Epicurus and Democritean Ethics: An Archaeology of Ataraxia

Description

The Epicurean philosophical system has enjoyed much recent scrutiny, but the question of its philosophical ancestry remains largely neglected. This book traces its origins in the fifth-century BC atomist Democritus, in his fourth-century followers such as Anaxarchus and Pyrrho, and in Epicurus' disagreements with his own Democritean teacher Nausiphanes. The result is not only a fascinating reconstruction of a lost tradition, but also an important contribution to the philosophical interpretation of Epicureanism, bearing especially on its ideal of tranquillity and on the relation of ethics to physics.

James Warren is Assistant Lecturer in Classics at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Corpus Christi College.

'In this book Warren shows himself well equipped with the tools of philosophical archaeology, and admirably skilled in their use ... guides the reader expertly ... Warren imparts much fascinating information ...' Journal of the Society for Greek Political Thought