Overview

Necessity and Philosophy in Plato’s Republic offers an interpretation of the concept of necessity in what is perhaps Plato’s most read dialogue. The word “necessity” (anagkē) appears hundreds of times in the text in many grammatical forms, about as often as the frequently studied term “good.” Yet, there exists little commentary on the ontological status of necessity. Russell Winslow argues that when the reader analyzes the Republic through the lens of necessity, a novel interpretation emerges. On the one hand, the concept of necessity articulated in the Republic is original, insofar as it includes phenomena not commonly attributed to necessity. Namely, necessity governs not only those motions that do not vary and cannot be otherwise, but also those that wander randomly by erotic desire and by chance. Necessity in the Republic, thus, occasions a rethinking of what this crucial concept might mean for us. On the other hand, interpreting the Republic through the lens of necessity allows a reading of Plato to develop that emphasizes the structures of finitude in human life and the limits of reason. This book argues, therefore, that philosophy remains subtended and limited by necessity in unavoidable ways.

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9781666958577

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""In the past few decades, there has been significant attention paid to the ways in which vegetal and non-human animal life figures centrally in the drama of Plato's masterpiece and to the ways in which these representations compare to the depiction of material and soul, as creation and creature, in Timaeus. Winslow draws upon the findings of this important work to offer the first comprehensive analysis of the system of necessity that undergirds, or perhaps to stay with his organicism, provides the fertile soil for the contest of the just and unjust soul that constitutes the central argumentative concern of Republic. However intrinsically attuned other readers of Plato may be, we all stand to benefit greatly from careful consideration of this genuinely novel reading of this incredibly well-read text."" ""It's uncommon at this point in the history of philosophy to offer something novel regarding Plato, let alone about his Republic, but Russell Winslow has done so in the beautifully written and well-argued Necessity and Philosophy in Plato's Republic. Winslow reinterprets the Republic on the basis of a ""destabilizing irrationality"" at work within its concept of necessity, an irrationality that betrays a tragic finitude inherent in human life and logos. Encountering this finitude, the book argues, produces the art forms of tragedy, comedy, and philosophy. Winslow's book is a welcomed challenge to revisit and re-think a dialogue that has become perhaps only too familiar.""

"""In the past few decades, there has been significant attention paid to the ways in which vegetal and non-human animal life figures centrally in the drama of Plato's masterpiece and to the ways in which these representations compare to the depiction of material and soul, as creation and creature, in Timaeus. Winslow draws upon the findings of this important work to offer the first comprehensive analysis of the system of necessity that undergirds, or perhaps to stay with his organicism, provides the fertile soil for the contest of the just and unjust soul that constitutes the central argumentative concern of Republic. However intrinsically attuned other readers of Plato may be, we all stand to benefit greatly from careful consideration of this genuinely novel reading of this incredibly well-read text."" --Michael Weinman, Indiana University"

Author Information

Russell Winslow teaches philosophy at St. John's College, Santa Fe.

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