Books by Francesca Alesse
Studies in Philo of Alexandria, vol. 10, 2019
In Philo of Alexandria and Greek Myth: Narratives, Allegories, and Arguments, a fresh and more co... more In Philo of Alexandria and Greek Myth: Narratives, Allegories, and Arguments, a fresh and more complete image of Philo of Alexandria as a careful reader, interpreter, and critic of Greek literature is offered. Greek mythology plays a significant role in Philo of Alexandria’s exegetical oeuvre. Philo explicitly adopts or subtly evokes narratives, episodes and figures from Greek mythology as symbols whose didactic function we need to unravel, exactly as the hidden teaching of Moses’ narration has to be revealed by interpreters of Bible. By analyzing specific mythologems and narrative cycles, the contributions to this volume pave the way to a better understanding of Philo’s different attitudes towards literary and philosophical mythology.
Philosophia Antiqua, 2018
My aim in this book is to show that Aristotle has recognized the need for
codifying practical rul... more My aim in this book is to show that Aristotle has recognized the need for
codifying practical rules which, although pertinent to instable and accidental reality, may be sufficiently constant over time. Aristotle is at least in part induced to think about the need for both stable and flexible rules by the celebrated criticisms Plato addresses to the “written law”, i.e. political law. But what characterizes Aristotle’s reflection about prescription is his enlarging the horizon of investigation. The prescriptive limits Plato recognizes to the written nomos—its generality with respect to different situations and human characters; its fixity with respect to changing circumstances—lead Aristotle to a total rethinking of the prescriptive issue in order to grasp its foundations in the conception
of deliberate choice, the theory of reasoning, and that of the structure
of human soul. My intention is precisely to bring to light that the premises of Aristotle’s notion of political and legislative prescription reside in some of the fundamental parts of his practical philosophy.
Studi su ellenismo e filosofia romana, 2017
In questo volume vengono raccolti cinque saggi sul pensiero filosofico greco nell’età romana. Le ... more In questo volume vengono raccolti cinque saggi sul pensiero filosofico greco nell’età romana. Le linee di ricerca qui proposte toccano nello specifico questioni attinenti alla filosofia stoica, a quella epicurea, a quella cinico-sofistica e all’aristotelismo di epoca imperiale.
The file uploaded is the final proof of the Introduction to the volume. The essays collected focu... more The file uploaded is the final proof of the Introduction to the volume. The essays collected focus on the role played by the philosophy of the Hellenistic (from Theophrastus and other Peripatetics, Epicurus, Sceptical Academy and Stoicism, to neo-Pythagoreanism and the schools of Antiochus and Eudorus) in Philo of Alexandria's works. Despite many authoritative studies on Philo's vision og Greek philosophy as an exegetical tool in allegorizing the Scripture, there is not such a comprehensive overview in Philo's treatises that takes in account both the progress achieved in the recent interpretation of Hellenistic philosophy and analysis of ancient doxographical literature
Monograph on Panaetius of Rhodes, Stoic philosopher of II Century BC .
The Stoic school was closely related to Socrates, of whom it collected the inheritance and mantai... more The Stoic school was closely related to Socrates, of whom it collected the inheritance and mantained the exemplary chiaracter. Socrates, however, represents a greatly complex questions for historiography, because he did not write any work and also because his disciples developed his teaching in very different ways. So, early Stoics, although in possess of much more material than moderns, had to face critical problems somehow similar to those met by modern scholars. They tried to reconstruct their image of Socrates picking up historical and theorical elements from a multifaceted and non coherent literature. This monograph aims at focussing on Socratic sources available to Zeno, the founder of Stoic school, and detecting the relations established by the Stoics of III and II centuries BC between their own doctrines and Socratic schools.
Panaetius of Rhodes was a Stoic philosopher of the 2nd century BCE. Pupil of the Stoic scholarch ... more Panaetius of Rhodes was a Stoic philosopher of the 2nd century BCE. Pupil of the Stoic scholarch Diogenes of Babylon, then of his successor Antipater of Tarsos, he was himself at the head of the Porch, probably since the year 129 BC. He played a central role in his time, connecting Stoic philosophy and Roman culture, also thanks his relations with the group of politicians and intellectuals gathered around Scipio Africanus Aemilianus (or Scipio Africanus minor, 185-129 BC). Considering that Panaetius’work has come down only through indirect and fragmentary evidence, his texts are indeed testimonia, that is paraphrases of his words extrapolated from successive literature. This collection modifies Van Straaten’s way of extrapolating evidence from Cicero De officiis, considering both the structure of Panaetius’ On duty, described in De off. I 6, and the historical context in relation to which Panaetius presumably wrote his treatise. It adds Italian translation and commentary.
