Xenophontos, S. and Marmodoro, A. (2021) Introduction. In: Xenophontos, S. and Marmodoro, A. (eds.) The Reception of Greek Ethics in Late Antiquity and Byzantium. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, pp. 1-12. ISBN 9781108986359 (doi: 10.1017/9781108986359.001)
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Abstract
Around the mid-thirteenth century, in the short-lived empire of Nicaea, the enlightened prince and philosopher Theodore II Laskaris was confronted with the dreadful death of his wife Elena. The period of mourning gave rise to his Moral Pieces (Ἐπιτομαὶ ἠθικαί), a collection of twelve essays of a profoundly ethical character, focusing on the instability of human fate as opposed to the durability of genuine virtue. What marks the collection as a whole is the overarching despondency at the loss of Elena, which leads to the discussion of broader concerns about human existence, happiness and morality. While placing the characteristics of human soul and nature into a Christian context (e.g. essay 1), Theodore is also keen to adopt Platonic and Aristotelian understandings of the soul and intellect, bringing them into alignment with his emphasis on spirituality addressed in his account. But it is perhaps the peculiar style of his moralism that stands out in passages such as the following:
| Item Type: | Book Sections (Introduction) |
|---|---|
| Status: | Published |
| Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: | Xenofontos, Dr Sophia |
| Authors: | Xenophontos, S., and Marmodoro, A. |
| College/School: | College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > Classics |
| Publisher: | Cambridge University Press |
| ISBN: | 9781108986359 |
| Published Online: | 15 June 2021 |
| Related URLs: |
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