Douglas Hedley & Sarah Hutton 
Platonism at the Origins of Modernity 
Studies on Platonism and Early Modern Philosophy

commentary, but by selection and accretion. Those inspired by Plato form as intrinsic a part of Platonism as Plato himself—these are the so-called Neo-P- tonists (a divisive latter-day term which implies discontinuity between Plato and 6 his later followers to the disadvantage of the latter). In the process of its long course of development, Platonism has gathered a long tradition of interpr- ers, whose contributions have been enriched by other philosophical strands—for example Stoicism, which is an important element in the philosophy of Plotinus. To this it must be added that so much of the impact of Platonism is indirect. The Platonism of many thinkers, especially in medieval times, was more often than not implicit, rather than conscious borrowing. It derived not from the Platonic corpus (most of which was unknown at that time), but indirectly through Philo, and theologians like Augustine and Origen. The combined effect of these factors is that the legacy of Platonism is rich, varied and extensive, but eludes the scope of focused enquiry. A further factor complicating assessments of Platonism in the modern era, is polarisation in the historiography itself. Historians of modern philosophy—at least in the anglophone world—readily adopt a model which counterposes ancient and modern. Drawing on a division, which the early modern philosophers themselves invoked, they employ an ‘ancient- 7 modern distinction’ as a principle for organising the history of philosophy.

Table of Content

Nicholas of Cusa (1401–1464): Platonism at the Dawn of Modernity.- At Variance: Marsilio Ficino, Platonism and Heresy.- Going Naked into the Shrine: Herbert, Plotinus and the Constructive Metaphor.- Comenius, Light Metaphysics and Educational Reform.- Robert Fludd’s Kabbalistic Cosmos.- Reconciling Theory and Fact: The Problem of ‘Other Faiths’ in Lord Herbert and the Cambridge Platonists.- Trinity, Community and Love: Cudworth’s Platonism and the Idea of God.- Chaos and Order in Cudworth’s Thought.- Cudworth, Prior and Passmore on the Autonomy of Ethics.- Substituting Aristotle: Platonic Themes in Dutch Cartesianism.- Soul, Body and World: Plato’s Timaeus and Descartes’ Meditations.- Locke, Plato and Platonism.- Reflections on Locke’s Platonism.- The Platonism at the Core of Leibniz’s Philosophy.- Leibniz and Berkeley: Platonic Metaphysics and ‘The Mechanical Philosophy’.- Which Platonism for Which Modernity? A Note on Shaftesbury’s Socratic Sea-Cards.- Platonism, Aesthetics and the Sublime at the Origins of Modernity.