De elementis, 5, 14-16 : la tetrapharmakos et l’épistémologie galénique du mélange

Abstract

I wish to find the sources of the reference to the tetrapharmakos made by Galen in De elementis, in order to throw light on the exact status of the argument used by Galen. The source is likely to be Stoic, but kindred details are also found in the Anonymus londinensis. Galen manipulates the Stoic concepts, and makes an epistemological, rather than physical, use of the paradigm of fusional blending, which has to be distinguished from the so-called “total” blending which shall be used further on in the treatise to conceptualise Galen's own humoral theory.

Keywords

• Galen
• tetrapharmakos
• Chrysippus
• Anonymous of London
• total mixture
• epistemology of medicine