Christian Wildberg

University of Pittsburgh, Classics, Faculty Member

Princeton University, Classics, Faculty Member

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Address: Department of Classics
CL 1504, 4200 Fifth Ave
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
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Papers by Christian Wildberg

Cynicism: Philosophy as a Way of Strife

OSAP 57, 2019

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Two New Editions of the Presocratics and What to Do With Them

A review essay on the new Loeb edition of the Presocratics. Given as a talk at Columbia Universit... more

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Herakles in Alkestis des Phrynichos.pdf

This paper questions the opinio communis that Phrynichus' "Alcestis" contained the motif of a str... more

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Hekuba 1024-34.pdf

This is a detailed discussion of the last choral ode of Euripides' Hecuba. Published a long time ... more

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Helena 892-93.pdf

A discussion of the end of Theonoe's speech in Euripides' Helen. Published a long time ago (2002).

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Medeia 908-10.pdf

A discussion of, and proposed solution, to a well-known crux in Euripides' Medea. Published a lon... more

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A Life of Proclus

d'Hoine/ Martijn: All From One, 2017

This is the published version of the Proclus biography, including plates.

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A World of Thoughts: Plotinus on Nature and Contemplation

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Comments on the new Empedocles (Strasbourg Papyrus)

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Die Gerechtigkeit des Zeus in den Dramen des Euripides (in German)

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The Rise and Fall of the Socratic Notion of Piety

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The Religious Meaning of the Gods in Euripides

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Impetus Theory and the Hermeneutics of Science in Simplicius and Philoponus

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Neuplatonische Ethik (in German)

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Corpus Hermeticum Tractate III: The Genesis of a Genesis

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Simplicius und das Zitat

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Philosophy in the Age of Justinian (from Maas (ed.) The Age of Justinian)

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Socrates and Euripides (from: Ahble-Rappe/Kamtekar (eds.) Companion to Socrates)

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Dionysus in the Mirror of Philosophy (from: Schlesier (ed.) A Different God?)

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Drafts by Christian Wildberg

Philoponus on Genesis and the Timaeus

On the basis of several striking similarities, John Philoponus infamously suggested that Plato co... more On the basis of several striking similarities, John Philoponus infamously suggested that Plato composed his Timaeus under the influence of the biblical genesis narrative. This paper is the first, I think, not conveniently to ignore Philoponus' suggestion; instead, it explores what might follow, in terms of reconstructing historical dependency, if one concedes that Philoponus saw something that indeed demands an explanation. The upshot: the ideas articulated (whenever) in the Corpus Hermeticum might be older than you think.

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Cynicism: Philosophy as a Way of Strife

OSAP 57, 2019

Download

Two New Editions of the Presocratics and What to Do With Them

A review essay on the new Loeb edition of the Presocratics. Given as a talk at Columbia Universit... more

Download

Herakles in Alkestis des Phrynichos.pdf

This paper questions the opinio communis that Phrynichus' "Alcestis" contained the motif of a str... more

Download

Hekuba 1024-34.pdf

This is a detailed discussion of the last choral ode of Euripides' Hecuba. Published a long time ... more

Download

Helena 892-93.pdf

A discussion of the end of Theonoe's speech in Euripides' Helen. Published a long time ago (2002).

Download

Medeia 908-10.pdf

A discussion of, and proposed solution, to a well-known crux in Euripides' Medea. Published a lon... more

Download

A Life of Proclus

d'Hoine/ Martijn: All From One, 2017

This is the published version of the Proclus biography, including plates.

Download

A World of Thoughts: Plotinus on Nature and Contemplation

Download

Comments on the new Empedocles (Strasbourg Papyrus)

Download

Die Gerechtigkeit des Zeus in den Dramen des Euripides (in German)

Download

The Rise and Fall of the Socratic Notion of Piety

Download

The Religious Meaning of the Gods in Euripides

Download

Impetus Theory and the Hermeneutics of Science in Simplicius and Philoponus

Download

Neuplatonische Ethik (in German)

Download

Corpus Hermeticum Tractate III: The Genesis of a Genesis

Download

Simplicius und das Zitat

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Philosophy in the Age of Justinian (from Maas (ed.) The Age of Justinian)

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Socrates and Euripides (from: Ahble-Rappe/Kamtekar (eds.) Companion to Socrates)

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Dionysus in the Mirror of Philosophy (from: Schlesier (ed.) A Different God?)

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Philoponus on Genesis and the Timaeus

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Parmenides and the Problem of Evil

This a draft paper on the painful western ruminations on moral evil. Comments welcome.

