In describing the Egyptian politeia within the Busiris, Isocrates alludes to Pythagorean philosophers, not to Plato’s Republic as recently believed. Both the comparison with the Herodotus’ second book of the Histories and the exegesis of a crucial sentence in § 16 (ἅπαντας δὲ τοὺς ἀριθμοὺς περιλαβών) corroborate this interpretation. The latter in particular relates to a central issue in Pythagorean political theories, that is to say the role of proportions in establishing the number of citizens and the distribution of wealth. Such an interpretation of the Busiris takes into account debates in IV century B.C. Athens, and provides a better understanding of the relationship between Isocrates and Plato.
Antiche istituzioni egizie e proporzioni numeriche: teorie pitagoriche nel Busiride di Isocrate / Brunello, Claudia. - In: SEMINARI ROMANI DI CULTURA GRECA. - ISSN 1129-5953. - STAMPA. - 1:II(2013), pp. 31-50.
Antiche istituzioni egizie e proporzioni numeriche: teorie pitagoriche nel Busiride di Isocrate
BRUNELLO, CLAUDIA
2013
Abstract
In describing the Egyptian politeia within the Busiris, Isocrates alludes to Pythagorean philosophers, not to Plato’s Republic as recently believed. Both the comparison with the Herodotus’ second book of the Histories and the exegesis of a crucial sentence in § 16 (ἅπαντας δὲ τοὺς ἀριθμοὺς περιλαβών) corroborate this interpretation. The latter in particular relates to a central issue in Pythagorean political theories, that is to say the role of proportions in establishing the number of citizens and the distribution of wealth. Such an interpretation of the Busiris takes into account debates in IV century B.C. Athens, and provides a better understanding of the relationship between Isocrates and Plato.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
