The Greek philosophers against Arendt

Abstract

Though Arendt was ambivalent about philosophy, much of her work shows careful and sustained engagement with ancient Greek philosophers, in particular Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. This article explores the distinctive ways in which Arendt uses these Greek philosophers, explains why she uses these philosophers in particular, and assesses whether her rethinking of the tradition of Western political thought they inaugurated on her view is coherent. I argue that Arendt's appropriation of their ideas puts a strain on her own account at various points; as she seeks to wrestle Socrates from Plato, and Aristotle from all essentialism, she raises questions about the trajectory and grounds of her own political theorizing. Since attention to the use of these thinkers exposes obscurities and tensions in her account, this article allows the Greek philosophers to fight back, by reading her deployment of them against her own theorizing.