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Selected Bibliography on Plotinus' Criticism of Aristotle's and Stoics Categories (Enneads VI, 1-3) [42-44]

 

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BIBLIOGRAPHICAL RESOURCES ON PLOTINUS

Bibliographies available on-line:

Main printed Bibliographies:

  1. Mariën Bert. Bibliografia critica degli studi plotiniani. In Plotino. Enneadi. Bari: Laterza 1949. pp. 389-651
    In: Plotino, Enneadi. Prima versione integra e commentario critico a cura di Vincenzo Cilento. Vol. I: Enn. I, II, 1947; Vol. II: Enn. IIII, IV, 1948; Vol. III, Parte I, Enn. V, VI, 1949; Vol. III, Parte II Commento ad Enn. V, VI e Bibliografia, 1949.
  2. Bonetti Aldo, "Studi intorno alla filosofia di Plotino," Rivista di Filosofia Neo-Scolastica 63: 487-511 (1971).
    Review of the most significant studies on Neoplatonism beginning with Eduard Zeller (1903) up to Pietro Prini (1968).
  3. Blumenthal Henry J. Plotinus in the light of twenty years' scholarship, 1951-1971. In Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt (ANRW). Teil II: Principat. Band 36: Philosophie, Wissenschaften, Technik. I. Teilband: Philosophie (Historische Einleitung; Platonismus). Edited by Haase Wolfgang. Berlin: de Gruyter 1987. pp. 528-570
    "The text of this article was completed in January 1973. - Though some important work appeared thereafter, the general picture remained substantially the same four years later, when the bibliography was added. This, combined with supervening pressures, dissuaded me from attempting to rewrite the whole Forschungsbericht at that time (April 1977). Details of work known to me up to the beginning of 1977 which had not been taken into account in the article itself will be found in the bibliography, which was compiled then, at the editors' request. It also includes some works that were not thought worth mentioning in the original article. In view of the constantly impending but repeatedly delayed imminent publication of the volume in which it appears, I have made no further changes since 1977." p. 528
    "The year 1951 easily chose itself for the start of a survey of recent work on Plotinus. It saw two events of outstanding importance. First the appearance of the first volume of HENRY and SCHWYZER'S edition, undoubtedly the most important contribution to Plotinian scholarship since Porphyry published the 'Enneads'. In the same year was published SCHWYZER'S article 'Plotinos' in PAULY-WISSOWA, the first comprehensive and scholarly survey of Plotinus. It remains the best and most reliable introduction to the study of Plotinus even after the considerable progress that has been made over the last twenty years. This article will not attempt to emulate SCHWYZER'S work, or to produce what could be little more than a condensed version of it, but will refer the reader to it for an introduction, and much more, to the subject: he will find that all work of any importance up to that time has there been taken into account. Instead it will try to show what has been done since, against a background of the hitherto accepted position, and to indicate some of the more important tasks for the immediate future." p. 529
  4. Corrigan Kevin and O'Cleirigh Padraigh. The course of Plotinian scholarship from 1971-1986. In Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt (ANRW). Teil II: Principat. Band 36: Philosophie, Wissenschaften, Technik. I. Teilband: Philosophie (Historische Einleitung; Platonismus). Edited by Haase Wolfgang. Berlin: de Gruyter 1987. pp. 571-623
    See in particular: The Categories and the genera of Being pp. 579-580.
  5. Dufour Richard, "Plotinus: A Bibliography 1950-2000," Phronesis.A Journal for Ancient Philosophy 46: 235-411 (2001).
    Compiled by Richard Dufour with help in translation from Hanneke Teunissen.
    Contents: Acknowledgments 235; Introduction; 237-239; Reference Works 241; Abbreviations 243; List of collected volumes, miscellanea and Conference proceedings 253; Greek text and translations 257; Studies 271 [1542 entries] 271; Index of Themes 395; Index of Authors and Themes 401; Index of Treatises 409; Index of Greek Words 411.
    Reprinted as separate volume: Leiden, Brill, 2002.

