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Chapter 6 - Love in Plotinus’ Thought

from Part II - Development of Platonic Love in Antiquity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 August 2022

By
Dominic J. O’Meara
Edited by
Carl Séan O'Brien  and
John Dillon
Carl Séan O'Brien
Affiliation:
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg, Germany
John Dillon
Affiliation:
Trinity College Dublin
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Summary

This chapter surveys different aspects of the theme of love (erōs) in Plotinus’ philosophy. Starting with what Plotinus finds significant in the human experience of love, we consider Plotinus’ nuanced evaluation of various types of earthly love (including sexuality), moving then to love as a desire of the beautiful expressing the very nature of soul in its relation to its origin in a divine transcendent Intellect, itself constituted in a relation of love to the ultimate first principle, the One/Good. Plotinus’ claim that the One is love/self-love is examined and two aspects of love, as expressing deficiency and as a generosity manifesting fulfilment, are discussed in relation to the One and as found in Intellect and in soul.

Keywords

PlotinusdesiredeficiencygenerositysoulbeautyIntellectthe Onethe Good
Type
Chapter
Information
Platonic Love from Antiquity to the Renaissance , pp. 111 - 124
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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