Call for papers

The Philosopher, the Master of Those Who Know, was the dominant pagan authority in all four of the main traditions of medieval philosophy, Arabic, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin. Yet we now know that a number of works attributed to Aristotle were in fact spurious, authored by others who claimed to be, or whom others claimed to be, the Stagirite, for example, the Secretum secretorum, the Liber de causis, De mundo, De proprietatibus elementorum, De pomo, and De plantis. These writings had a fascinating impact on medieval thought in various ways, both in the original language, be it Arabic, Greek, or Latin, and in translation. The mechanisms of their production, dissemination, and translation are themselves worthy of attention. Many of these works spawned commentary traditions of their own, parallel to those involving the classic texts of Peripatetic philosophy. Apparent contradictions between ideas expressed in these treatises and those found in what we consider to be authentic works, for instance ideas that appeared to derive more from the Academy than from the Lyceum, provoked questions about authenticity and about the possible evolution of Aristotle’s thought. Finally, these texts were employed in one way or another in many genres of philosophical literature in the Middle Ages, including metaphysics, natural and moral philosophy, theology, and even more exotic disciplines like chiromancy and alchemy. The colloquium aims to shed new light on all aspects of the history of Pseudo-Aristotelian texts in the Middle Ages, and contributions on a broad range of pertinent topics are therefore welcome.

Logistics:

The colloquium will be hosted by the Center of Ancient and Medieval Studies (http://hiphi.ubbcluj.ro/fam/?lang=en) of the Faculty of History and Philosophy of the Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

How to Apply:

To apply, please send (electronically) an abstract of less than 250 words summarizing your proposed research and its potential contribution to the topic of the colloquium, including your name and current institutional affiliation, by 29 February 2016, to siepm2016@gmail.com.

A number of SIEPM Colloquium Stipends are available for younger scholars under the age of 35 and those from low currency countries to allow their participation at the Colloquium, reimbursing expenses up to 500 euros within and near Europe and 750 euros for those coming from across the Atlantic. For more information please visit the SIEPM website (Brepols-SIEPM Stipends), where further details concerning the 2016 SIEPM Colloquium can also be found as they become available.

Publication of the conference proceedings is anticipated in Brepols’ series Rencontres de Philosophie Médiévale.