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Lefkowitz Euripides and Gods

This is the somewhat longer version of my review of Mary Lefkowitz, Euripides and the Gods. The s... more

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Late Antiquity:Whether We Like It or Not

Dedicated to the memory of Voula Kotzia I first thought to write this essay while pondering how L... more Dedicated to the memory of Voula Kotzia I first thought to write this essay while pondering how Late Antiquity could be studied in new and innovative ways, at universities. More specifically, the inspiration for this essay came to me when I was developing a proposal for a new course in the history of philosophy in the Late Antique period (roughly, from Philo to Philoponus). By the end of this essay it will hopefully be clearer what I mean by the title; I begin by explaining my concern in some preliminary way. Now, I know that my readers might not all exactly be enthusiasts for Late Antiquity, who already feel that the value of studying the post-classical periods all the way up until the Arab conquest is self-evident. But I hope here to convince even the uninitiated or unconverted that the project of studying Late Antiquity truly has weight and urgency, and thereby perhaps to increase the sense of the importance this particular historical period actually has. It would be odd if some of you in the room did not think that it is a better use of one's time to read Thucydides rather than Procopius, or Plato rather than Proclus. Not so long ago, I very much thought the same thing because I was the product of a common academic culture. When I was a graduate student in the 80s, I was one of a handful of budding scholars who took the risk of doing their doctoral research on the marginal fringes of ancient philosophy. The hot topic of the day was Hellenistic philosophy (Stoicism and skepticism in particular), closely followed by Plato and Aristotle. Cicero was of interest only insofar as he informed us about the Stoics or middle Platonists; even Lucretius was already an outlier, and beyond that, people had very little to say. You would not want to be caught with an open volume of Plotinus on your desk, much less one of the so-called fathers of

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Astral Discourse in the Corpus Hermeticum: A Survey

This paper gives an interpretative summary of the scope and content of astrological passages in t... more This paper gives an interpretative summary of the scope and content of astrological passages in the philosophical Hermetica. The term 'philosophical Hermetica' refers mainly to the eighteen extant tractates in Greek and Latin associated with the mythical figure of Hermes Trismegistus; to this we must add the surviving Hermetic fragments found in the Anthology compiled by Ioannes Stobaeus in the 5 th century C.E. In view of the modern association of Hermetism and astrology, one might suppose that the Hermetica must be replete with astrological discourse, but such an expectation is going to be disappointed. What we would call astrology proper plays only a marginal role in these Hermetic writings, and the considerably older, more technical and observational discipline of astronomy none whatsoever. However, it is possible to say is that in this type of literature the viability and practice of astrology receives something like a metaphysical foundation or framework. This framework is erected over two fundamental tenets of Hermetism which, in and of themselves, have nothing to do with astrology: first the doctrine of the preeminent importance of the Sun and, second, the thesis of the essential divinity of mankind. The Sun, the most radiant celestial body by far, is identified, in ways that are not always clear and conspicuous, with the supreme deity of the universe and its life-giving creativity. It, or more precisely its light, is also connected to human consciousness. Human beings, in turn, are the descendants of an originary androgynous human who, as direct offspring of the supreme deity, ranks among the highest beings within god's creation. Together, these two doctrines establish the essential connection between the heavens and humanity.

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The Will and its Freedom: Epictetus and Simplicius on what is up to us

The notion of a free will is a notion we have inherited from antiquity. It was first in antiquity... more The notion of a free will is a notion we have inherited from antiquity. It was first in antiquity that one came to think of human beings as having a free will. But, as with so many other notions we have inherited from antiquity, … we have to ask ourselves whether the notion of a free will has not outlived its usefulness, has not become a burden rather than of any real help in understanding ourselves and what we do." 1 I

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The General Discourses of Hermes Trismegistus

Making sense of the diverse forms and formats of extant Hermetic literature is difficult enough, ... more Making sense of the diverse forms and formats of extant Hermetic literature is difficult enough, even if one excludes the so-called 'technical' Hermetica from consideration. 1 What is not difficult is to see that, broadly speaking, the Greek tractates assembled in the so-called Corpus Hermeticum, the Latin Asclepius, and the three Hermetic texts found in the Coptic Nag Hammadi Library 2 all belong to the genre of semi-philosophical didactic prose literature. But within that class of written instruction we encounter vastly differing sub-genres: CH I (Poimandres) is a first-person reminiscence of a dream vision that took the form of a dialogue between the divinity (the Mind or Nous) and the narrator, presumably Hermes himself; CH II is the ostensible protocol of a lively dialogue between Hermes and his pupil Asclepius, as are CH VI and XI and the Asclepius;

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Hyperesie Epiphanie Abstract and Index.pdf

This is the abstract and index of my book on Euripides, "Hyperesie und Epiphanie". It was publish... more This is the abstract and index of my book on Euripides, "Hyperesie und Epiphanie". It was published in German in 2002. On the basis of an interpretation of all Euripidean plays that involve deities, I am crediting Euripides with the attempt to make new sense of traditional polytheism, in a way that, in comparison to the Homeric picture, is much more complex and sophisticated (but not at all sophistic).

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Christian Wildberg

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