EVENT PROGRAM
A conference at the University of Manchester, 6-7th September 2018
Some of the most important and influential letters and letter collections of antiquity were written by philosophers (e.g. the letters of Seneca or Epicurus) or attributed to philosophers (such as the letters of Plato, Socrates and the Socratics, Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans, etc.). Letters can be employed as the vehicle for the exploration of philosophical topics or problems (as in Seneca or Epicurus), or for the defence of a philosopher's life or endeavours (as in the Seventh Letter of Plato), while several letter collections engage with philosophical material more or less obliquely (e.g. the letters of Cicero). Philosophers also often appear as characters in epistolary collections (e.g. Plato in the letters of Chion, or Democritus in the exchange of letters between Democritus and Hippocrates), and several letter collections purport to give us a glimpse into some aspect of the 'private lives' of philosophers.
This conference seeks to explore the interaction of philosophy and philosophers in antiquity with the letter form and the broader letter collection. It will bring together experts on epistolography, letter collections and ancient philosophy to investigate topics including (but not limited to):
We are very grateful for the generous support of the Classical Association, Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, North-West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership and the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures of the University of Manchester.
- the effect of the letter form and the letter collection on the philosophical content of a letter/collection
- the engagement with the philosophical work of philosophers in pseudepigraphic letter collections
- the interaction between the 'private lives' of philosophers in letters/letter collection and the philosophical works of those philosophers
- the depiction of philosophers in letters and the relationship of such depictions to the biographical tradition
- the use of letters and letter collections as a vehicle for philosophy
- the inscription of philosophical letters (e.g. at Oenoanda)
We are very grateful for the generous support of the Classical Association, Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, North-West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership and the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures of the University of Manchester.