    From the Introduction: "This bibliography covers the fruits of Plotinian scholarship over the last fifty years (1950-2000). Completed with four different indexes, it will provide students and scholars with easy access to modern Plotinian studies.
    My work derives much inspiration from Luc Brisson's bibliography of Plato, which served as an exemplary model and the principles of which have guided me throughout the compilation of this bibliography. With the exception of the indexes, the presentation of my bibliography follows the general principle of Luc Brisson's work in Lustrum (now published by Vrin).
    This bibliography aims to be exhaustive. References were systematically taken from indexes, Bibliographies, journals, conference proceedings, annuals and collections of articles. A full list of these is given later.
    Fewer references are listed for 1995 and the following years due to the fact that most bibliographical reference works have not yet reached the Year 2000. L'Année Philologique, for example, has just published the volume covering the year 1997. For this reason we not only miss three full years of indexing up to 2000, but also supplements to the preceding years. It is possible, in fact, that the volume covering the year 2000 will provide bibliographic references from 1995 to 2000. In order to close the gap, I studied library catalogues, frequented bookshops and consulted most recent issues of the major journals. These efforts, however, can never contend the incredible amount of work by institutions like L'Année Philologique. As a result, the exhaustiveness of this bibliography is slowly reduced as we near the new millennium.
    (...)
    Four different indexes may be consulted referring to all information in the respective entries. In order, these indexes are arranged by:
    1) Theme. Key-words are arranged in alphabetical order.
    2) Author-theme. All entries which include an author other than Plotinus are listed in this index. Sub-categories have been added in order to facilitate specific searches. It is thus possible to search for all articles pertaining to, for example, Plotinus and Aristotle.
    3) Treatise. Adhering to the Porphyrian system of classification of the Enneads, a list of studies concerning a specific treatise has been assembled. Only references which explicitly refer to one treatise are listed. For example, not every article concerning the Gnostics is automatically included in Column II, 9. All references to Gnostics may be found in the index "Author-theme" under the heading "Gnostics".
    4) Greek word. All words and expressions in ancient Greek occurring in the entries are listed in transliterated form." pp. 237-239
  6. Dufour Richard, "Bibliographie Plotinienne: 2000-2009," Études Platoniciennes 6: 295-365 (2009).

CRITICAL EDITIONS OF THE ENNEADS

  1. Plotini Opera. Edited by Schwyzer Hans-Rudolf and Henry Paul. Paris: Desclée de Brouwer 1951.
    Editio maior: vol. I: Porphyrii Vita Plotini / Enneades 1-3 (1951); vol. II Enneades 4-5. / Plotiniana Arabica [The Theology of Aristotle] / ad codicum fidem anglice vertit Geoffrey Lewis (1959); vol.III: Enneas 6 (1973).
  2. Plotini Opera. Edited by Schwyzer Hans-Rudolf and Henry Paul. Oxford : Clarendon Press 1964.
    Editio minor: vol. I: Porphyrii vita Plotini. Enneades 1-3 (1964); vol. II; Enneades 4-5 (1977); vol. III: Enneas 6 (1982).

TRANSLATIONS OF ENNEADS VI 1-3 [42-44]

  1. Enneads. London: Heinemann 1966.
    Greek text with and English translation by A. H. Armstrong in seven volumes.
  2. Traités 42-44. Sur les genres de l'être, I, II et III.Paris: GF Flammarion 2008.
    Présentés, traduits et annotés par Luc Brisson.
  3. Plotino. Enneadi VI 1-3. Trattati 42-44 Sui Generi dell'Essere. Napoli: Loffredo 1994.
    Introduzione, testo greco, traduzione, commento a cura di Margherita Isnardi Parente.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON ENNEADS VI 1-3 [42-44] (in progress...)