Papers by Francesca Alesse
Geographia Antiqua, 2022
The paper focusses on Posidonius' vision of philosophy as a systematic but organic complex of bot... more The paper focusses on Posidonius' vision of philosophy as a systematic but organic complex of both theoretical doctrines and scientific competencies (including technical skills of measurement), in the context of the traditional tripartition of philosophy into logic, physics, ethics. The contribution dwells on Posidonian simile of philosophy as a unitary and living being, underlines some differences between Posidonian and other Stoics' points of view and metaphors, and tries to highlight the profound coherence between the definition of philosophy as an organism and the main aspects of Posidonius' psychological, metaphysical and cosmological doctrines.
Politica e Religione, 2019
The chapter reconsiders texts and recent studies on the Stoic theory of the perfect society, focu... more The chapter reconsiders texts and recent studies on the Stoic theory of the perfect society, focusing on some problematic points that emerge from ancient sources, such as the theo-cosmological dimension of universal society, in the face of a possible territorial and normative limit of the perfect state, and the composition of the ideal constitution, apparently reserved for the wise. The main conclusions are the following: Stoic literature does not provide a single and univocal model of political regime because the Stoics opted for the coexistence of a universalistic ideal with a program of improvement of the real society; the Stoics also advocated an idea of familiarity of mankind, which was based on a cognitive instance (the theory of preconceptions) rather than a moral or affective one.
Ancient Philosophy, 2022
The 'good', Aristotle says, is spoken of in many ways. The topic is raised in three well-known an... more The 'good', Aristotle says, is spoken of in many ways. The topic is raised in three well-known and debated passages: Nicomachean Ethics 1096a19-34, Eudemian Ethics 1217b23-1218a1, and Topics 107a3-12. The salient aspect emerging from the Ethics passages is that the multivocity of 'good' is presented as wholly analogous to the multivocity of 'being', which is to say, that 'good' is spoken of in all the categories. In the Topics passage the parallel between 'good' and 'being' is not made explicit, but it is easy to find in the passage various references to the categories.
In questo contributo si passano in rassegna le ricerche relative alle culture mediterranee dell’a... more In questo contributo si passano in rassegna le ricerche relative alle culture mediterranee dell’antichità svolte presso strutture del CNR, ovvero sostenute secondo linee di attività strategica nelle quali il CNR ha profuso un notevole impegno anche finanziario. Queste ricerche hanno riguardato la storia, la storia della letteratura e della filosofia, l’epigrafia e la filologia classica, e hanno vissuto una stagione particolarmente felice tra i primi anni ’70 e la fine degli anni ’90, ma hanno conseguito anche più tardi risultati di enorme rilevanza, tra cui un Starting Grant ERC nel 2009.
Il sogno nei Parva Naturalia, in C. Buccolini - P. Totaro (a c. di), Somnia. Il sogno dall'antichità all'età moderna. ILIESI DIGITALE. Ricerche Filosofiche e Lessicali, 2020, pp. 97-118., 2020
The paper outlines the salient features of the investigation about sleep and dreams carried out b... more The paper outlines the salient features of the investigation about sleep and dreams carried out by Aristotle in De somno et vigilia, De insomniis and De divinatione per somnum. My aim is to show that the analysis conducted in these texts is substantially coherent and organic and that it must be followed in correspondence of the editorial structure of the Parva, that is: as a physiological event, as a cognitive experience and, finally, in relation to the activities of wakefulness, with which the dream establishes a causal link.
Momenti di filosofia italiana (a cura di Federica Pazzelli e Francesco Verde), Syzetesis. Rivista di Filosofia, 7, 2020, 2020
The paper focusses on some aspects, which have been less examined by critics, of the relationship... more The paper focusses on some aspects, which have been less examined by critics, of the relationship between Guido Calogero’s philosophy of dialogue and his historiographical work on ancient thought. In particular, attention is drawn to some Platonic passages that may have guided philological as well as theoretical reflection of Calogero; the vision about dialogue as a hermeneutic model; finally, Calogero’s reaction against
Jaeger’s idealization of Greek ethos.
Nel contributo si mettono a fuoco alcuni motivi, meno esaminati
in letteratura, dell’intreccio tra filosofia del dialogo e impegno storiografico sul pensiero antico nell’opera di Guido Calogero. In particolare, si richiama l’attenzione su taluni passi platonici che possono aver orientato la riflessione di Calogero non solo sul piano filologico ma anche teorico; sulla visione del dialogo come modello ermeneutico; infine sulla presa di posizione di Calogero contro l’idealizzazione jaegeriana dell’ethos greco.
