LATROBE, PA – Dr. Jonathan Buttaci, an assistant professor of philosophy at The Catholic University of America, will speak as part of the annual John Deely/Jacques Maritain Lecture Series at 7 p.m. March 22 in Dr. Frank J. Luparello Lecture Hall at Saint Vincent College.
Buttaci will speak on “Image-Making and Imitative Reflection in Plato’s ‘Republic.’”
“In ‘Republic,’ Socrates argues that imitative works are ‘third from the truth’ and ‘from what is,’” Buttaci said. “Socrates argues that, while claiming to make and therefore to know all things, imitators neither know nor make anything at all. He likens such ‘idol makers’ to people carrying a mirror to make reflections of whatever they wish. Yet Socrates’ own pursuit of universal knowledge involves the thoughtful construction and active manipulation of images.
“In this lecture, I review the more famous images from ‘Republic’ and hope to show that the thoughtful design and deployment of images is a thematic concern. For Plato’s Socrates, then, not all imitative mirroring is superficial nor are all such reflections mere idols.”
A Pittsburgh native, Buttaci earned his master’s degree in classics and his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Pittsburgh. His research concerns theories of knowledge, learning and the soul in ancient Greek philosophy.
Inaugurated in 2018, the lecture series hosts distinguished speakers and experts in Maritain thought and Deely's semiotic philosophy.
Dr. Jonathan Buttaci
