Henri Frankfort et al. 1949 Before
Frankfort 1949 Before
Before Philosophy: The Intellectual Adventure of Ancient Man: An Essay on Speculative Thought in the Ancient Near East,
Miscellaneous Publications,
Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press
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ToC of Frankfort 1949 Before
| Table of Contents |
Preface Introduction (by H. and H.A. Frankfort)
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| General topic(s) of the book |
The book faces the topic of the existence of a 'philosophy', intended as rational thought, already before the Greek philosophical elaborations. The various chapters of the volume deeply investigate this topic across the many pre-Greek civilizations of the ancient Mediterranean and Near East: Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Israel. Throughout many literary examples, it is shown how the role of myths in these societies shaped the mind of men and women of that time, till to reach a progress of shifting from a myth-constructed mind towards an 'emancipation' who slowly led to the elaboration of a rational and pre-philosophical thought. [cf. also, on this topic, Bottéro 1992 Reasoning and Cornford 1957 Before; note by mDP] |
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Extended summary of Frankfort 1949 Before
“This volume intended a journey to the origin of thought and theory through mythopoetic tales and religions of ancient Near East including Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Israel. It is a substantial source to reveal the ancient man’s perspectives of the world, gods, and himself. The writers aimed to deal with speculative thought concerning the nature of the universe, the function of the state, and the values of life. They argued that speculation found unlimited possibilities for development in ancient Near East because it was not restricted by a scientific (that is, a disciplined) search for truth. They also noticed that the realm of nature and the realm of man were not distinguished. The experiencing of this unity with the utmost intensity was the greatest good ancient oriental religion could bestow” (from OI website).
This book offers useful insights on speculative thought in ancient Mesopotamia, stressing the existence of a ‘philosophic mind’ before the birth of Greek philosophy as ‘science’. More in detail, section 2 on Mesopotamia (by Th. Jacobsen) focuses on the description of Mesopotamian view on the ‘cosmos’, perceived as a primeval ‘order’ acting in all realms of common life, influencing both the political and personal sphere of interaction with reality.
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Excerpts from Frankfort 1949 Before
| Speculative thought | pp. 3-4 | If we look for "speculative thought" in the documents of the ancients, we shall be forced to admit that there is very little indeed in our writen records which deserves the name of "thought" in the strict sense of that term. There are very few passages which show the discipline, the cogency of reasoning, which we associate with thinking. The thought of ancient Near East appears wrapped in imagination. We consider it tainted with fantasy. But the ancients would not have admitted that anything could be abstracted from the concrete imaginative forms which they left us. [...] When we turn to the ancient Near East in search of similar [i.e., modern definition of "speculative thought"; mDP] efforts, two correlated facts become apparent. In the first place, we find that speculation found unlimited possibilities for development; it was not restricted by a scientific (that is, a disciplined) search for truth. In the second place, we notice that the realm of nature and the realm of man were not distinguished. |
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