Hellenistic and Early Modern Philosophy

Early modern philosophers looked for inspiration to the later ancient thinkers when they rebelled against the dominant Platonic and Aristotelian traditions. The impact of the Hellenistic philosophers (principally the Stoics, Epicureans and Skeptics) on such philosophers as Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza and Locke was profound and is ripe for reassessment. This collection of essays offers precisely that. Leading historians of philosophy explore the connections between Hellenistic and early modern philosophy in ways that take advantage of new scholarly and philosophical advances. The essays display a challenging range of methods and will be an invaluable point of reference for philosophers, historians of ideas and classicists.

• Only volume showing impact of Hellenistic philosophy on early modern philosophy • Distinguished roster of contributors • Traditionally strong areas for Cambridge (ancient and early modern philosophy)

List of abbreviations; Notes on contributors; Preface Jon Miller and Brad Inwood; Introduction J. B. Schneewind; 1. Stoicism in the philosophical tradition: Spinoza, Lipsius, Butler A. A. Long; 2. Early modern uses of Hellenistic philosophy: Gassendi’s epicurean project Margaret J. Osler; 3. Locke’s offices Phillip Mitsis; 4. Patience sans Espérance: Leibniz’s critique of stoicism Donald Rutherford; 5. Epicureanism in early modern philosophy: Leibniz and his contemporaries Catherine Wilson; 6. Stoics, Grotius and Spinoza on moral deliberation Jon Miller; 7. The Discourse on the Method and the tradition of intellectual autobiography Stephen Menn; 8. Subjectivity, ancient and modern: the Cyrenaics, Sextus and Descartes Gail Fine; 9. Spinoza and Philo: the alleged mysticism in the Ethics Steven Nadler; 10. Hume’s scepticism and ancient scepticisms Donald C. Ainslie; 11. Stoic naturalism in Butler Terence Irwin; Bibliography of primary sources; Bibliography of secondary sources; Index (general); Index (of selected text passages).