Online Lecture on «The Friend, the Eccentric, and the Jerk: How much did the Personalities of Philosophers Shape the Fate of Alexandrian and Athenian Teaching?» by Edward J. Watts
Within the framework of the Research Project “Between Athens & Alexandria. Platonism, 3rd-7th c. CE” (2022-2024) supported by the A. S. Onassis Foundation, the IMS-FORTH, in collaboration with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina’s Center for Hellenistic Studies (ACHS), organizes a monthly online lecture series on late antique Neoplatonism (3rd-7th c. CE).
The series hosts invited talks in English or French by leading scholars in the field. Lectures take place via Zoom on Mondays or Tuesdays at 7pm Athens & Alexandria. Prior registration is required.
The topic of the 2022 talks is “Alexandrian and Athenian Neoplatonism”, with a special focus on Plotinus (204/5-270) as well as on later Neoplatonic developments on, and criticisms to, Plotinus.
All welcome!
Οn Monday Feb. 28, at 19:00 (Athens time) Prof. Edward J. Watts (History at the University of California, San Diego) will give a lecture on «The Friend, the Eccentric, and the Jerk: How much did the Personalities of Philosophers Shape the Fate of Alexandrian and Athenian Teaching?».
Abstract
Historians of philosophy are often challenged to discern the relative impacts of the ideas and the actions of ancient philosophers. The ideas of these thinkers often stand alone in an almost disembodied fashion, set apart from the physicality of a philosopher, his or her personality, and even their intellectual development over time. This talk considers the tension between the people, the ideas, and the social context in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria and investigates the way in which genial and difficult personalities influence the fate of Neoplatonic schools in the two cities in the late fifth and early sixth centuries AD.
You can register in advance to our seminar meetings using the following link.