"It is generally agreed that those types of philosophy that are loosely
called 'Platonic' and 'Neoplatonic' played a crucial role in the history
of European culture during the centuries between antiquity and the
Renaissance. However, until now no scholar has attempted to describe the
evolution of these forms of thought in a single comprehensive academic
study." So writes Stephen Gersh in the preface to Middle Platonism and
Neoplatonism: The Latin Tradition.
Stephen Gersh's two-volume survey of Platonic influences upon the Middle
Ages focuses on questions that are basic to scholars of medieval
philosophy, history, and literature: What was the influence of Plato's
philosophy during the Middle Ages? Is it correct to consider earlier
medieval philosophy as Platonic? How do Platonism and Neoplatonism
differ? What do Platonic and Neoplatonic modes of thought have to do
with Plato?
Most medieval philosophers developed their doctrines without access to
the greatest intellectual works of the Greeks. Instead, they elaborated
their philosophies in relation to the Latin philosophical literature
that spanned the classical period to the end of antiquity. Thus, Gersh
develops his study by examining the important channels of transmission
that existed for medieval philosophers.
Following an introduction that outlines particular methodological
perspectives relative to the discussion, the history is divided into
three main sections. In total, the study surveys an impressive range of
authors never previously considered in a single work, with many of the
translations previously available only as Greek and Latin texts: I.1
Middle Platonism: The Platonists and the Stoics (Cicero, Seneca); I.2
Middle Platonism: The Platonists and the Doxographers (Gellius,
Apuleius, the Hermetic "Asclepius," Ambrose, Censorinus, Augustine); II
Neoplatonism (Calcidius, Macrobius, Martianus Capella, Boethius,
Marius Victorinus, Firmicus Maternus, Favonius Eulogius, Servius,
Fulgentius, Priscianus Lydus, Priscianrs Grammaticus).
The concluding chapter illustrates the Platonic influence upon certain
medieval authors up to the early twelfth century, and it establishes
guidelines for further study. Middle Platonism and Neoplatonism
contains an extensive bibliography and a complete index of Latin texts.
