Short Natural Treatises
This collection studies perception, memory, sleep and the conditions of life. It comprises On Sense and Sensible Objects; On Memory and Recollection; On Sleep and Waking; On Dreams; On Divination in Sleep; On Length and Shortness of Life; On Youth and Old Age, Life and Death; and On Respiration.
Understanding the text
The traditional grouping extends On the Soul through functions shared by body and soul.
Key points
- 01
Memory
Remembering requires an image recognized as belonging to the past rather than merely a weakened perception.
- 02
Dreams
Dreams are explained through persistent sensory movements rather than consistently treated as divine messages.
- 03
Life and heat
Respiration and aging belong to a physiology of heat whose assumptions require historical interpretation.
How to read it
Begin with memory, then compare the explanations of dreaming and ordinary perception.
Editions & sources
- Consult the reference 1classics.mit.edunew tab
- Consult the reference 2classics.mit.edunew tab
- Consult the reference 3plato.stanford.edunew tab
- Consult the reference 4classics.mit.edunew tab
Summaries and key points are original editorial interpretations. They accompany reading the work and do not replace an edition of the text. Editorial method ↗