commentary, but by selection and accretion. Those inspired by Plato form
as intrinsic a part of Platonism as Plato himself--these are the
so-called Neo-P- tonists (a divisive latter-day term which implies
discontinuity between Plato and 6 his later followers to the
disadvantage of the latter). In the process of its long course of
development, Platonism has gathered a long tradition of interpr- ers,
whose contributions have been enriched by other philosophical
strands--for example Stoicism, which is an important element in the
philosophy of Plotinus. To this it must be added that so much of the
impact of Platonism is indirect. The Platonism of many thinkers,
especially in medieval times, was more often than not implicit, rather
than conscious borrowing. It derived not from the Platonic corpus (most
of which was unknown at that time), but indirectly through Philo, and
theologians like Augustine and Origen. The combined effect of these
factors is that the legacy of Platonism is rich, varied and extensive,
but eludes the scope of focused enquiry. A further factor complicating
assessments of Platonism in the modern era, is polarisation in the
historiography itself. Historians of modern philosophy--at least in the
anglophone world--readily adopt a model which counterposes ancient and
modern. Drawing on a division, which the early modern philosophers
themselves invoked, they employ an 'ancient- 7 modern distinction' as a
principle for organising the history of philosophy.