Abstract

The present project, placing the focus on the role played by oracular divination, intends to analyse Plutarch's production as a whole, thus responding to a need expressed in the recent scholarly debate. The historiographical and heuristic value of the theme proposed involves the reconsideration of the category of #Middle Platonism# # and its recent fragmentation into #Platonisms# # in the light of the harmony between rational 'logos' and religious tendencies, assumed as a constantthread within the Platonic tradition. This research will shed some light on essential aspects of Plutarch's reflection, such as: the debate against other philosophical schools, the theoretical influence of the Delphic cult and Oriental religions, the human condition in respect to the highest god and demonic 'dunameis', and the possibility of knowing the earthly and the eschatological destiny. In this framework, the oracle comes to symbolize the status of philosophyas a zetetic activity, embodying the dialectic between divine 'pronoia'and ethical responsibility.