Hierax (Middle Platonist)

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Hierax ( Greek  Ἱέραξ Hiérax ) was an ancient Greek philosopher . He was a Platonist and lived during the Middle Platonism , probably in the 2nd century.

Nothing is known about the life of Hierax. He wrote a pamphlet "On Justice " ( Peri dikaiosýnēs ), which is lost except for eight fragments. The fragments are preserved in the “anthology” of the late antique scholar Johannes Stobaios . It appears to be a presentation of the material that emerged from the author's oral teaching.

The historian of philosophy Karl Praechter examined the fragments in a fundamental essay in 1906; his analysis is still relevant today. It has shown that Hierax was a Middle Platonist who - following a custom that was widespread at the time - supplemented Platonism with ideas from other philosophical schools - the Stoa and the Peripatos . In that respect he was an eclectic . On the other hand, he also criticized the ideas of justice of representatives of these two schools. The only clue for dating is the proximity of Hierax's way of thinking to that of Middle Platonists such as Alcinous , Apuleius and Maximos of Tire . It persuaded Praechter to see Hierax as a contemporary of these thinkers and therefore to place him in the 2nd century.

In his discussion of the question of how justice is to be defined, Hierax rejects both the “many” (non-philosophers) understanding of justice and definitions derived from peripathetics and stoics. He criticizes the popular definitions for the fact that they do not exclude behavior that he believes is incompatible with justice. Justice should not be limited to a correct attitude towards property issues. It does not consist in “equality” ( isótēs ), this is rather highly unjust. Hierax sees in righteousness a virtue of the soul and thus a soul constitution and not its consequence, the external manifestation of the soul quality through deeds. He thus rejects the Aristotelian conception of justice, which is based on social behavior, and opposes it to the Platonic one. For him, justice as a virtue is a fruit of reason ( phrónēsis ). Hence, it can necessarily only appear in conjunction with the other virtues, since reason, if present, inevitably evokes all virtues. Hierax understands justice as a total virtue, which is expressed in striving for the right order within the soul or in the presence of this order. As a superior virtue, it presupposes the other virtues; this is evident from the fact that it is incompatible with the vices opposite to them.

When interpreting the Socratic- Platonic doctrine that those who commit an injustice are more harmed than those who suffer it, Hierax puts forward several considerations. One of them presupposes the radical assumption that physical and external goods are irrelevant and therefore only damage to the soul with regard to its virtue is to be regarded as real loss; but since only the perpetrator and not the victim suffers such a loss as a result of the act, he only damages himself with his act.

Text output with translation

  • Marie-Luise Lakmann (Ed.): Platonici minores. 1st century BC - 2nd century AD. Prosopography, fragments and testimony with German translation (= Philosophia antiqua , volume 145). Brill, Leiden / Boston 2017, ISBN 978-90-04-31533-4 , pp. 131-133, 502-513 (critical edition)

literature

  • Richard Goulet: Hiérax . In: Richard Goulet (ed.): Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques . Volume 3, CNRS Éditions, Paris 2000, ISBN 2-271-05748-5 , pp. 682-683
  • Salvatore Lilla: Introduzione al Medio platonismo . Istituto Patristico “Augustinianum”, Rome 1992, pp. 72-73
  • Karl Praechter: Hierax the Platonist . In: Karl Praechter: Small writings . Olms, Hildesheim 1973, ISBN 3-487-04672-5 , pp. 55–80 (first published in: Hermes . Volume 41, 1906, pp. 593–618; fundamental)

Remarks

  1. ↑ Praechter identified Alcinous with the Middle Platonist Albinos, who also lived in the 2nd century, according to the state of research at the time .
  2. ^ Karl Praechter: Hierax the Platonist . In: Karl Praechter: Kleine Schriften , Hildesheim 1973, pp. 55–80, here: 63 f., 79.
  3. ^ Karl Praechter: Hierax the Platonist . In: Karl Praechter: Kleine Schriften , Hildesheim 1973, pp. 55–80, here: 62–73.
  4. ^ Karl Praechter: Hierax the Platonist . In: Karl Praechter: Kleine Schriften , Hildesheim 1973, pp. 55–80, here: 73–76.
personal data
SURNAME Hierax
BRIEF DESCRIPTION ancient Greek philosopher
DATE OF BIRTH uncertain: 2nd century
DATE OF DEATH uncertain: 2nd century