Marsilio Ficino, De amore: A Commentary

Marsilio Ficino`s DE AMORE, formally an interpretation of Plato`s Symposium, is a central document of Renaissance philosophy and offers major aspects of Renaissance intellectual life. Its all over structure is, as is Plato`s Symposium, a sequence of seven speeches held by seven wise men, the participants of the symposium, on the theme of Eros-Amor. Ficino`s work is pivotal for the philosophic studies in the Renaissance ages, which basically are a kind of synthesis of Neoplatonism and medieval theories merged with Christianity. Moreover, his philosophical system frames the reception of Platonic thought in literature, philosophy and the arts of later centuries. The outstanding position of the book between ancient, medieval and modern European thought causes the difficulty of its interpretation and requires a close philological and philosophical commentary. The chief focus of the project is the first commentary on the DE AMORE in German language. It is to be hoped that this analysis will provide not only a richer understanding of why Plato was read the way he was in early Renaissance, but will also provide a better sense of the general conditions and attitudes governing the reading of texts in the pre-modern period.

Marsilio Ficino`s DE AMORE, formally an interpretation of Plato`s Symposium, is a central document of Renaissance philosophy and offers major aspects of Renaissance intellectual life. Its all over structure is, as is Plato`s Symposium, a sequence of seven speeches held by seven wise men, the participants of the symposium, on the theme of Eros-Amor. Ficino`s work is pivotal for the philosophic studies in the Renaissance ages, which basically are a kind of synthesis of Neoplatonism and medieval theories merged with Christianity. Moreover, his philosophical system frames the reception of Platonic thought in literature, philosophy and the arts of later centuries. The outstanding position of the book between ancient, medieval and modern European thought causes the difficulty of its interpretation and requires a close philological and philosophical commentary. The chief focus of the project is the first commentary on the DE AMORE in German language. It is to be hoped that this analysis will provide not only a richer understanding of why Plato was read the way he was in early Renaissance, but will also provide a better sense of the general conditions and attitudes governing the reading of texts in the pre-modern period.