Book contents
- Aristoxenus of Tarentum: the Pythagorean Precepts (How to Live a Pythagorean Life)
- Aristoxenus of Tarentum: the Pythagorean Precepts (How to Live a Pythagorean Life)
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Part I Introduction
- 1 Evidence for the Work: the Excerpts Preserved in Stobaeus
- 2 The Title and Nature of the Work
- 3 The Format and Style of the Work
- 4 Fragments of the Pythagorean Precepts Preserved in Iamblichus’ On the Pythagorean Way of Life
- 5 A Comparison of Stobaeus’ and Iamblichus’ Evidence for the Pythagorean Precepts
- 6 The Relationship of the Pythagorean Precepts to Aristoxenus’ Other Works on the Pythagoreans
- 7 The Influence of the Pythagorean Precepts on the Later Pythagorean Tradition
- 8 History of Scholarship on the Pythagorean Precepts
- 9 The Standard View of the Pythagorean Precepts
- 10 The Ethical System of the Pythagorean Precepts
- Part II Fragments with Translation and Commentary
- Appendices
- Concordance with the Fragment Numbers in Wehrli’s Edition
- Bibliography
- Select Index of Greek Words and Phrases Discussed
- Index Locorum
- General Index
9 - The Standard View of the Pythagorean Precepts
from Part I - Introduction
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 October 2019
- Aristoxenus of Tarentum: the Pythagorean Precepts (How to Live a Pythagorean Life)
- Aristoxenus of Tarentum: the Pythagorean Precepts (How to Live a Pythagorean Life)
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Part I Introduction
- 1 Evidence for the Work: the Excerpts Preserved in Stobaeus
- 2 The Title and Nature of the Work
- 3 The Format and Style of the Work
- 4 Fragments of the Pythagorean Precepts Preserved in Iamblichus’ On the Pythagorean Way of Life
- 5 A Comparison of Stobaeus’ and Iamblichus’ Evidence for the Pythagorean Precepts
- 6 The Relationship of the Pythagorean Precepts to Aristoxenus’ Other Works on the Pythagoreans
- 7 The Influence of the Pythagorean Precepts on the Later Pythagorean Tradition
- 8 History of Scholarship on the Pythagorean Precepts
- 9 The Standard View of the Pythagorean Precepts
- 10 The Ethical System of the Pythagorean Precepts
- Part II Fragments with Translation and Commentary
- Appendices
- Concordance with the Fragment Numbers in Wehrli’s Edition
- Bibliography
- Select Index of Greek Words and Phrases Discussed
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Summary
As we have seen, most recent scholars (e.g., Burkert, Kahn, Zhmud) depend on Rivaud and Wehrli for what can be called the standard view of the Precepts. These earlier scholars state the view in a very uncompromising fashion. Rivaud proposes that “Aristoxenus with the help of texts from the Republic has reconstructed a Pythagorean politics that no Pythagorean author had ever expressly formulated” (1932: 784) and later adds, “if Aristoxenus presents Pythagorean doctrine it is necessary to recognize that Plato’s originality is mediocre” (1932: 787).
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- Aristoxenus of Tarentum: The Pythagorean Precepts (How to Live a Pythagorean Life)An Edition of and Commentary on the Fragments with an Introduction, pp. 82 - 111Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019