Philostratus: Lives of the Sophists. Eunapius: Lives of the Philosophers (Loeb Classical Library No. 134) [Hardcover]

Philostratus (Author), Eunapius (Author), Wilmer C. Wright (Translator)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0674991494 | ISBN-13: 978-0674991491 | Publication Date: January 1, 1921

Of the distinguished Lemnian family of Philostrati, Flavius Philostratus 'the Athenian', ca. 170–205 CE, was a Greek sophist who studied at Athens and later lived in Rome. He was author of the admirable Life of Apollonius of Tyana (Loeb nos. 16 and 17) and of Lives of the Sophists, a treasury of information about notable sophists. Philostratus's sketches of sophists in action yield a fascinating picture of the predominant influence of Sophistic in the educational, social, and political life of the Empire in the second and third centuries.

The Greek sophist and historian Eunapius was born at Sardis in 347 CE, but went to Athens to study and lived much of his life there teaching rhetoric and possibly medicine. He was initiated into the mysteries and was hostile to Christians. His Lives of Philosophers and Sophists (mainly contemporary with himself) is our only source for knowledge of Neo-Platonism in the latter part of the fourth century.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 640 pages
• Publisher: Loeb Classical Library (January 1, 1921)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674991494
• ISBN-13: 978-0674991491
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #433,925 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3.0 out of 5 stars One-Thousand Years of Hellenistic Hagiography, December 2, 2007

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This review is from: Philostratus: Lives of the Sophists. Eunapius: Lives of the Philosophers (Loeb Classical Library No. 134) (Hardcover)

Though these two late classic authors are not that well known, many of the men they sought to immortalize by their literary efforts are. In Philostratus' Lives of the Sophists (circa 400 B.C.-200 A.D.), some of the major proponents of the Pre-Socratic, Platonic and Aristotelian doctrines are catalogued, of which Protagoras, Carneades, Dio Chrysostom and Aristocles comprise, to name a few. And in Eunapius' Lives of the Philosophers (circa 200 A.D.-400 A.D.), the deeds of illustrious and innovative Neo-Platonic philosophers and sages like Plotinus, Porphyry and Iamblichus are documented as well. Between the two historiographers, nearly a thousand years of intellectual and secular history are covered within the sphere of the Greco-Roman tradition. Now the aim of this tandem of authors seems to have been to write a Hellenistic Lives of the Saints, so to speak, as the rising tide of Christianity more and more over time began to pose a threat to the longstanding culture of pagan mythology and philosophy within the Empire. In Eunapius, this is very apparent. For the centre-piece and hero of the work is the emperor Julian; and the tales of miraculous deeds and of many disciples flocking to the Platonic cause reminds one of the events described in the New Testament, but only in a Hellenistic decorum. The two works, taken as a whole, are generally fair in their historiography. However, there are many digressions and regressions in their narratives, along with a petty carelessness for chronological coherency. Yet these two works have been used by historians and philosophers for centuries and have thus proven their worth.