Philosophia Antiqua174 Galen on Ethics and Human Nature

Julia Trompeter offers a comprehensive account of the ethics and moral psychology of Galen of Pergamum (c.129–c. 213/4 CE), involving both philosophical sources such as Plato and Aristotle and his own experience as a doctor, thus filling a lacuna in existing scholarship. This monograph presents a full picture of Galen’s ethics. It expounds his view on human character and morality as based on his account of human nature (including his reception of Plato and Aristotle). This book reveals Galen’s substantial contribution to the philosophical debate on the parts and powers of our soul and their connection with the body. Thereby, it also delves into the lively academic debate on the best handling of emotions like anger or distress including their medical implications. Paying attention also to the religious side of Galen’s moral thought, the monograph contributes to a complete recollection of Galen—not only as the doctor but also as the ethical philosopher he was.