Epicurus on Freedom

ISBN-13: 9780521846967 / Angielski / Twarda / 2005 / 186 str.

Tim O'Keefe (Georgia State University)

Opis

The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus (341-271/0 BCE) has attracted much contemporary interest. Tim O'Keefe argues that the sort of freedom which Epicurus wanted to preserve is significantly different from the 'free will' which philosophers debate today, and that in its emphasis on rational action, has much closer affinities with Aristotle's thought than with current preoccupations. His original and provocative book will be of interest to a wide range of readers in Hellenistic philosophy.

Recenzje

'… a benchmark for everyone who wants to become familiar with the arguments and wants to develop them further. It is bound to play a fundamental role in current debates about the problem of free will and determinism in Epicurean philosophy.' Rhizai

Spis treści

Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Introduction; 1. What sort of an incompatibilist is Epicurus?; 2. Lucretius on the swerve and Voluntas; 3. Aristotle and Epicurus on the origins of character and action; 4. Epicurus' reductionalist response to democritean fatalism; 5. The swerve and collisions; 6. The swerve and fate; Epilogue: Epicurus and the invention of libertarian free will; Appendix: Some texts; References; Index.