Byt i świat w ontologii eleackiej

Abstract

This article examines the theories of Xenophanes, Parmenides and Melissus on being, its unity and identity, taking into account Zeno’s views. The main problem considered is the question of the nature of the relation of being and the world in each of the philosophers of Elea. Comparative analysis based on preserved fragments from their works shows that Xenophanes endorsed the idea of a One God identical with the world, whereas Parmenides formulated the original theory of being transcending the corporeal world, but constituting the reason for its identity as a whole. The interpretation of Parmenides presented in this article deviates from the commonly accepted one. Melissus borrows the Parmenidean way of understanding being as one and places it in the world, which brings his views close to Xenophanes’s account. Each of these theories, however, poses many problems of interpretation, resulting mainly from the small number of original texts available.

Keywords

• xenophanes of colophon
• parmenides of elea
• melissus of samos
• eleatic school of philosophy
• the beginnings of ontology