Plato's Cratylus

by David Sedley

Overview

This book presents a global reintrepretation of the Cratylus, which bears on the relationship of language to knowledge, a topic that has never ceased to be of central philosophical importance. It is designed to be accessible to anyone interested either in Plato or in the history of linguistic thought. The main text does not presuppose prior expertise in Plato or knowledge of Greek; such scholarly aspects are confined to the footnotes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521584920
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	11/06/2003
Series:	Cambridge Studies in the Dialogues of Plato
Pages:	204
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.63(d)

About the Author

David Sedley is Laurence Professor of Ancient Philosophy in the University of Cambridge. He is the author, with A. A. Long, of The Hellenistic Philosophers (1987; Vol. 1: HB 0521 255619; PB 0521 275563; Vol. 2 SBN: HB 0521 255627; PB 0521 275571), author of Lucretius and the Transformation of Greek Wisdom (1998: 0521 570328) and editor of The Cambridge Companion to Greek and Roman Philosophy (2003; HB 0521 772850; PB 0521 775035).

Table of Contents

Preface; 1. Author and text; 2. Plato the etymologist; 3. Linguistic science; 4. Etymology at work; 5. The dominance of flux; 6. The limits of etymology; 7. A Platonic outcome; References; Index locorum; General index.

Editorial Reviews

"...impressive monography...even those sceptical of whether Plato was ever a Platonist might find Sedley's double-dating of the Cratylus persuasive, and...somewhat liberating."
-A.D. Carpenter, Department of Philosophy, University of St. Andrews, Ancient Philosophy

From the Publisher