype":2,"date":"2022","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/TCwQbIBdnCfPCGP","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":146,"full_name":"Helmig, Christoph","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}},{"id":565,"full_name":"Lammer, Andreas","role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"}},{"id":564,"full_name":"Jas, Mareike ","role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"}}],"book":null,"booksection":{"id":1520,"section_of":1521,"pages":"175-206","is_catalog":null,"book":{"id":1521,"bilderberg_idno":null,"dare_idno":null,"catalog_idno":null,"entry_type":"reference","type":4,"language":"en","title":"Received Opinions: Doxography in Antiquity and the Islamic World","title_transcript":"","title_translation":"","short_title":"Lammer-Jas_2022","has_no_author":null,"volume":null,"date":"2022","edition_no":null,"free_date":null,"abstract":"This volume\u2014the proceedings of a 2018 conference at LMU Munich funded by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation\u2014brings together, for the first time, experts on Greek, Syriac, and Arabic traditions of doxography. Fourteen contributions provide new insight into state-of-the-art contemporary research on the widespread phenomenon of doxography. Together, they demonstrate how Greek, Syriac, and Arabic forms of doxography share common features and raise related questions that benefit interdisciplinary exchange among colleagues from various disciplines, such as classics, Arabic studies, and the history of philosophy. [author's abstract]","republication_of":null,"online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/XdQoRcGvPjnpUca","translation_of":null,"new_edition_of":null,"is_catalog":0,"in_bibliography":0,"is_inactive":0,"notes":null,"doi_url":null,"book":{"id":1521,"pubplace":"Leiden \u2013 Boston","publisher":"Brill","series":"Philosophia Antiqua","volume":"160","edition_no":"","valid_from":null,"valid_until":null}}},"article":null},"sort":["Interpreting Parmenides of Elea in Antiquity: From Plato\u2019s Parmenides to Simplicius\u2019 Commentary on Aristotle\u2019s Physics"]}

Neue Forschungen zum Neuplatonismus (1995-2003). Teil II, 2004
By: Steel, Carlos, Helmig, Christoph
Title Neue Forschungen zum Neuplatonismus (1995-2003). Teil II
Type Article
Language German
Date 2004
Journal Allgemeine Zeitschrift für Philosophie
Volume 29
Pages 225-247
Categories no categories
Author(s) Steel, Carlos , Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)

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OMOΣE XΩΡEIN: Simplicius, Corollarium de loco 601.26–8 (Diels), 2011
By: Gregoric, Pavel, Helmig, Christoph
Title OMOΣE XΩΡEIN: Simplicius, Corollarium de loco 601.26–8 (Diels)
Type Article
Language English
Date 2011
Journal Classical Quarterly
Volume 61
Issue 2
Pages 722-730
Categories no categories
Author(s) Gregoric, Pavel , Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
The  upshot  of  this  article  is  that  the  treatment  of  the  phrase  ὁμόσε  χωρεῖν  in LSJ  can  be  supplemented  as  far  as  later  (Neoplatonic)  authors  are  concerned.  We  have  seen  that  the  translation  ‘to  come  to  issue’  for  the  metaphorical  meaning  of  the  phrase  is  ambiguous  and  needs  to  be  qualified  according  to  the  context.  While  the  expression  usually  betrays  an  adversative  connotation  –  to  counter  or  refute  an  argument  –  later  (Neoplatonic)  authors  also  used  it  in  a  more  neutral  sense  (‘to  come  to  grips  with  an  argument’).  More  to  the  point,  the  phrase  can  also  have  a  
concessive  connotation,  implying  a  concession  or  acceptance.  It  is  precisely  this  
latter  connotation  that  we  find  in  Simplicius’  Corollary  on  Place  601.26–8. [conclusion, p. 730]

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Simplicius, 2020
By: Helmig, Christoph, Zalta, Edward N. (Ed.)
Title Simplicius
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2020
Published in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Categories no categories
Author(s) Helmig, Christoph
Editor(s) Zalta, Edward N.
Translator(s)
Simplicius of Cilicia (ca. 480–560 CE), roughly a contemporary of John Philoponus, is without doubt the most important Neoplatonic commentator on Aristotle and one of the two most influential exegetes within the Aristotelian tradition, along with Alexander of Aphrodisias (around 200 CE). Simplicius’ works are an unmatched source for the intellectual traditions that preceded him: Presocratic, Platonic, and especially the Peripatetic tradition. He is also an independent thinker in his own right, with a coherent philosophical agenda. Best known for his tendency to harmonise Plato and Aristotle, he nevertheless criticised Aristotle on several occasions and considered himself a loyal follower of Plato. Writing in an age when Christianity was the dominant religious and political view, Simplicius aimed to show that the Hellenic tradition is not only much older, but also more venerable and more coherent than the Christian tradition. Unimpressed by charges of alleged contradictions among Greek philosophers, Simplicius repeatedly proclaimed that “the ancient wisdom (palaia philosophia) remains unrefuted” (In Phys. 77.11). It is also noteworthy that, like Proclus and other Neoplatonists, Simplicius presents himself as a thinker for whom philosophy and theology form a complete unity. As has frequently been observed, Simplicius’ works, despite their scholarly outlook, have an important spiritual dimension (see §5).

Simplicius’ commentaries have only recently been studied with an eye to his own philosophical views. He was long considered a mere source for Greek philosophy, and, as noted by Baltussen (2010: 714),

    Simplicius’ importance as a source for ancient Greek philosophy and science has long overshadowed his contributions as an independent thinker.

Nineteenth-century Quellenforschung was especially interested in his Commentary on the Physics, which was edited in two volumes (Simplicii in Aristotelis Physicorum libros quattuor priores/quattuor posteriores, comprising almost 1500 pages) by Hermann Diels; this commentary served as the basis for Diels’ edition of the Doxographi Graeci (Greek Doxographers), which includes the main doctrines on natural philosophy according to ancient doxographical compendia.

One of the aims of this entry is to emphasise that Simplicius’ writings have much more to offer than a mere doxography of his predecessors—but always bearing in mind that it is only possible to appreciate how Simplicius arranges and interprets the material at his disposal by duly attending to his Neoplatonic agenda.

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