This thesis deals with the question of evil as privatio boni according to the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and the conception of evil in the work of Carl Gustav Jung who denied this Augustine's teachings. In the thesis I analyze attitudes that adopt both thinkers to categories of good and evil in relation to impacts of their conceptions on understanding of God, self-understanding of man, of his life, death and salvation, further of the relation of God and man and the human moral responsibility before God and society. Augustine maintains that evil is an absence of good, but Jung thinks that the reality is put together from the balance of good and evil. Their attitudes I scarify with the aid of the secondary literature and the explanation of that biblical places that both thinkers refer to.

Um estudo historiográfico das Historiae abbreuiatae de Aurélio Vítor. Nisto consiste o presente trabalho, que procura determinar de que modo o referido historiador, no ocaso do reinado de Constâncio II, compôs uma narrativa dedicada à história do Império romano em sua totalidade. Para tanto, em primeiro lugar buscamos definir a natureza da obra. Em que pese os nítidos elementos biográficos que a integram, assim como a brevidade do texto, a obra de Aurélio Vítor deve ser pensada enquanto uma história, na medida em que o objetivo do autor se voltava para a exposição das causas que teriam condicionado o curso dos acontecimentos, da batalha de Ácio até o penúltimo ano do governo de Constâncio II. Desta forma, em um segundo momento, analisamos as estratégias de periodização e as concepções que Aurélio Vítor adotou a fim de contemplar a história imperial. As ações e o caráter moral dos sucessivos imperadores emergem nas Historiae abbreuiatae como o motor a partir do qual se movimentava a história da era imperial romana. Isto implicava, pois, o reconhecimento das oscilações que o mundo romano teria vivenciado ao longo de quase quatro séculos e as contradições que animavam a conduta das personagens históricas. Do que resultava, igualmente, na impossibilidade de se identificar um modelo ideal de imperador, em razão dos fatores e das circunstâncias distintas que marcariam o desenrolar da história do Império romano, como narrada por Aurélio Vítor. / A historiographical study of Aurelius Victors Historiae abbreuiatae. That is what defines the present work, which tries to ascertain how the aforementioned historian settled up a narrative about the history of the Roman Empire in the twilight of the reign of Constantius II. Therefore, we discuss at first the nature of the work. Despite the clear biographical trend we can observe in the text, as well as the brevity that characterizes it, the work of Aurelius Victor should be seen as a historical narrative since the author aimed to expose both the causes and the course of Roman imperial history, from the Battle of Actium to the last but one year of Constantius IIs reign. Thereupon we examine the strategies of periodization and the perspectives defined by Aurelius Victor in order to compose his text. In the Historiae abbreuiatae, the conduct showed by the emperors and their moral character represented the driving force of the narrative. That led the author to emphasize the ups and downs of Roman past in almost four hundred years of history. In this sense, Aurelius Victor did not lose track of some contradictions that encourage historical figures into action. That resulted in Aurelius Victors failure to identify an idealized model of Roman emperor due to distinct elements and circunstances that he himself pointed out in the course of the history of the Roman Empire.

Il lavoro consiste nell'analisi dei tratti peculiari della lingua delle Meditazioni dell'imperatore Marco Aurelio Antonino in relazione alla prosa imperiale coeva all'autore; nel contempo la ricerca mira a riconoscere una possibile influenza della lingua latina nella stesura del trattato. / The work is about the language of Marcus Aurelius's Meditations compared to the imperial contemporary prose and tries to find influences of Latin language in the composition of the treatise.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Universität zu Köln, 1990. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [252]-262) and index.

