KANON

The focus of the Project is the systematic study of the philosophical roots of Epicurus’ epistemology, namely Canonics. Epicurus was the first philosopher to write a work specifically dedicated to the canons or criteria of knowledge. Epicurean epistemology, based on a rationalist empiricism supported by a materialist physics, was a reference point for all coeval currents of thought. There are practically no recent studies on this topic: very few scholars have conducted a systematic investigation of philosophical works from the Classical period that may have influenced Epicurean Canonics. The idea that Hellenistic philosophy marks a clear theoretical break from the previous philosophical age – in which Plato, Aristotle and their “schools” stand out – has been upheld in an attempt to affirm its autonomy and grant it the same theoretical dignity as Classical philosophy. However, this idea is no longer acceptable from historiographical standpoint. Nor is Bignone 1973’s hypothesis that Epicurus exclusively knew Aristotle’s so-called “published” treatises more acceptable. It is very likely that Epicurus carefully read and discussed Plato’s Theaetetus and Timaeus, Aristotle’s De anima and the Parva naturalia, as some thematic and lexical affinities and continuities undoubtedly show. To fully understand the epistemology of Epicurus, we cannot exclude the well-founded possibility of a constant debate with Democritus (and Democritean philosophers like Nausiphanes), Theophrastus, and the philosophy of Pyrrho and Timon of Phlius.

Many studies have explored the epistemology of Epicurus, especially his notion of the truth of sense-perception. Few, however, have investigated the meaningful possibility that Epicurean Canonics was also constituted through a constant critical engagement with the works that mainly Plato and Aristotle devoted to the study of cognitive processes and the examination of the truth of sense-perception. Without this critical engagement, the crucial aspects of Epicurus’ epistemology cannot be fully understood. The Project aims to offer a comprehensive mapping of the historical-philosophical roots of Epicurus’ epistemology to promote a real advancement in our knowledge of his thought in the broader context of Hellenistic philosophies. The main issues to focus on are crucial aspects of Epicurus’ epistemology: from the role attributed to sense-perception in the process of acquisition of scientific knowledge to the notion of representation and the formation of concepts; from the physiological roots of perceptual processes to the ways in which sensory data are preserved and processed through memory, induction, abstraction, and analogy. All these aspects will be explored through the fundamental dialectical relationship that Epicurus’ epistemological theories entertain – both explicitly and implicitly – with their roots, especially Plato’s and Aristotle’s philosophical output.