Eudorus of Alexandria

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Eudorus of Alexandria (Greek: Εὔδωρος; 1st century BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, and a representative of Middle Platonism.[1] He attempted to reconstruct Plato's philosophy in terms of Pythagoreanism.[2]

He formulated a teleological principle for Platonism, derived from the Theaetetus: "as much as we can, become like God."[3] In this he believed that he had found an apt definition of the common goal of Pythagoras, Socrates, and Plato.[4] His metaphysics and cosmology combined Platonist, Pythagorean and Stoic ideas.[4]

He is mentioned by Alexander of Aphrodisias as a commentator on Aristotle's Metaphysics,[5] which he is said to have criticized. Simplicius refers to him as a Peripatetic philosopher, and relates that he had written on the Aristotelian Categories. He was a native of Alexandria, and had, like Aristo of Alexandria, written a work on the Nile.[6]

Notes

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  2. George E. Karamanolis, 2006, Plato and Aristotle in agreement?, pages 82-4. Oxford University Press
  3. Plato, Theaetetus, 176b
  4. 4.0 4.1 Eduard Zeller, Outlines of the History of Greek Philosophy, 13th edition, page 306
  5. Alexander of Aphrodisias, ad Arist. Metaph. p. 26
  6. Strabo, Geographica, xvii.

Bibliography

  • Bonazzi, Mauro, "Eudorus and early Imperial Platonism", in R.W. Sharples-R. Sorabji (eds.), Greek and Roman Philosophy 100 BC-200 AD, London, Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies Supplement 2007, Vol. II, pp. 365-378.
  • Mazzarelli, Claudio. Raccolta e interpretazione delle testimonianze e dei frammenti del medioplatonico Eudoro di Alessandria, in Rivista di Filosofia Neoscolastica, 77 (1985), pp. 197-209 e 535-555 (Greek text of the extant fragments with Italian transltion).