Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self
<p>Epicurus’ philosophical project is predicated on its eudaimonistic efficacy. His letters and maxims are not only describing a way of life, they actually instantiate his practice of care and reform. To memorise and understand them is meant to actually improve on one’s capacity to reach and m...
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | Greek, Ancient (to 1453) English |
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2020
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| _version_ | 1797112383167004672 |
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| author | Hirschi, SJ |
| author2 | Reinhardt, T |
| author_facet | Reinhardt, T Hirschi, SJ |
| author_sort | Hirschi, SJ |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | <p>Epicurus’ philosophical project is predicated on its eudaimonistic efficacy. His letters and maxims are not only describing a way of life, they actually instantiate his practice of care and reform. To memorise and understand them is meant to actually improve on one’s capacity to reach and maintain a state of ataraxia. They are written and designed to have an impact. Thus, to read Epicurus solely as a theoretician is to turn a blind eye to his agenda. This thesis advocates a stronger reading that takes Epicurus’ intentions at face value. It brings the doctrine closer to its application, through an examination of the readers and intended practitioners of Epicurus’ philosophy: human beings.</p>
<p>The corpus is made of the three letters and the doctrines transmitted by Diogenes Laertius in book 10 of the Lives of Eminent Philosophers. Each chapter is dedicated to one of these texts and subdivided into two main sections. In the first section, close readings and textual interpretations with philosophical focus build a heuristic analysis of Epicurus’ conception of what human beings are and do. In the second one, lexical analysis and a review of person deixis offer a text-centred counterpart. Together, they delineate the human beings according to, and in, Epicurus’ philosophy. In the case of the chapters on the Letter to Pythocles and the corpus of the Kuriai Doxai, special attention is paid to the problem of their respective authenticity by focusing on the function of those texts, also essential in assessing their form and content.</p>
<p>This research yields important insights into the pragmatics of Epicurus’ writings, especially with respect to their use, their format, and their functioning in one’s efforts to become and stay happy. Such results are invaluable to our understanding why, and how, Epicurus thought that his teaching can be efficacious and therapeutic.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T08:23:27Z |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oxford-uuid:93194e4e-c26c-43a4-af21-de0b8176343e |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | Greek, Ancient (to 1453) English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T08:23:27Z |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:93194e4e-c26c-43a4-af21-de0b8176343e2024-02-09T08:10:46ZEpicurus' human beings - beyond person and selfThesishttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_db06uuid:93194e4e-c26c-43a4-af21-de0b8176343eKnowledge, Theory ofAuthenticity (Philosophy)Ethics, AncientPhilosophical anthropologyIdentity (Philosophical concept)Philosophy, AncientAgent (Philosophy)Forms of addressDeixisParrhēsia (The Greek word)HedonismGrammar, Comparative and general--ClusivitySelfGreek, Ancient (to 1453)EnglishHyrax Deposit2020Hirschi, SJReinhardt, T<p>Epicurus’ philosophical project is predicated on its eudaimonistic efficacy. His letters and maxims are not only describing a way of life, they actually instantiate his practice of care and reform. To memorise and understand them is meant to actually improve on one’s capacity to reach and maintain a state of ataraxia. They are written and designed to have an impact. Thus, to read Epicurus solely as a theoretician is to turn a blind eye to his agenda. This thesis advocates a stronger reading that takes Epicurus’ intentions at face value. It brings the doctrine closer to its application, through an examination of the readers and intended practitioners of Epicurus’ philosophy: human beings.</p> <p>The corpus is made of the three letters and the doctrines transmitted by Diogenes Laertius in book 10 of the Lives of Eminent Philosophers. Each chapter is dedicated to one of these texts and subdivided into two main sections. In the first section, close readings and textual interpretations with philosophical focus build a heuristic analysis of Epicurus’ conception of what human beings are and do. In the second one, lexical analysis and a review of person deixis offer a text-centred counterpart. Together, they delineate the human beings according to, and in, Epicurus’ philosophy. In the case of the chapters on the Letter to Pythocles and the corpus of the Kuriai Doxai, special attention is paid to the problem of their respective authenticity by focusing on the function of those texts, also essential in assessing their form and content.</p> <p>This research yields important insights into the pragmatics of Epicurus’ writings, especially with respect to their use, their format, and their functioning in one’s efforts to become and stay happy. Such results are invaluable to our understanding why, and how, Epicurus thought that his teaching can be efficacious and therapeutic.</p> |
| spellingShingle | Knowledge, Theory of Authenticity (Philosophy) Ethics, Ancient Philosophical anthropology Identity (Philosophical concept) Philosophy, Ancient Agent (Philosophy) Forms of address Deixis Parrhēsia (The Greek word) Hedonism Grammar, Comparative and general--Clusivity Self Hirschi, SJ Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title | Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title_full | Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title_fullStr | Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title_full_unstemmed | Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title_short | Epicurus' human beings - beyond person and self |
| title_sort | epicurus human beings beyond person and self |
| topic | Knowledge, Theory of Authenticity (Philosophy) Ethics, Ancient Philosophical anthropology Identity (Philosophical concept) Philosophy, Ancient Agent (Philosophy) Forms of address Deixis Parrhēsia (The Greek word) Hedonism Grammar, Comparative and general--Clusivity Self |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hirschisj epicurushumanbeingsbeyondpersonandself |