This is a modern, annotated translation of antiquity's only extant commentary on Plato's moral and political dialogue "Gorgias," in which the author defends ancient Greek philosophy and culture at a time when Christianity has almost replaced it. The first translation into any modern language of a central work in Platonic studies is accompanied by annotations which guide the reader in understanding the obscurities of the text, an introduction to the main issues raised by it, and a bibliography of the modern literature.

This is the first collected volume dedicated to Olympiodorus of Alexandria, the last pagan Platonic philosopher at the end of antiquity.

The two volume work of L G Westerink's fine text and parallel translation of the surviving Greek Commentaries on Plato's Phaedo have not only been out of print for many years, but which have been virtually unobtainable even in the second hand market. This is the second volume (the first being the Commentary of Olympiodorus) which presents the two Commentaries of Damascius. Both volumes have excellent introductions, extensive notes, and indexes. Amendments and updates have been added to these volumes from the notes of Westerink.

Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499), the Florentine scholar-philosopher-magus, was largely responsible for the Renaissance revival of Plato. This volume contains Ficino's extended analysis and commentary on the Phaedrus.

The belief in the immortality of the soul has been described as one of the “twin pillars of Platonism” and is famously defended by Socrates in Plato’s Phaedo. The ancient commentaries on the dialogue by Olympiodorus and Damascius offer a unique perspective on the reception of this belief in the Platonic tradition. Through a detailed discussion of topics such as suicide, the life of the philosopher and arguments for immortality, this study demonstrates the commentators’ serious engagement with problems in Plato’s text as well as the dialogue's importance to Neoplatonic ethics. The book will be of interest to students of Plato and the Platonic tradition, and to those working on ancient ethics and psychology.

Olympiodorus (AD c. 500–570), possibly the last non-Christian teacher of philosophy in Alexandria, delivered these lectures as an introduction to Plato with a biography. For us, they can serve as an accessible introduction to late Neoplatonism. Olympiodorus locates the First Alcibiades at the start of the curriculum on Plato, because it is about self-knowledge. His pupils are beginners, able to approach the hierarchy of philosophical virtues, like the aristocratic playboy Alcibiades. Alcibiades needs to know himself, at least as an individual with particular actions, before he can reach the virtues of mere civic interaction. As Olympiodorus addresses mainly Christian students, he tells them that the different words they use are often symbols of truths shared between their faiths.

L G Westerink's fine text and parallel translation of the surviving Greek Commentaries on Plato's Phaedo in two volumes are works which have not only been out of print for many years, but which have been virtually unobtainable even in the second hand market. This is the first volume being the Commentary of Olympiodorus (the second being the two Commentaries of Damascius)/ Both volumes have excellent introductions, extensive notes, and indexes.

Olympiodorus' life and society -- Philosophical excellence and the philosophical curriculum -- Pre-philosophical excellence: (1) natural and (2) habituated -- Philosophical excellence: (3) civic, (4) purificatory, (5) contemplative -- Excellence beyond philosophy: (6) inspired [and (7) hieratic] -- Summary -- The Platonic curriculum and the Alcibiades: from natural gifts to civic responsibility -- Olympiodorus' lectures on the Alcibiades -- Appendix: Olympiodorus' works -- Uncertain attributions -- Textual emendations -- Translation -- Bibliography -- English-Greek glossary -- Greek-English index -- Index of passages cited -- Index of names and places -- Subject index

Today the name Socrates invokes a powerful idealization of wisdom and nobility that would surprise many of his contemporaries, who excoriated the philosopher for corrupting youth. The problem of who Socrates "really" was—the true history of his activities and beliefs—has long been thought insoluble, and most recent Socratic studies have instead focused on reconstructing his legacy and tracing his ideas through other philosophical traditions. But this scholarship has neglected to examine closely a period of philosophy that has much to reveal about what Socrates stood for and how he taught: the Neoplatonic tradition of the first six centuries C.E., which at times decried or denied his importance yet relied on his methods. In The Neoplatonic Socrates, leading scholars in classics and philosophy address this gap by examining Neoplatonic attitudes toward the Socratic method, Socratic love, Socrates's divine mission and moral example, and the much-debated issue of moral rectitude. Collectively, they demonstrate the importance of Socrates for the majority of Neoplatonists, a point that has often been questioned owing to the comparative neglect of surviving commentaries on the Alcibiades, Gorgias, Phaedo, and Phaedrus, in favor of dialogues dealing explicitly with metaphysical issues. Supplemented with a contextualizing introduction and a substantial appendix detailing where evidence for Socrates can be found in the extant literature, The Neoplatonic Socrates makes a clear case for the significant place Socrates held in the education and philosophy of late antiquity. Contributors: Crystal Addey, James M. Ambury, John F. Finamore, Michael Griffin, Marilynn Lawrence, Danielle A. Layne, Christina-Panagiota Manolea, François Renaud, Geert Roskam, Harold Tarrant.

This book provides a translation of the only surving ancient commentary on Plato's Goroias, written by the Alexandrian Platonist Olympiodorus in the sixth century A.D. There are substantial notes on the commentary, which assist the reader to understand the context of Olympiodorus' Platonism, the choices available to him as an interpreter, and the special characteristics of his interpretation. A full introduction tackles the issues of greatest interest that arise from the work, including the author's mission as a Hellenist resisting Christian attacks on his discipline. Indices are provided. The authors show that there is much more of value in this commentary than has often been supposed, and that the differences between Olympiodorus' approach and those of modern commentators are often illuminating.