Um estudo historiográfico das Historiae abbreuiatae de Aurélio Vítor. Nisto consiste o presente trabalho, que procura determinar de que modo o referido historiador, no ocaso do reinado de Constâncio II, compôs uma narrativa dedicada à história do Império romano em sua totalidade. Para tanto, em primeiro lugar buscamos definir a natureza da obra. Em que pese os nítidos elementos biográficos que a integram, assim como a brevidade do texto, a obra de Aurélio Vítor deve ser pensada enquanto uma história, na medida em que o objetivo do autor se voltava para a exposição das causas que teriam condicionado o curso dos acontecimentos, da batalha de Ácio até o penúltimo ano do governo de Constâncio II. Desta forma, em um segundo momento, analisamos as estratégias de periodização e as concepções que Aurélio Vítor adotou a fim de contemplar a história imperial. As ações e o caráter moral dos sucessivos imperadores emergem nas Historiae abbreuiatae como o motor a partir do qual se movimentava a história da era imperial romana. Isto implicava, pois, o reconhecimento das oscilações que o mundo romano teria vivenciado ao longo de quase quatro séculos e as contradições que animavam a conduta das personagens históricas. Do que resultava, igualmente, na impossibilidade de se identificar um modelo ideal de imperador, em razão dos fatores e das circunstâncias distintas que marcariam o desenrolar da história do Império romano, como narrada por Aurélio Vítor. / A historiographical study of Aurelius Victors Historiae abbreuiatae. That is what defines the present work, which tries to ascertain how the aforementioned historian settled up a narrative about the history of the Roman Empire in the twilight of the reign of Constantius II. Therefore, we discuss at first the nature of the work. Despite the clear biographical trend we can observe in the text, as well as the brevity that characterizes it, the work of Aurelius Victor should be seen as a historical narrative since the author aimed to expose both the causes and the course of Roman imperial history, from the Battle of Actium to the last but one year of Constantius IIs reign. Thereupon we examine the strategies of periodization and the perspectives defined by Aurelius Victor in order to compose his text. In the Historiae abbreuiatae, the conduct showed by the emperors and their moral character represented the driving force of the narrative. That led the author to emphasize the ups and downs of Roman past in almost four hundred years of history. In this sense, Aurelius Victor did not lose track of some contradictions that encourage historical figures into action. That resulted in Aurelius Victors failure to identify an idealized model of Roman emperor due to distinct elements and circunstances that he himself pointed out in the course of the history of the Roman Empire.

There has been to date no attempt at a detailed examination of Aleksandr Grin’s philosophical views interpreted on the basis of his literary work. Whilst some critics have noted interesting links between the writer’s oeuvre and a few popular philosophers, this has usually been done in passing and on an ad hoc basis. This thesis aims to fill this gap by reconstructing Grin’s views in relation to the European philosophical tradition. The main body of the thesis consists of three parts built on and named after three essential themes in philosophy: External World, Happiness and Morality. Part One delineates Grin’s views on nature and civilisation: I argue first that his cult of nature makes it possible to conceive of Grin as a pantheistic thinker close to Rousseau and Bergson, and then I reconstruct the author’s criticism of urbanisation and industrialisation. In the second part I assess the place of happiness in Grin’s world-view, indicating its similarities to the philosophy of various thinkers from the Ancients to Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. After sketching a general picture of the concept of happiness in Grin’s works, I discuss the place of material and immaterial factors in the writer’s outlook. I also gather maxims expressed by the protagonists in his fiction that can be taken as recommendations concerning ways of achieving and defending happiness. Finally, I link happiness with the problem of morality in Grin’s oeuvre. In the final part I examine modes of moral behaviour as displayed by the author’s protagonists. Firstly, I argue that in Grin’s works we find numerous examples and themes that allow us to perceive him as an existentialist. Secondly, I indicate Grin’s adherence to rules of conduct commonly associated with chivalric literature. Thirdly, I emphasise the importance of Promethean-like characters in the moral hierarchy of Grin’s protagonists.

No description available.

Cette recherche vise à cerner la complexité du concept du soi (heauton) dans la philosophie stoïcienne de l’empereur Marc Aurèle. Dans un premier temps, il s’agira de poser les bases de la physique stoïcienne qui nous permettent de saisir le paradoxe de l’existence d’individualités singulières au sein du grand Tout universel. Nous étudierons, pour ce faire, la théorie corporéiste stoïcienne ainsi que les concepts d’idia poiotês et d’oikeiôsis forgés par l’ancien stoïcisme, mais aussi la prohairesis épictéenne. Cela nous conduira à traiter du concept d’hêgemonikon central dans la conception du soi chez Marc Aurèle. Dans un deuxième temps, nous aborderons les caractéristiques de la partie dirigeante de l’âme par l’entremise de l’étude des disciplines du soi et de son altérité intérieure. Ainsi nous verrons comment le soi ne se présente pas comme un donné fixe, mais comme un espace relationnel en développement constant. Finalement, nous nous pencherons sur la question de la construction du soi, ce qui nous mènera à considérer l’importance du travail sur soi pour l’empereur Marc Aurèle. La problématique qui guidera notre recherche est celle qui vise à saisir ce qui constitue essentiellement le soi alors que celui-ci se présente comme un espace en aménagement constant, ouvert à l’altérité et qui n’est pas donné une fois pour toutes, mais construit. / This research aims to identify the complexity of the concept of the self in the Stoic philosophy of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. First, we will lay the bases of Stoic physics which allow us to grasp the paradox of the existence of singular individualities within the great universal Whole. To do this, we will study the Stoic corporeist theory as well as the concepts of idia poiotês and oikeiôsis forged by ancient Stoicism, but also the Epictean prohairesis. This will lead us to address the concept of hêgemonikon which is central in the conception of the self for Marcus Aurelius. Secondly, we will approach the characteristics of the ruling part of the soul through the study of the disciplines of the self and its interior otherness. Thus, we will see how the self is not a fixed datum, but a relational space in constant evolution. Finally, we will address the question of self-construction, which will lead us to consider the importance of the work on oneself for Emperor Marcus Aurelius. The question that will guide our research is to grasp what essentially constitutes the self when it is presented as a space in constant development, open to otherness and which is not given once and for all but constructed.

