Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Langston, Douglas

Keywords

Plotinus, Enneads, Happiness, Knowledge, Proficient

Area of Concentration

Philosophy

Abstract

In this thesis I argue that the Proficient, the "truly happy person" of Plotinus's Enneads, is best understood as an incarnation of the Divine Mind (Chapter 2), a supernatural entity that imparts order to the sensible world. This entails that the Proficient has the epistemic privilege appropriate for such a being, which I articulate in detail (Chapter 3). If I am right in my contentions then there is a close connection between happiness and knowledge for Plotinus on which the Enneads is silent, but which I believe worthy of our serious consideration for manifold reasons (Conclusions).

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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