Philosophy Audiobooks

This third of the six Enneads (ΕΝΝΕΑΔΕΣ) written by Plotinus (ΠΛΩΤΙΝΟΣ); arranged by Porphyry (ΠΟΡΦΥΡΙΟΣ) and translated by Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie contains the following nine books:

1. Concerning Fate (0:00:00)

2. Of Providence (0:31:39)

3. Continuation of That on Providence (1:49:41)

4. Of Our Individual Guardian (2:20:34)

5. Of Love, or "Eros" (2:44:01)

6. Of the Impassibility of Incorporeal Entities (3:27:41)

7. Of Time and Eternity (4:56:20)

8. Of Nature, Contemplation and Unity (6:11:06)

9. Fragments About the Soul, the Intelligence, and the Good (7:01:53)

Engraving: Melencolia I by Albrecht Dürer.

On Longevity and Shortness of Life (Greek: ΠΕΡΙ ΜΑΚΡΟΒΙΟΤΗΤΟΣ ΚΑΙ ΒΡΑΧΥΒΙΟΤΗΤΟΣ; Latin: DE LONGITUDINE ET BREVITATE VITAE) is one of the seven short treatises on nature (Latin: PARVA NATURALIA). In this text Aristotle provides explanations for the different lifespans of plants, animals, men and women. Translated by William Alexander Hammond. Photograph: Seated Woman with "Spirit" of a Young Man by Unknown Maker about 1865-1875. Scanned by The J. Paul Getty Museum.

The Constitution of Athens (Greek: ΑΘΗΝΑΙΩΝ ΠΟΛΙΤΕΙΑ) was written by Aristotle or one of his students. The text was lost until discovered in the late 19th century in Egypt. Topics discussed include Solon's legislative reforms abolishing debt slavery and the rise and decline of democracy and tyranny in Athens. Translated by Frederic G. Kenyon. Painting: Triumph of the Marine Venus by Sebastiano Ricci. Scanned by The J. Paul Getty Museum.

On Prophecy in Sleep (Greek: ΠΕΡΙ ΤΗΣ ΚΑΘ ΥΠΝΟΝ ΜΑΝΤΙΚΗΣ) is also known as On Divination in Sleep (Latin: DE DIVINATIONE PER SOMNUM). In this short book Aristotle asks why alleged prophetic dreams typically come to base people at night instead of to the wise during the day which would be more consistent with a benevolent deity. Painting: Shepherd and Sleeping Shepherdess attributed to Reyer Jacobsz van Blommendael (1628-1675). Scanned by The J. Paul Getty Museum.

Sophist (ΣΟΦΙΣΤΗΣ) is a dialogue written by Plato which discusses being and not-being while drawing a distinction between true philosophers and mere sophists. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. Read in English by Geoffrey Edwards. Meta Coordinator: Bart de Leeuw. Proof Listener: Rapunzelina. Painting: Andromeda by Edward Poynter, 1869.

This second of the six Enneads (ΕΝΝΕΑΔΕΣ) written by Plotinus (ΠΛΩΤΙΝΟΣ); arranged by Porphyry (ΠΟΡΦΥΡΙΟΣ) and translated by Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie contains the following nine books:

1. Of the Heaven

2. About the Movement of the Heavens

3. Whether Astrology is of any Value

4. Of Matter

5. Of the Aristotelian Distinction Between Actuality and Potentiality

6. Of Essence and Being

7. About Mixture to the Point of Total Penetration

8. Of Sight

9. Against the Gnostics; or, That the Creator and the World are Not Evil.

Painting: The Victory of Faith by St. George Hare, c. 1890-91.

Theaetetus (Ancient Greek: ΘΕΑΙΤΗΤΟΣ) discusses epistemological concepts including perception, true judgment and knowledge. Socrates compares the human mind to a piece of wax and is critical of lawyers who seek only to persuade using rhetoric. Painting: The Studio by Honoré Daumier.

This first of the six Enneads (ΕΝΝΕΑΔΕΣ) written by Plotinus (ΠΛΩΤΙΝΟΣ); arranged by Porphyry (ΠΟΡΦΥΡΙΟΣ) and translated by Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie contains the following nine books:

1. The Organism and the Self

2. Concerning Virtue

3. Of Dialectic, or the Means of Raising the Soul to the Intelligible World

4. Whether Animals May Be Termed Happy

5. Does Happiness Increase With Time?

6. Of Beauty

7. Of the First Good, and of the Other Goods

8. Of the Nature and Origin of Evils

9. Of Suicide

Photograph: Girl standing near tree by Kusakabe Kimbei (Japan, 1870s - 1890s). Scanned by the J. Paul Getty Museum.

Eudemian Ethics (Greek: ΗΘΙΚΩΝ ΕΥΔΗΜΙΩΝ Latin: ETHICA EUDEMIA) outlines Aristotle's ethical philosophy. Topics include virtue, friendship, happiness, justice, courage, wisdom, temperance and God. It is believed to have been written before Nicomachean Ethics and to be named after Eudemus of Rhodes. Books IV, V, and VI of Eudemian Ethics are identical to books V, VI, and VII of Nicomachean Ethics and are excluded from this translation. Translated by J. Solomon. Audiobook read by Geoffrey Edwards. Meta Coordinator: TriciaG. Proof Listener: Bala. Cover: After the Bath by William-Adolphe Bouguereau.

Magna Moralia (Ancient Greek: ΗΘΙΚΩΝ ΜΕΓΑΛΩΝ English: Great Ethics) discusses topics including friendship, virtue, happiness and God. It is disputed whether Aristotle wrote Magna Moralia. This author concludes that it is absurd to suggest that God contemplates only God but does not propose an alternative activity for God.

Translated by St. George William Joseph Stock. Audiobook read in English by Geoffrey Edwards. Proof listened by Larry Wilson. Meta-Coordinated by Bart de Leeuw. Cover: The Wave by William-Adolphe Bouguereau 1896.