John Myles Dillon (; born 15 September 1939) is an Irish
classicist
Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
and
philosopher
Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
who was
Regius Professor of Greek in
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...
between 1980 and 2006. Prior to that he taught at the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
. He was elected a corresponding member of the
Academy of Athens on 15 June 2010, and in July 2022 a corresponding member of the British Academy. Dillon's area of research lies in the history of
Platonism
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato and philosophical systems closely derived from it, though contemporary Platonists do not necessarily accept all doctrines of Plato. Platonism has had a profound effect on Western thought. At the most fundam ...
from the
Old Academy
The Academy (), variously known as Plato's Academy, or the Platonic Academy, was founded in Athens by Plato '' circa'' 387 BC. The academy is regarded as the first institution of higher education in the west, where subjects as diverse as biolo ...
to the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
, and also
Early Christianity
Early Christianity, otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity, describes the History of Christianity, historical era of the Christianity, Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Spread of Christianity, Christian ...
.
Contributions
Among Dillon's most famous works are his translations of
Iamblichus' ''
On the Mysteries of the Egyptians'', a definitive book on
Middle Platonists
Middle Platonism is the modern name given to a stage in the development of Platonic philosophy, lasting from about 90 BC – when Antiochus of Ascalon rejected the scepticism of the new Academy – until the development of neoplatonism u ...
and
Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism is a version of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a series of thinkers. Among the common id ...
, and his editorial work on Stephen McKenna's translation of
Plotinus
Plotinus (; , ''Plōtînos''; – 270 CE) was a Greek Platonist philosopher, born and raised in Roman Egypt. Plotinus is regarded by modern scholarship as the founder of Neoplatonism. His teacher was the self-taught philosopher Ammonius ...
' ''
Enneads
The ''Enneads'' (; ), fully ''The Six Enneads'', is the collection of writings of the philosopher Plotinus, edited and compiled by his student Porphyry (270). Plotinus was a student of Ammonius Saccas, and together they were founders of Neopla ...
. ''With the latter, he continued the same research as his predecessor
A. H. Armstrong in the field of Neoplatonic philosophy.
Dillon is also a member of the
International Society for Neoplatonic Studies
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
, and is in addition a member of the Editorial Advisory Council of
Dionysius
The name Dionysius (; ''Dionysios'', "of Dionysus"; ) was common in classical and post-classical times. Etymologically it is a nominalized adjective formed with a -ios suffix from the stem Dionys- of the name of the Greek god, Dionysus, parallel ...
. His first novel, ''The Scent of Eucalyptus'', was published in 2007 by the University Press of the South. and in 2020, a fully revised second edition of the novel was published by 451 Editions, Dublin.
link related to second edition of the novel
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Bibliography
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See also
*Numenius of Apamea
Numenius of Apamea (, ''Noumēnios ho ex Apameias''; ) was a Greek philosopher, who lived in Rome, and flourished during the latter half of the 2nd century AD. He was a Neopythagorean and forerunner of the Neoplatonists.
Philosophy
Statements ...
*Proclus
Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor (, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophers of late antiquity. He set forth one of th ...
*Porphyry
Porphyry (; , ''Porphyrios'' "purple-clad") may refer to:
Geology
* Porphyry (geology), an igneous rock with large crystals in a fine-grained matrix, often purple, and prestigious Roman sculpture material
* Shoksha porphyry, quartzite of purple c ...
References
External links
Review of John M. Dillon's ''The Heirs of Plato: A Study of the Old Academy''
Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dillon, John M.
Living people
Philosophy academics
Irish classical scholars
Plato scholars
1939 births
Classical scholars of Trinity College Dublin
Classical scholars of the University of California, Berkeley