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López-Farjeat, Luis Xavier
Narrating Premodern Philosophy in Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Latin
Contextualizing premodern philosophy: explorations of the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Latin Traditions
2023
,
Krause, Katja
,
López-Farjeat, Luis Xavier
,
Oschman, Nicholas A.
Premodern philosophy originated in Antiquity, particularly in the writings of Plato and Aristotle. This introductory essay highlights points of cross-pollination between different schools, cultures, and moments in premodern thought, and prepares the ground for the rest of the volume by presenting different ways of approaching the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Latin philosophical traditions. Some historiographies covering these traditions look forward, dynamically adapting, reworking, and molding what they find in their heritage to their own needs. Others look backward, seeking truth in stable origins. The approach proposed in this volume builds on a “source-based contextualism,” articulated most prominently by Richard C. Taylor, that assesses each medieval philosophical or theological text in light of other relevant philosophical and theological texts. We consider epistemic motifs that contextualize historical thinkers in their own spatial and temporal surroundings. Thus, there is a root from which different derivations arise, but each text is also contextually complex on its own account, and frames a philosophical problem in different ways within the living debates of particular times and particular spaces. The twenty-two chapters in the volume collectively apply this combined approach with different emphases, along the historiographical trajectories of “origins,” “developments,” and “innovations.”. © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Katja Krause, Luis Xavier López-Farjeat, and Nicholas A. Oschman; individual chapters, the contributors.
2023
,
Krause, Katja
,
López-Farjeat, Luis Xavier
,
Oschman, Nicholas A.
This volume brings together contributions from distinguished scholars in the history of philosophy, focusing on points of interaction between discrete historical contexts, religions, and cultures found within the premodern period. The contributions connect thinkers from antiquity through the Middle Ages and include philosophers from the three major monotheistic faiths—Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. By emphasizing premodern philosophy’s shared textual roots in antiquity, particularly the writings of Plato and Aristotle, the volume highlights points of cross-pollination between different schools, cultures, and moments in premodern thought. Approaching the complex history of the premodern world in an accessible way, the editors organize the volume so as to underscore the difficulties the premodern period poses for scholars, while accentuating the fascinating interplay between the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Latin philosophical traditions. The contributors cover many topics ranging from the aims of Aristotle’s cosmos, the adoption of Aristotle’s Organon by al-Fārābī, and the origins of the Plotiniana Arabica to the role of Ibn Gabirol’s Fons vitae in the Latin West, the ways in which Islamic philosophy shaped thirteenth-century Latin conceptions of light, Roger Bacon’s adaptation of Avicenna for use in his moral philosophy, and beyond. The volume’s focus on "source-based contextualism" demonstrates an appreciation for the rich diversity of thought found in the premodern period, while revealing methodological challenges raised by the historical study of premodern philosophy. Contextualizing Premodern Philosophy: Explorations of the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Latin Traditions is a stimulating resource for scholars and advanced students working in the history of premodern philosophy. © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Katja Krause, Luis Xavier López-Farjeat, and Nicholas A. Oschman; individual chapters, the contributors.