Personality in Greek Epic, Tragedy, and Philosophy: The Self in Dialogue

This is a major study of conceptions of selfhood and personality in Homer and Greek Tragedy and Philosophy. The focus is on the norms of personality in Greek psychology and ethics. Gill argues that the key to understanding Greek thought of this type is to counteract the subjective and individualistic aspects of our own thinking about the person. He defines an "objective-participant" conception of personality, symbolized by the idea of the person as an interlocutor in a series of psychological and ethical dialogues.

Literature & Fiction

Gill, Christopher

History & Criticism

Oxford University Press

This is a major study of conceptions of selfhood and personality in Homer and Greek Tragedy and Philosophy. The focus is on the norms of personality in Greek psychology and ethics. Gill argues that the key to understanding Greek thought of this type is to counteract the subjective and individualistic aspects of our own thinking about the person. He defines an "objective-participant" conception of personality, symbolized by the idea of the person as an interlocutor in a series of psychological and ethical dialogues.

Clarendon Press

The Structured Self in Hellenistic and Roman Thought

Christopher Gill offers a new analysis of what is innovative in Hellenistic--especially Stoic and Epicurean--philosophical thinking about selfhood and personality. His wide-ranging discussion of Stoic and Epicurean ideas is illustrated by a more detailed examination of the Stoic theory of the passions and a new account of the history of this theory. His study also tackles issues about the historical study of selfhood and the relationship between philosophy and literature, especially the presentation of the collapse of character in Plutrarch's Lives, Senecan tragedy, and Virgil's Aeneid. As all Greek and Latin is translated, this book presents original ideas about ancient concepts of personality to a wide range of readers.

Product Description At a time of unprecedented interest in Stoicism among scholars and the general public, this book offers a sustained examination of the core Stoic ethical claims and their significance for modern moral theory. The first part considers the Stoic ideas of happiness as the life according to nature and virtue as expertise in leading a happy life and explores the senses of 'nature' (both human and universal) relevant for ethics. The second part studies Stoic thinking on ethical development (learning to live naturally), bringing out the interconnections between growth in ethical understanding, forming social relationships, and emotional responses. The third part discusses how Stoic ethics, as interpreted here, can contribute to contemporary moral theory, especially virtue ethics. It suggests that Stoic thinking on the virtue-happiness relationship offers a cogent alternative to Aristotle, currently the main ancient prototype for virtue ethical theory, and it explores ways in which Stoicideas on human and universal nature can contribute to modern ethical debates, notably on how to respond effectively to the pressing challenge of climate breakdown. It also highlights the value of Stoic guidance for virtue ethics as well as contemporary 'life-guidance'. A further distinctive feature of the book is the close and extended study of key sources for Stoic ethics, including Cicero's On Ends and On Duties, which enables readers of different kinds to interpret these source for themselves. About the Author Christopher Gill, Emeritus Professor of Ancient Thought, University of ExeterChristopher Gill is Emeritus Professor of Ancient Thought at the University of Exeter. His interests focus on Greek and Roman ethics and psychology, including ancient ideas of personality and self, and the philosophical therapy of emotions. He is also concerned with the relationship between ancient and modern ideas on these topics. He has published a number of monographs and edited volumes on these subjects, especially with Oxford University Press.

Learning to Live Naturally: Stoic Ethics and its Modern Significance

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Four related themes in Greek thought are examined in this book: (1) personality and self, (2) ethics and values (3) individuals and communities, and (4) the idea of nature as a moral norm. Although the focus is on Greek philosophy (the Presocratics, Plato, Aristotle, and the Hellenistic period), links between philosophy and literature or the wider culture are also explored. The book combines a survey of recent scholarship on these topics with the author's own interpretations. It can be used by students or teachers of classical studies or philosophy as an introduction to key themes and issues in Greek ethics or psychology. One aspect of the subject given special emphasis is the relationship between ancient and modern ideas on the issues treated here. The book closes with a selective bibliography on modern work on Greek philosophy.

Greek Thought (New Surveys in the Classics, Series Number 25)

This is a study of the psychological ideas of Galen (AD 129-c.210, the most important medical writer in antiquity) and Stoicism (a major philosophical theory in the Hellenistic and Roman periods), which Galen discussed extensively. Christopher Gill's main topics are psychology and bodily form, psychological functions, especially reason and emotion, and the therapy of emotions, and his aim is to provide both an informative scholarly discussion and an original analysis of this material. He claims that the two theories are complementary in ways not recognized in antiquity and that the combination of their ideas would have produced a powerful account of psychology that still merits the attention of modern readers.