  1. Anton John P. Plotinus' Approach to Categorical Theory. In The Significance of Neoplatonism. Edited by Harris Ramson Baine. Norfolk: International Society for Neoplatonism Studies 1976. pp. 83-100
  2. Aubenque Pierre. Plotin et Dexippe exégètes des Catégories. In Aristotelica. Mélanges offerts à M. de Corte. Bruxelles: Ousia 1985. pp. 7-40
  3. Aubenque Pierre. Une occasion manquée: la genèse avortée de la distinction entre l' "étant" et le "quelque chose". In Études sur le Sophiste de Platon. Edited by Aubenque Pierre. Napoli: Bibliopolis 1991. pp. 365-387
    Réimprimé dans: P. Aubenque - Problèmes aristotéliciens. I. Philosophie théorique - Paris, Vrin 2009 pp. 307-320
  4. Baltzly Dirk C., "Porphyry and Plotinus on the reality of relations," Journal of Neoplatonic Studies 6: 49-75 (1998).
    "Porphyry and Plotinus disagree over the question whether Aristotle was successful in dividing the world at its joints in the Categories, with Plotinus (Enn. VI, 1-3) arguing that he was not successful, Porphyry (in his commentary on the Categories) arguing that he was. Porphyry, however, has the clearer account of relations and relational properties and, consequently, Plotinus' account does not adequately meet objections to the autonomy of Aristotle's category of relation. This is a problem for Plotinus because he retains the category of relation in his own five-fold scheme of categories."
  5. Bauloye Laurence and Rutten Christian. Genres et catégories chez Aristote, chez Plotin et chez Averroès. In Platon et Aristote. Dialectique et Métaphysique. Edited by Tsimbidaros Ilias. Bruxelles : Ousia 2004. pp. 103-119
  6. Caluori Damian. Plotinus on Primary Being. In Substantia - Sic et Non. Eine Geschichte des Substanzbegriffs von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart in Einzelbeiträgen. Edited by Gutschmidt Holger, Lang-Balestra Antonella, and Segalerba Gianluigi. Frankfurt: Ontos Verlag 2008. pp. 85-103
  7. Chiaradonna Riccardo. Sostanza Movimento Analogia. Plotino critico di Aristotele. Napoli: Bibliopolis 2002.
  8. Chiaradonna Riccardo. The categories and the status of the physical world: Plotinus and the Neo-Platonic commentators. In Philosophy, science and exegesis in Greek, Arabic and Latin Commentaries (Vol. One). Edited by Adamson Peter, Baltussen Han, and Stone M.W.F. London: Institute of Classical Studies, University of London 2004. pp. 121-136
  9. Collette Bernard. Dialectique et hénologie chez Plotin. Bruxelles: Ousia 2002.
    "Qu'est que le monde intelligible pour Plotin et comment l'homme peut-il y accéder ? Telles sont les deux questions à la base de cet ouvrage dans lequel l'auteur a choisi de confronter le dire et le faire, la doctrine métaphysique et la pratique philosophique. Pour y répondre, il analyse, dans un premier temps, la théorie des facultés de connaître et celle du langage telles qu'elles se laissent dessiner au fil des Ennéades, afin de mettre en évidence à la fois les potentialités propres à chacune de ces facultés et le type de discours philosophique le plus apte à révéler le monde intelligible dans toute sa complexité. De la première recherche, il ressort que : ce que Platon, dans le Sophiste, appelle la " science des hommes libres " apparaît, chez Plotin, comme la "partie précieuse de la philosophie" dont le lieu propre est le Noûs. Dans la deuxième partie de l'ouvrage, l'auteur explique comment, dans le traité VI.2 (43) intitulé Des genres premiers de l'Être, Plotin se sert de la méthode dialectique pour révéler les cinq genres premiers que sont l'être, le mouvement, le repos, le même et l'autre. Par là, il nous donne l'occasion de rentrer dans l'un des plus difficiles traités plotiniens et aussi l'un des moins commentés, où le monde intelligible se dévoile comme une suntaxis, un système d'ordonnancement, à travers les deux structures héno-logiques que sont le genre-espèces et le tout-parties."
