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Speusippus

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Speusippus (; ; c. 408 – 339/8 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher. Speusippus was Plato's nephew by his sister Potone. After Plato's death, c. 348 BC, Speusippus inherited the Academy, near age 60, and remained its head for the next eight years. However, following a stroke, he passed the chair to Xenocrates. Although the successor to Plato in the Academy, Speusippus frequently diverged from Plato's teachings. He rejected Plato's Theory of Forms, and whereas Plato had identified the Good with the ultimate principle, Speusippus maintained that the Good was merely secondary. He also argued that

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Key facts

Philosopher.region
Western philosophy
Philosopher.era
Ancient philosophy
Philosopher.image
Speusippus in Thomas Stanley History of Philosophy.jpg
Philosopher.caption
Speusippus, 17th-century engraving
Philosopher.name
Speusippus
Philosopher.birth_date
c. 408 BC
Philosopher.birth_place
Athens
Philosopher.death_date
339/8 BC
Philosopher.death_place
Athens
Philosopher.school_tradition
Platonism
Philosopher.main_interests
Epistemology, Metaphysics, Ethics
Philosopher.notable_ideas
Developed the philosophy of Plato, but rejected the Theory of Forms

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Wikidata facts

Citizenship
Classical Athens
Place of birth
Classical Athens
Image
Speusippus in Thomas Stanley History of Philosophy.jpg
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Commons category
Speusippus
date of birth
0395-00-00
date of death
0339-00-00
significant place
Classical Athens
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Article

13 sections
Contents
  • Life
  • Philosophy
  • Epistemology
  • Metaphysics
  • Ethics
  • List of works
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • Further reading
  • Editions
  • Studies
  • External links

Speusippus (; ; c. 408 – 339/8 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher. Speusippus was Plato's nephew by his sister Potone. After Plato's death, c. 348 BC, Speusippus inherited the Academy, near age 60, and remained its head for the next eight years. However, following a stroke, he passed the chair to Xenocrates. Although the successor to Plato in the Academy, Speusippus frequently diverged from Plato's teachings. He rejected Plato's Theory of Forms, and whereas Plato had identified the Good with the ultimate principle, Speusippus maintained that the Good was merely secondary. He also argued that it is impossible to have satisfactory knowledge of any thing without knowing all the differences by which it is separated from everything else.

The standard edition of the surviving fragments and testimonies is Leonardo Tarán's Speusippus of Athens: A Critical Study with a Collection of the Related Texts and Commentary (1982).

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