Magic, Reason and Experience

Bol

This text is a study of the origins and development of Greek science, focusing especially on the interactions of scientific and traditional patterns of thought from the 6th to the 4th centuries BC. The starting point is an examination of how certain Greek authors deployed the category of 'magic' and attacked magical beliefs and practices. In the second chapter the book outlines the development and significance of the theory and practice of argument in early Greek science and follows this with a study of the development of empirical research. Finally the author asks why the Greeks invented science: what precisely their contribution was, and what social, economic, ideological and political factors had a bearing on the growth of science in Greece. Designed primarily for students of the history and philosophy of science and classicists, this book also embraces comparative material from anthropology, and from the study of ancient Near Eastern civilisation, and is therefore suitable for anthropologists too.

Bol Partner

This study of the origins and progress of Greek science focuses especially on the interaction between scientific and traditional patterns of thought from the sixth to the fourth century BC. It begins with an examination of how particular Greek authors deployed the category of "magic," sometimes attacking its beliefs and practices; these attacks are then related to their background in Greek medicine and philosophical thought. In his second chapter Lloyd outlines developments in the theory and practice of argument in Greek science and assesses their significance. He next discuses the progress of empirical research as a scientific tool from the Presocratics to Aristotle. Finally, he considers why the Greeks invented science, their contribution to its history, and the social, economic, ideological and political factors that had a bearing on its growth.