Le présent mémoire propose d’examiner, d’une façon approfondie et innovatrice, le rapport entre les chrétiens et Marc-Aurèle à travers une analyse complète des sources à disposition, notamment celles historico-littéraires, épigraphiques, numismatiques et législatives. En particulier, l’on démontrera l’absence de fondement de l’image faite a posteriori de Marc-Aurèle en tant que protector christianorum dont le premier témoin, d'après nos connaissances, est Tertullien. L’on montrera, par le biais d’une analyse législative des sources à notre disposition qu’à l’époque de Marc-Aurèle il n’y avait aucune loi qui protégeait les chrétiens. Bien au contraire, les dispositions de Trajan étaient toujours valides. Par la suite, nous chercherons à trouver les véritables raisons de la politique de Marc-Aurèle envers les chrétiens à travers la comparaison entre la pensée médio-platonicienne de Justin et celle stoïcienne du princeps. L’interprétation philosophique de l’attitude à montrer face à la mort, nous donnera une clef de lecture pour pénétrer les raisons les plus profondes des violences et des procès que les chrétiens ont subis au cours de son principat. / This work aims to provide an original and thorough exploration of the relationship between Marcus Aurelius and the Christians by means of an in-depth analysis of the available historical, literary, epigraphic, numismatic, and legal sources. Specifically, it will show that the a posteriori view of Marcus Aurelius as protector Christianorum, apparently introduced by Tertullian, is unfounded. In support of this argument, a legal analysis of the available sources will show that, far from enjoying legal protection during the Principality of Marcus Aurelius, Christians were still subject to Trajan’s laws. The true reasons underlying the policy of Marcus Aurelius towards the Christians will be investigated by comparing the Middle Platonism of Justin Martyr with the stoic meditations of the princeps. In particular, the philosophical interpretation of the attitude deemed suitable in the face of death will provide an insight into the reasons that led to the wave of violence and to the trials of Christians under Marcus Aurelius’ rule.

In this thesis we explore the period of renewal that Athens experienced during the second century AD. This century saw Athens at the peak of her cultural prominence in the Roman Empire: the city was the centre of the League of the Panhellenion and hosted a vibrant sophistic scene that attracted orators from across the Greek world, developments which were ideologically fuelled by contemporary conceptions of Classical Athens. While this Athenian 'golden age' is a standard feature of scholarship on Greek culture under Rome, my thesis delves further to explore the renewal of the urban and rural landscapes at this time and the relationship between that process and constructions of Athenian identity. We approach the renewal of second-century Athens through four lenses: past and present in the Ilissos area; the rhetoric of the Panhellenion; elite conflict and competition; and the character of the Attic countryside. My central conclusions are as follows: 1. The renewal of Athens was effected chiefly by Hadrian and the Athenian elite and was modelled on an ideal Athenian past, strategically manipulated to suit present purpose; the attractions of the fifth-century golden age for this programme of renewal meant that politically contentious history of radical democracy and aggressive imperialism had to be safely rewritten. 2. Athens and Attica retained their uniquely integrated character in the second century. Rural Attica was the subject of a powerful sacro-idyllic ideology and played a vital role in concepts of Athenian identity, while simultaneously serving as a functional landscape of production and inhabitation. 3. The true socio-economic importance of the Attic countryside as a settled and productive landscape should be investigated without unduly privileging the limited evidence from survey, and by combining all available sources, both literary and documentary, with attention to their content, cultural context and ideological relevance.