LENNOX, J.G., and R. BOLTON, (eds.),
Being, Nature, and Life in Aristotle. Essays in Honor of Allan Gotthelf.
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2015. 1st paperback ed. XV,289p. Paperback. 'This outstanding collection of ten essays pays handsome tribute to Allan Gotthelf for his many years at the center of scholarship on Aristotelian philosophy of biology and science. As noted in the introduction, 'Perhaps no one has done more in recent decades to promote, to sponsor, to organize, and to stimulate research on these topics' (p.1). The main themes of the collection -metaphysics, natural science and biology, and methodology - show deliberate continuity with the line of research inaugurated in Aristotle on Nature and Living Things (Mathesis, 1985), edited by Gotthelf, which honored David Balme for his groundbreaking work on Aristotle’s biology. While Festschrifts often amount to what Aristotle would call a heap, Lennox and Bolton cast their book as 'a certain whole', indeed, 'a multifaceted common research project in which all of the contributors have been engaged for more than twenty-five years now, under early and continuing stimulus from Allan Gotthelf' (p.3–4). The result is not monolithic, but unified enough around common texts and themes for authors to express substantive differences in a way that permits an interesting dialogue to emerge. A glance at the list of contributing authors suffices to recommend this book in its entirety to specialists. A thorough reading should convince any remaining skeptics how fruitful it is, in James Lennox’s words, 'to take Aristotle’s scientific study of animals more seriously as a valuable resource for deepening our understanding of every aspect of his philosophy' (p.56). Gotthelf richly deserves this durable sign of recognition for his success, with his various collaborators, in establishing a still-young tradition of scholarship.' (DANIEL P. MAHER in Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2011.09.10).
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