The Question of Eclecticism

The Question of Eclecticism: Studies in Later Greek Philosophy offers a rigorous reexamination of a period often dismissed as intellectually stagnant—the first century B.C. to the second century A.D.—through a critical lens that challenges the pejorative connotations of the term "eclecticism." Traditionally regarded as an era of philosophical decline, characterized by an unoriginal blending of Stoic, Platonic, Aristotelian, and Skeptic doctrines, this collection of essays aims to redefine the intellectual vitality of the time. Rather than seeing this period as a passive transmission of earlier philosophical traditions, the contributors argue that it was marked by an active and innovative engagement with philosophical ideas, where thinkers like Cicero, Philo of Alexandria, Plutarch, and Galen sought to synthesize, refine, and apply inherited doctrines to new intellectual, ethical, and scientific inquiries.

This book questions the rigid school-based categorizations that have historically shaped our understanding of Greek philosophy, demonstrating that figures often labeled as "eclectic" were, in fact, pursuing rigorous philosophical projects. Through case studies on figures such as Antiochus of Ascalon, Aenesidemus, and Sextus Empiricus, the essays reveal how philosophical debates continued to evolve through critical appropriation rather than mere borrowing. By tracing the conceptual developments in epistemology, ethics, and natural philosophy, The Question of "Eclecticism" sheds new light on a formative period of Western thought, illustrating how the cross-fertilization of ideas laid the groundwork for later Neoplatonism and medieval philosophy. This collection is an essential contribution to the study of later Greek philosophy, offering a nuanced perspective that rehabilitates a historically misunderstood era.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.