Iamblichus De Anima: Text, Translation, And Commentary

Iamblichus (245-325), successor to Plotinus and Porphyry, brought a new religiosity to Neoplatonism. His theory of the soul is at the heart of his philosophical system. For Iamblichus, the human soul is so far inferior to the divine that its salvation depends not on philosophy alone (as it did for Plotinus) but on the aid of the gods and other divinities. This edition of the fragments of Iamblichus major work on the soul, “”De Anima, is accompanied by the first English translation of the work and a commentary which explains the philosophical background and Iamblichus doctrine of the soul. Included too are excerpts from the Pseudo-Simplicius and Priscianus (also translated with commentary) that shed further light on Iamblichus treatise.

Iamblichus has contributed to Iamblichus de Anima: Text, Translation, and Commentary as an author.The translator of this work, Thomas Taylor, is known for his authoritative translations of the Platonists; he was practically the sole source of Neo-Platonic thought in the transcendentalist movement of New England. Iamblichus “”Life of Pythagoras”” was a constant source of inspiration to the transcendentalists and a major influence on their writings throughout the Nineteenth Century. Taylors work was enthusiastically acclaimed by Emerson, who referred to the translator as “”a Greek born out of his time, and dropped on the ridicule of a blind and frivolous age.””