Gabriele Giannantoni e il Centro di Studio del Pensiero Antico del CNR, 2020
Il contributo descrive le principali ragioni culturali che indussero
Gabriele Giannantoni a fonda... more Il contributo descrive le principali ragioni culturali che indussero
Gabriele Giannantoni a fondare il Centro di Studio del Pensiero
Antico, presso il Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, di cui fu direttore
dal 1979 al 1998. Tra queste ragioni, centrale fu l’impegno a
delineare e stabilire la storia della filosofia antica come una disciplina
che, includendo le metodologie della filologia classica e le categorie
critiche della storia della filosofia, potesse assumere un profilo
autonomo. L’attività di ricerca, le pubblicazioni e le iniziative del
Centro furono ispirate da questa finalità.
The paper describes the main cultural reasons that led Gabriele
Giannantoni to found the Centro di Studio del Pensiero Antico, at
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, which he directed from 1979 to
1998. Among these reasons, the most relevant was the commitment
to establish the history of ancient philosophy as a discipline which, by
including the methodologies of classical philology and the critical
categories of the history of philosophy, could assume an autonomous
profile. The research, publications and initiatives of the Centro were
inspired by this purpose.
Lexikon Philosophicum, 2018
The article aims to evaluate some appreciable contributions by post-
Chrysippean Stoics to the th... more The article aims to evaluate some appreciable contributions by post-
Chrysippean Stoics to the theory of cognitive (kataleptic) impression and its role as a criterion of truth. The inquiry focuses on two testimonies: Sextus Empiricus, M, VII, 253-257, where we find a significant variation – introduced by some ‘recent Stoics’ – of the ancient Stoic theory of the clauses that an impression is supposed to satisfy in order to be
considered not only kataleptic, i.e. worthy of assent, but also a criterion of truth; and PBerol. inv. 16545 containing the version of the theory of clauses of the cognitive impression developed by Antipater of Tarsus.
Elenchos, 2018
The paper compares the two components of the Stoic definition of pathos, the logico-linguistic c... more The paper compares the two components of the Stoic definition of pathos, the logico-linguistic component and the physiological, ‘pneumatic’ one, in order to examine the role that each of them plays in the onset of pathos, its persistence in the human soul, its possible eradication. The analysis is focused on anger (ὀργή) which reveals some peculiarities, especially as regards its logical structure, due to the fact that this passion seems to be the combination of two different feelings. The anger indeed is classified as a species of desire but the description of its onset also includes pain.
The question I deal with is Aristotle’s treatment of agathon in Metaphysics VII 6, as compared to... more The question I deal with is Aristotle’s treatment of agathon in Metaphysics VII 6, as compared to the treatment of the same notion in famous passages from Ethics (EE 1217b26 ff. ; EN 1096a19 ff.) and Topics (107a5 ff.). In these latter agathon is considered as homonymous in that it assumes as many meanings as the categories, whereas in Metaphysics VII 6 (1031a28‑b3) Aristotle employes the example of agathon in order to examine the relationship between every reality in
itself and its essence. In this context Aristotle uses the notion of “good in itself ”, as an example of ἕκαστον which should be identical to its essence : as a consequence of such an identity, “good in itself ” shoud be a synonimous notion and have a univocal definition. Is the treatment of agathon in Metaphysics VII 6 opposed to what Aristotle claims in Ethics and Topics ? In my opinion, what is to be pointed out is not a contradiction, but a difference in perspective, which has rarely been
emphasised. My aim is to analyse the possible reasons for this difference in perspective.
L’article revient sur l ’historiographie relative à l ’influence exercée par la
philosophie stoïc... more L’article revient sur l ’historiographie relative à l ’influence exercée par la
philosophie stoïcienne sur la classe dirigeante romaine – celle notamment de Panétius sur la politique des Scipions, et de Blossius sur les luttes en faveur d’une redistribution de l ’ager publicus – et avance l ’hypothèse d’une réciprocité croissante d’influences, mettant en relief la singularité des choix opérés par l ’aristocratie romaine dans les
différents genres littéraires proposés par la philosophie.
