Metriopátheia kaì apátheia in later Neoplatonism: Olympiodorus of Alexandria

Abstract

The conserved readings of Olympidorus on some dialogues of Plato imply an audience with limited philosophical experience as opposed to those carried out by Proclus, and even Damascius. However, such readings reveal an acute sensitivity to the ethical issues of the early Platonic dialogues and their dramatic context. It is commonly recognized that the Neoplatonic school of Alexandria, compared to the school of Athens, gives more room to Aristotelianism in its elaboration of some philosophical doctrines. In this sense, the present work tries to investigate such consideration in one of his conserved works, On Plato First Alcibiades. By discussing the skopós of the dialogue and the reading of Proclus and Damascius, Olympiodorus seems to give rise to more than one skopós: political as well as cathartic and contemplative. All this within the framework of the hierarchy of Neoplatonic virtues, in which both the Aristotelian imprint and the Stoic influence are perceived.