
HoP 030 - A Likely Story - Plato's Timaeus
History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps
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The Myth of Atlantis by Timaeus
Socrates's associate, critias, tells a story that the great athenian statesman solon, supposedly heard in egypt. Once a time, solon was told athens faced down an invasion from a mighty foreign land. This myth of atlantis is taken up again in a second dialogue. After this prefatory material, we arrive at the account of timaeus. Timaeus begins his account by saying that the demiurge, being good, wanted to create the best universe possible. He says it is made of the four elements we know from the presocratic philosopher empedocles: fire, air, water and earth.
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