Abstract
Plotinus calls the first principle the One and the Good. According to
Plotinus, ‘Good’ is an appropriate name for the One because the One
is that which all things desire. Since he says that the One is beyond
knowledge, beyond language, beyond intellect, and beyond being,
however, what philosophical evidence can he provide for his claim
that the One is that which all desire? In this article I offer some
philosophical evidence, aside from mystical union with the One, for
why ‘the Good’ is an appropriate name for the One, and for why
calling the One ‘Good’ is not at odds with the fact that it is beyond
knowledge, but rather entails it. To this end, after an initial
consideration of the relationship between the good and desire in Plato
and Aristotle, I focus on the role that desire plays in relation to the
Good in Plotinus’ thought.