Plato's Reception of Parmenides [Paperback]

John Palmer presents a new and original account of Plato's uses and understanding of his most important Presocratic predecessor, Parmenides. Adopting an innovative approach to the appraisal of intellectual influence, Palmer first explores the Eleatic underpinnings of central elements in Plato's middle-period epistemology and metaphysics and then shows how in the later dialogues Plato confronts various sophistic appropriations of Parmenides.

PART I: PLATO'S MIDDLE-PERIOD RECEPTION OF PARMENIDES
1. Introduction
2. Eschatology and epistemology
3. The argument from the possibility of knowledge
4. Sight-lovers, mortals, anddoxa
PART II: PLATO AND THE SOPHISTIC APPROPRIATIONS OF PARMENIDES
5. Parmenides' thesis at issue
6. Sophistic Parmenideanism in theSophist
7. Sophistic Parmenideanism in theSophistand in theParmenides' dialectical exercise
PART III: PLATO'S PARMENIDES IN THE LATER DIALOGUES
8. Parmenides and Xenophanes in theSophistandTimaeus
9. Plato's Parmenides
10. Plato's Parmenides and theParmenides' Second Deduction
Appendices
Bibliography
Index locorum
General index

This excellent and extensive survey is valuable reading for scholars and graduate students interested in Plato's metaphysics and epistemology. --Choice

John A. Palmer is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Florida, Gainesville. He was previously Research fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge.