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No late ancient philosopher has written more extensively on part-whole relations than the Neoplatonic commentator Proclus. In Proclus on Whole and Part, Arthur Oosthout unfolds, for the first time, Proclus’ detailed and systematic analysis of (Neo-)Platonic mereology in full. Oosthout weaves together a great number of previously disconnected scholarly inquiries into Proclus, while adding many critical notes and new insights of his own. He bases this new synthesis on a detailed theoretical framework built not only on the metaphysical theories of Plato and Aristotle, but also on the arguments of prominent scholars of modern mereology.
Price: $144.00
Pages: 256
Publisher: Brill
Imprint: Brill
Series: Philosophia Antiqua
Publication Date:
09 January 2025
ISBN: 9789004721753
Format: Hardcover
"In this monograph, Arthur Oosthout lays out meticulously Proclus’ mereology and its integration into his Neoplatonic system, showcasing both its continuity with the Platonic and Aristotelian heritage as well as its relation to modern mereology. [...]The fourth chapter acts arguably as the heart of the book since it discusses the three different types of wholeness according to Proclus [...]: (1) the whole before the parts; (2) the whole composed of parts; (3) the whole in the part. [...]The bibliography is rich and up to date. [...] Oosthout has done a great service to Neoplatonist studies by illuminating an important aspect of Proclean thought. His comparison of Proclus with contemporary philosophy should be taken as an example for further research on Neoplatonist metaphysics." - Rareș Ilie Marinescu, University of Toronto, in: Bryn Mawr Classical Review
"The present monograph [...] is generally lucid in the presentation of the material, well-structured, and exegetically meticulous. It stands as a solid contribution to the growing philosophically informed literature on the writings of the greatest and most influential of the Platonists in late antiquity. [...] (it) is itself a worthy contribution to establishing Proclus’s philosophical bona fides among those engaged in the contemporary debate about wholes and parts." - Lloyd P. Gerson, University of Toronto, in: The Thomist (April 2026).
"The present monograph [...] is generally lucid in the presentation of the material, well-structured, and exegetically meticulous. It stands as a solid contribution to the growing philosophically informed literature on the writings of the greatest and most influential of the Platonists in late antiquity. [...] (it) is itself a worthy contribution to establishing Proclus’s philosophical bona fides among those engaged in the contemporary debate about wholes and parts." - Lloyd P. Gerson, University of Toronto, in: The Thomist (April 2026).
Arthur Oosthout, Ph.D. (2022), is a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of the KU Leuven who specialises in late ancient Neoplatonism. His publications include a contribution to the recent volume Longing for Perfection in Late Antiquity (Brill, 2023).