Naturalistic Psychology in Galen and Stoicism

Christopher Gill offers a new analysis of what is innovative in Hellenistic - especially Stoic and Epicurean - philosophical thinking about selfhood and personality. His wide-ranging discussion of Stoic and Epicurean ideas is illustrated by a more detailed examination of the Stoic theory of the passions and a new account of the history of this theory. His study also tackles issues about the historical study of selfhood and the relationship between philosophy and literature, especially the presentation of the collapse of character in Plutarch's Lives, Senecan tragedy, and Virgil's Aeneid. As all Greek and Latin is translated, this book presents original ideas about ancient concepts of personality to a wide range of readers.

The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius is one of the best-known and most popular works of ancient philosophy, offering spiritual reflections on how best to understand the universe and one's place within it. In short, highly charged comments, Marcus draws on Stoic philosophy to confront challenges that he felt acutely, but which are also shared by all human beings--facing the constant presence of death, making sense of one's social role, grasping the moral significance of the universe. They bring us closer to the personality of the emperor, who is often disillusioned with his own status and with human activities in general; they are both an historical document and a remarkable spiritual diary. This translation by Robin Hard brings out the eloquence and universality of Marcus' thoughts. The introduction and notes by Christopher Gill take account of the most recent work on Marcus and place the Meditations firmly in the ancient philosophical context. A newly translated selection of Marcus' correspondence with his tutor Fronto broadens the picture of the emperor as a person and thinker.

Meditations: with selected correspondence (Oxford World's Classics)

Hard, Robin

Marcus, Aurelius

'About things that are within our power and those that are not.' Epictetus' Discourses have been the most widely read and influential of all writings of Stoic philosophy, from antiquity onwards. They set out the core ethical principles of Stoicism in a form designed to help people put them into practice and to use them as a basis for leading a good human life. Epictetus was a teacher, and a freed slave, whose discourses have a vivid informality, animated by anecdotes and dialogue. Forceful, direct, and challenging, their central message is that the basis of happiness is up to us, and that we all have the capacity, through sustained reflection and hard work, of achieving this goal. They still speak eloquently to modern readers seeking meaning in their own lives. This is the only complete modern translation of the Discourses, together with the Handbook or manual of key themes, and surviving fragments. Robin Hard's accurate and accessible translation is accompanied by Christopher Gill's full introduction and comprehensive notes. About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Discourses, Fragments, Handbook (Oxford Worlds Classics)

EPICTETUS

Classics

Essays by an international team of scholars in Latin literature and ancient philosophy explore the understanding of emotions (or 'passions') in Roman thought and literature. Building on work on Hellenistic theories of emotion and on philosophy as therapy, they look closely at the interface between ancient philosophy (especially Stoic and Epicurean), rhetorical theory, conventional Roman thinking and literary portrayal. There are searching studies of the emotional thought-world of a range of writers including Catullus, Cicero, Virgil, Seneca, Statius, Tacitus and Juvenal. Issues of debate such as the ethical colour of Aeneas's angry killing of Turnus at the end of the Aeneid are placed in a broad and illuminating perspective. Written in clear and non-technical language, with Greek and Latin translated, the volume opens up a fascinating area on the borders of philosophy and literature.

The Passions in Roman Thought and Literature

Braund, Susanna Morton

Cambridge University Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Gill, Christopher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Gill, Christopher

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Gill, Christopher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Personality in Greek Epic, Tragedy, and Philosophy: The Self in Dialogue

Personality in Greek Epic, Tragedy, and Philosophy: The Self in Dialogue

The Structured Self in Hellenistic and Roman Thought

Learning to Live Naturally: Stoic Ethics and its Modern Significance

Greek Thought (New Surveys in the Classics, Series Number 25)

Naturalistic Psychology in Galen and Stoicism

The Structured Self in Hellenistic and Roman Thought

Meditations: with selected correspondence (Oxford World's Classics)

Discourses, Fragments, Handbook (Oxford Worlds Classics)

The Passions in Roman Thought and Literature