WIP in Ancient Philosophy: Mauro Bonazzi (University of Bologna), "Reason and Action in Plato's Psychology"

The WIP in Ancient Philosophy Workshop organized by Cinzia Arruzza and Marc Gasser-Wingate. This week's speaker is Mauro Bonazzi (University of Bologna). Abstract: In this talk I examine Plato's psychology through a tension between two accounts of reason in the Republic: the practical, supervisory role emphasized in Book IV and the desire for knowledge and contemplation foregrounded in Book IX. I argue that appeals to reason's desire for the Good do not fully reconcile these accounts, since the capacity to govern does not entail a desire to rule. Rather, the philosopher's psychic harmony emerges as a consequence of contemplation: intellectual desire weakens competing appetites, while contemplation of divine order promotes assimilation to it. Comparisons with the Phaedrus and the Timaeus further suggest that our deepest identity lies in the contemplative intellect rather than in the tripartite soul as a whole. This interpretation reveals significant continuities across the dialogues and invites reconsideration of the priority of contemplation over practical and political activity.