Fragments
by The Pre-Socratic Philosophers
Assigned by 2 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- c. 600-400 BCE
- Form
- Treatise
- Language
- Greek
- Length
- Medium · 250 pp120 to 300 pages
- Difficulty
- Demanding3 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendEarly Greek Philosophy, translated by Jonathan BarnesPenguin Classics, 2001A full selection of fragments and testimonies in a single volume, arranged by thinker and clearly introduced.
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The surviving words of the Greek thinkers before Socrates, preserved as quotations and reports in later authors. They include the Milesians Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes, who sought the single stuff of the world; Pythagoras and his school; Heraclitus on flux and the logos; Parmenides' poem arguing that what is cannot change; Zeno's paradoxes; Empedocles' four elements; Anaxagoras' mind; and the atomists Leucippus and Democritus. Together they mark the beginning of natural science and metaphysics.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Fragments are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