The chapter focuses on the majors points from Plato's ethics which exerted a significant influenc... more The chapter focuses on the majors points from Plato's ethics which exerted a significant influence on Stoic ethics, among which the idea of the unity of virtue, or the so-called interconnection of virtues, the definition of virtue as knowledge, and the idea of “doing one’s own things” (ta heauta prattein). The most influential dialogues are Protagoras, Gorgias, Euthydemus, Charmides and Republic.
Percepire Apprendere Agire. La riflessione filosofica antica sul rapporto tra mente e corpo, Academia Verlag, Sankt Augustin, 2016
The notion of repulsion plays a significant role in Stoic physiology and psychology, where it is ... more The notion of repulsion plays a significant role in Stoic physiology and psychology, where it is analyzed as a dynamic of close interaction between imagination (phantasia) and corporeality, as well as in ethics and paedagogy. What characterizes the Stoic reflection on this particular theme is its systematic character and the structural position that repulsion assumes in the anthropological context. The repulsion plays firstly a decisive role in the cognitive development of the child, whose early experiences are not neutral but marked by both attractive and repulsive feelings. Accordingly, repulsion is a normative experience so that the content of the “repulsive” representation must be translated into linguistic terms and to give rise to a rule, precisely a prohibition.
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Books by Francesca Alesse
codifying practical rules which, although pertinent to instable and accidental reality, may be sufficiently constant over time. Aristotle is at least in part induced to think about the need for both stable and flexible rules by the celebrated criticisms Plato addresses to the “written law”, i.e. political law. But what characterizes Aristotle’s reflection about prescription is his enlarging the horizon of investigation. The prescriptive limits Plato recognizes to the written nomos—its generality with respect to different situations and human characters; its fixity with respect to changing circumstances—lead Aristotle to a total rethinking of the prescriptive issue in order to grasp its foundations in the conception
of deliberate choice, the theory of reasoning, and that of the structure
of human soul. My intention is precisely to bring to light that the premises of Aristotle’s notion of political and legislative prescription reside in some of the fundamental parts of his practical philosophy.
Papers by Francesca Alesse
Jaeger’s idealization of Greek ethos.
Nel contributo si mettono a fuoco alcuni motivi, meno esaminati
in letteratura, dell’intreccio tra filosofia del dialogo e impegno storiografico sul pensiero antico nell’opera di Guido Calogero. In particolare, si richiama l’attenzione su taluni passi platonici che possono aver orientato la riflessione di Calogero non solo sul piano filologico ma anche teorico; sulla visione del dialogo come modello ermeneutico; infine sulla presa di posizione di Calogero contro l’idealizzazione jaegeriana dell’ethos greco.
Gabriele Giannantoni a fondare il Centro di Studio del Pensiero
Antico, presso il Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, di cui fu direttore
dal 1979 al 1998. Tra queste ragioni, centrale fu l’impegno a
delineare e stabilire la storia della filosofia antica come una disciplina
che, includendo le metodologie della filologia classica e le categorie
critiche della storia della filosofia, potesse assumere un profilo
autonomo. L’attività di ricerca, le pubblicazioni e le iniziative del
Centro furono ispirate da questa finalità.
The paper describes the main cultural reasons that led Gabriele
Giannantoni to found the Centro di Studio del Pensiero Antico, at
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, which he directed from 1979 to
1998. Among these reasons, the most relevant was the commitment
to establish the history of ancient philosophy as a discipline which, by
including the methodologies of classical philology and the critical
categories of the history of philosophy, could assume an autonomous
profile. The research, publications and initiatives of the Centro were
inspired by this purpose.
Chrysippean Stoics to the theory of cognitive (kataleptic) impression and its role as a criterion of truth. The inquiry focuses on two testimonies: Sextus Empiricus, M, VII, 253-257, where we find a significant variation – introduced by some ‘recent Stoics’ – of the ancient Stoic theory of the clauses that an impression is supposed to satisfy in order to be
considered not only kataleptic, i.e. worthy of assent, but also a criterion of truth; and PBerol. inv. 16545 containing the version of the theory of clauses of the cognitive impression developed by Antipater of Tarsus.
itself and its essence. In this context Aristotle uses the notion of “good in itself ”, as an example of ἕκαστον which should be identical to its essence : as a consequence of such an identity, “good in itself ” shoud be a synonimous notion and have a univocal definition. Is the treatment of agathon in Metaphysics VII 6 opposed to what Aristotle claims in Ethics and Topics ? In my opinion, what is to be pointed out is not a contradiction, but a difference in perspective, which has rarely been
emphasised. My aim is to analyse the possible reasons for this difference in perspective.
philosophie stoïcienne sur la classe dirigeante romaine – celle notamment de Panétius sur la politique des Scipions, et de Blossius sur les luttes en faveur d’une redistribution de l ’ager publicus – et avance l ’hypothèse d’une réciprocité croissante d’influences, mettant en relief la singularité des choix opérés par l ’aristocratie romaine dans les
différents genres littéraires proposés par la philosophie.
codifying practical rules which, although pertinent to instable and accidental reality, may be sufficiently constant over time. Aristotle is at least in part induced to think about the need for both stable and flexible rules by the celebrated criticisms Plato addresses to the “written law”, i.e. political law. But what characterizes Aristotle’s reflection about prescription is his enlarging the horizon of investigation. The prescriptive limits Plato recognizes to the written nomos—its generality with respect to different situations and human characters; its fixity with respect to changing circumstances—lead Aristotle to a total rethinking of the prescriptive issue in order to grasp its foundations in the conception
of deliberate choice, the theory of reasoning, and that of the structure
of human soul. My intention is precisely to bring to light that the premises of Aristotle’s notion of political and legislative prescription reside in some of the fundamental parts of his practical philosophy.
Jaeger’s idealization of Greek ethos.
Nel contributo si mettono a fuoco alcuni motivi, meno esaminati
in letteratura, dell’intreccio tra filosofia del dialogo e impegno storiografico sul pensiero antico nell’opera di Guido Calogero. In particolare, si richiama l’attenzione su taluni passi platonici che possono aver orientato la riflessione di Calogero non solo sul piano filologico ma anche teorico; sulla visione del dialogo come modello ermeneutico; infine sulla presa di posizione di Calogero contro l’idealizzazione jaegeriana dell’ethos greco.
Gabriele Giannantoni a fondare il Centro di Studio del Pensiero
Antico, presso il Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, di cui fu direttore
dal 1979 al 1998. Tra queste ragioni, centrale fu l’impegno a
delineare e stabilire la storia della filosofia antica come una disciplina
che, includendo le metodologie della filologia classica e le categorie
critiche della storia della filosofia, potesse assumere un profilo
autonomo. L’attività di ricerca, le pubblicazioni e le iniziative del
Centro furono ispirate da questa finalità.
The paper describes the main cultural reasons that led Gabriele
Giannantoni to found the Centro di Studio del Pensiero Antico, at
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, which he directed from 1979 to
1998. Among these reasons, the most relevant was the commitment
to establish the history of ancient philosophy as a discipline which, by
including the methodologies of classical philology and the critical
categories of the history of philosophy, could assume an autonomous
profile. The research, publications and initiatives of the Centro were
inspired by this purpose.
Chrysippean Stoics to the theory of cognitive (kataleptic) impression and its role as a criterion of truth. The inquiry focuses on two testimonies: Sextus Empiricus, M, VII, 253-257, where we find a significant variation – introduced by some ‘recent Stoics’ – of the ancient Stoic theory of the clauses that an impression is supposed to satisfy in order to be
considered not only kataleptic, i.e. worthy of assent, but also a criterion of truth; and PBerol. inv. 16545 containing the version of the theory of clauses of the cognitive impression developed by Antipater of Tarsus.
itself and its essence. In this context Aristotle uses the notion of “good in itself ”, as an example of ἕκαστον which should be identical to its essence : as a consequence of such an identity, “good in itself ” shoud be a synonimous notion and have a univocal definition. Is the treatment of agathon in Metaphysics VII 6 opposed to what Aristotle claims in Ethics and Topics ? In my opinion, what is to be pointed out is not a contradiction, but a difference in perspective, which has rarely been
emphasised. My aim is to analyse the possible reasons for this difference in perspective.
philosophie stoïcienne sur la classe dirigeante romaine – celle notamment de Panétius sur la politique des Scipions, et de Blossius sur les luttes en faveur d’une redistribution de l ’ager publicus – et avance l ’hypothèse d’une réciprocité croissante d’influences, mettant en relief la singularité des choix opérés par l ’aristocratie romaine dans les
différents genres littéraires proposés par la philosophie.
The contribution is focused on the section of PBerol. 9780 VI, 29-IX, 10 where the Stoic Hierocles deals with the notions of phantasia and horme as the main cognitive tools involved in the process of animal appropriation, and the topic of social or altruistic appropriation, which is of major interest for human behaviour. Three subjects are analysed: first, the idea that animals are naturally disposed to love themselves, which is treated at length by Hierocles; secondly, the role played by representation as evaluative judgement; finally, the forms of appropriation, which include both selfish and altruistic attitudes.
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