Search results for "Pre-Socratic philosophy"

Presocratic discourse in poetry and prose: The case of Empedocles and Anaxagoras

2012

Abstract This paper explores the differences between poetry and prose in philosophical writing by examining two Pre-Socratic fragments, one in verse and one in prose, that express a very similar thought: Empedocles 59 B 17 Diels/Kranz and Anaxagoras 31 B 8 D./K. Although at first it might seem as though there is a simple division between Empedocles’ opaque and allusive hexameters and Anaxagoras’ sober prose, when we look in detail at the language used by the two authors, a close reading of the passages reveals a more complex picture. Both authors place rhetorical emphasis on their own role as innovator; Anaxagoras’ prose shows a careful attention to style and word choice no less than Empedo…