  10. Collette Bernard. Plotin et l'ordonnancement de l'être. Paris: Vrin 2007.
  11. De Haas Frans A.J., "Did Plotinus and Porphyry disagree on Aristotle's Categories?," Phronesis.A Journal for Ancient Philosophy 46: 492-526 (2001).
    "In this paper I propose a reading of Plotinus Enneads VI.1-3 [41-43] On the genera of being which regards this treatise as a coherent whole in which Aristotle's Categories is explored in a way that turns it into a decisive contribution to Plotinus' Platonic ontology. In addition, I claim that Porphyry's Isagoge and commentaries on the Categories start by adopting Plotinus' point of view, including his notion of genus, and proceed by explaining its consequences for a more detailed reading of the Categories. After Plotinus' integration of the Categories into the Platonic frame of thought Porphyry saw the possibilities of exploiting the Peripatetic tradition both as a means to support the Platonic interpretation of the Categories and as a source for solutions to traditional questions. His allegiance to a division of being into ten, and his emphasis on semantics rather than ontology can be explained from this orientation. In the light of our investigation the alleged disagreement between Plotinus and Porphyry on the Categories changes its appearance completely. There are differences, but these can be best explained as confirmation and extension of Plotinus' perspective on the Categories and its role in Platonism."
  12. De Haas Frans A.J. Context and strategy of Plotinus' treatise on The Genera of Being (Enn. VI 1-3 [42-44]). In Aristotle e i suoi esegeti nepolatonici. Logica e ontologia nelle interpretazioni greche e arabe. Edited by Celluprica Vincenza and D'Ancona Cristina. Napoli: Biblipolis 2004. pp. 39-53
    Atti del Convegno Internazionale. Roma 19-20 ottobre 2001.
  13. Donini Pierluigi. Plotino e la tradizione dei neoplatonici e dei commentatori aristotelici. In Plotino e l'ontolologia. Edited by Bianchetti Matteo. Milano: Albo Versorio 2006. pp. 17-32
  14. Dufour Richard, "Plotin et les stoïciens," Études Platoniciennes 3: 177-194 (2006).
  15. Evangeliou Christos. The ontological basis of Plotinus' criticism of Aristotle's theory of categories. In The structure of Being. A neoplatonic approach. Edited by Harris Ramson Baine. Albany: State University of New York Press 1982. pp. 73-82
  16. Evangeliou Christos, "Aristotle's doctrine of predicables and Porphyry's Isagoge," Journal of the History of Philosopy 23: 15-34 (1985).
    "Porphyry's Isagoge was intended as an introductory study to the dialectical methods by way of clarifying the meanings and logical functions of the five predicable terms. To consider the Isagoge as an introduction to Aristotle's Topics or Categories and to criticize Porphyry for failing to present accurately the doctrines of Aristotle is therefore unfair and misleading."
  17. Evangeliou Christos, "The Plotinian reduction of Aristotle's Categories," Ancient Philosophy 7: 147-162 (1987).
    Reprinted in: A. Preus, J. P. Antony (eds.) - Aristotle's ontology - Albany, State University of New York Press, 1992, pp. 47-67
  18. Evangeliou Christos. Aristotle's Categories and Porphyry. Leiden: Brill 1988.
  19. Evangeliou Christos, "Plotinus on the Stoic set of categories," Journal of Neoplatonic Studies 2 (1994).
    "In Ennead VI, 1 Plotinus raises objections to what he regarded as a Stoic set of categories comparable to Aristotle's. Both were unacceptable to Plotinus because he wanted to revive the Platonic genera of being."
  20. Evangeliou Christos. Plotinus' criticism of materialism. In Neoplatonism and Indian philosophy. Edited by Gregorios Paulos. New York: State of New York University Press 2001. pp. 199-209
