Book contents
- The Ladder of the Sciences in Late Antique Platonism
- Cambridge Texts and Studies In Platonism
- The Ladder of the Sciences in Late Antique Platonism
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Tables and Charts
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- Part I Rhetoric as an Instrument of Philosophy
- Part II Ethics
- Chapter 6 Ethics in Plotinus and His Successors
- Chapter 7 Innovations in Plotinus’ Theory of Virtue
- Chapter 8 Ancient Biographies of Pythagoras and Epicurus as Models of the Philosophical Life
- Chapter 9 Patterns of Perfection in Damascius’ Life of Isidore
- Chapter 10 Love in Plotinus’ Thought
- Chapter 11 Explaining Evil in Late Antiquity
- Chapter 12 Explaining Evil in Justinian’s Reign
- Chapter 13 Philosophos Oikonomos
- Part III Political Science
- Part IV Mathematics
- Part V Metaphysics
- Postscript
- Bibliography
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Chapter 11 - Explaining Evil in Late Antiquity
Plotinus and His Critics
from Part II - Ethics
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 December 2025
Book contents
- The Ladder of the Sciences in Late Antique Platonism
- Cambridge Texts and Studies In Platonism
- The Ladder of the Sciences in Late Antique Platonism
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Tables and Charts
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- Part I Rhetoric as an Instrument of Philosophy
- Part II Ethics
- Chapter 6 Ethics in Plotinus and His Successors
- Chapter 7 Innovations in Plotinus’ Theory of Virtue
- Chapter 8 Ancient Biographies of Pythagoras and Epicurus as Models of the Philosophical Life
- Chapter 9 Patterns of Perfection in Damascius’ Life of Isidore
- Chapter 10 Love in Plotinus’ Thought
- Chapter 11 Explaining Evil in Late Antiquity
- Chapter 12 Explaining Evil in Justinian’s Reign
- Chapter 13 Philosophos Oikonomos
- Part III Political Science
- Part IV Mathematics
- Part V Metaphysics
- Postscript
- Bibliography
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Summary
Plotinus provided an explanation of evil which was original and philosophically challenging. While deriving everything from one source, the absolute transcendent Good, Plotinus does not trivialize the phenomenon of evil or reduce it to human moral deviation, as do other philosophical and religious approaches, but traces evil back to a metaphysical principle, matter, the source of evil in the world and in human souls. In Chapter 11 I present Plotinus’ account of evil and discuss to what extent it can be defended against a series of criticisms formulated by Plotinus’ successors, in particular by Proclus.
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- The Ladder of the Sciences in Late Antique PlatonismSelected Essays, pp. 154 - 172Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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