"Aristotle said that philosophy begins with wonder, and the first Western philosophers developed theories of the world which express simultaneously their sense of wonder and their intuition that the world should be comprehensible. But their enterprise was by no means limited to this proto-scientific task. Through, for instance, Heraclitus' enigmatic sayings, the poetry of Parmenides and Empedocles, and Zeno's paradoxes, the Western world was introduced to metaphysics, rationalist theology, ethics, and logic, by thinkers who often seem to be mystics or shamans as much as philosophers or scientists in the modern mould. And out of the Sophists' reflections on human beings and their place in the world arose an interest in language, and in political, moral, and social philosophy." "This volume contains translations of all the most important fragments of the Presocratics and Sophists, and of the most informative testimonia from ancient sources, supplemented by lucid commentary."--BOOK JACKET.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Preface and acknowledgements -- Introduction -- Select bibliography -- Note on the texts -- Timeline -- The Presocratics. The Milesians: Thales of Miletus, Anaximander of Miletus, Anaximenes of Miletus ; Xenophanes of Colophon ; Heraclitus of Ephesus ; Parmenides of Elea ; Zeno of Elea ; Melissus of Samos ; Pythagoras of Croton and fifth-century Pythagoreanism ; Anaxagoras of Clazomenae ; Empedocles of Acragas ; The atomists: Leucippus of Abdera, Democritus of Abdera ; Diogenes of Apollonia -- The Sophists. Protagoras of Abdera ; Gorgias of Leontini ; Prodicus of Ceos ; Hippias of Elis ; Antiphon the Sophist ; Thrasymachus of Chalcedon ; Euthydemus and Dionysodorus of Chios ; Double arguments ; Anonymous and miscellaneous texts -- Explanatory notes -- Textual notes -- Concordance with Diels/Kranz -- Index of translated passages.
Imported from: catalog.oslri.net:210/INNOPAC (Do not remove)