    "In Ennead VI. 1, Plotinus criticized not only Aristotle's set of categories, but also what he considered as the Stoic set of categories. He found both sets of categories unacceptable for many reasons, but especially for their inapplicability to the intelligible realm of being which, for him, is more important than the realm of sensible becoming. The study examines critically the reasons for Plotinus's criticism of the Stoic doctrine of categories, to the logic of which he objected primarily because of its presupposed ontological materialism."
  21. Evangeliou Christos. Plotinus' Set of Categories for the Kosmos Aisthetos. In Neoplatonism and Nature. Studies in Plotinus' Enneads. Edited by Wagner Michael F. Albany: State University of New York Press 2002. pp. 209-239
    "In Ennead VI. 1, Plotinus criticized Aristotle's categories one by one. He found the Aristotelian doctrine of categories as a whole unacceptable for many reasons, but especially for its inapplicability to the intelligible realm of being and its superficiality regarding the sensible realm of becoming, for which it was intended. In Ennead VI.3, he proposed a new set of categories for the kosmos aisthetos, which is characterized by a reduction of Aristotle's set by fifty per cent and by the introduction of motion as one of the five categories. The study examines critically Plotinus's reasons for such a radical reduction and such a Platonic innovation."
  22. Gerson LLoyd P. Plotinus. New York: Routledge 1994.
    See in particular Chapter Five: Categories and the tradition pp. 79-103: 1. The criticism of Stoic categories 79; 2. The criticism of Aristotle's categories 84; 3. Aristotelian essentialism 93, 4. The Plotininan categories 96-103 (Notes to Chapter Five: 256-261).
  23. Graeser Andreas. Plotinus and the Stoics. A preliminary study. Leiden: Brill 1972.
    See in particular Part II. Essays - Chapter IV: Plotinus on the Stoic Categories of Being pp. 87-100.
  24. Gurtler Gary M., "The origin of genera. Ennead VI, 2,[43],20," Dionysius 12: 3-15 (1988).
    "Plotinus' apparent incapability of accomplishing his general purpose in VI, 1-3 [42-44] and his specific task in VI, 2[43] 20 of relating Neoplatonic ontology and Aristotelian logic is due to a mistranslation and misinterpretation of two sections, vi, 2, 20, 4-6 and vi, 2, 20, 20-32."
  25. Hadot Pierre. L'harmonie des philosophies de Plotin et d'Aristote selon Prophyre dans le Commentaire de Dexippe sur les Catégories. In Plotino e il neoplatonismo in Oriente e in Occidente. Edited by Cerulli Enrico. Roma: Accademia nazionale dei Lincei 1974. pp. 31-47
    Atti del Convegno internazionale. (Roma, 5-9 ottobre 1970)
  26. Henry Paul. Trois apories orales de Plotin sur les Catégories d'Aristote. In Zetesis. Festschrift für E. de Strycker. Antwerpen/Utrecht: De Nederlandsche Boekhandel 1973. pp. 234-265
  27. Henry Paul. Apories orales de Plotin sur les Catégories d'Aristote. In Aristoteles. Werk und Wirkung. Paul Moraux zum 65 Geburtstag gewidmet - Band 2: Kommentierung, Uberlieferung, Nachleben. Edited by Wiesner Jürgen. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter 1987. pp. 120-156
  28. Nebel Gerhard. Plotins Kategorien der intelligiblen Welt. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der Idee. Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr 1929.
  29. Rutten Christian. Les catégories du monde sensible dans les Ennéades de Plotin. Paris: Les Belles Lettres 1961.
  30. Strange Steven K. Plotinus, Porphyry, and the Neoplatonic interpretation of the Categories. In Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt, vol. 36: Philosophie, Wissenschaften, Technik. II. Teilband: Philosophie (Platonismus, [Forts.]; Aristotelismus). Edited by Haase Wolfgang. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter 1987. pp. 955-974
  31. Wurm Klaus. Substanz und Qualitat. Ein Beitrag zur Interpretation der Plotinischen Traktate VI 1, 2 und 3. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter 1973.

 

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