Proceedings of the Boston Area Colloquium in Ancient Philosophy: Volume XXXVIII (2023)

This volume, the 38th year of published proceedings, contains four papers and commentaries presented to the Boston Area Colloquium in Ancient Philosophy during 2023. Topics: Theophrastus’s interpretation of De Anima III 5 defended against the traditional readings; a new interpretation of Empedocles’ cosmology, aiming to deflect Aristotle’s criticism; analysis of the role of Adeimantus in Plato’s Republic, arguing that he is responsible for the turn to politics in the dialogue; explication of Metaphysics Epsilon, in which Aristotle argues for the necessity of a first philosophy beyond physics. The commentators subject each paper to critical review, and they support, challenge, or reject what they find.