You're Dead to Me Atlantis (Radio Edit)
8 snips
Aug 19, 2023 Experts discuss the myth of Atlantis, its origins in Plato's writings, theories and appropriation including Nazi involvement and the Minoans, allure of lost cities, lessons of hubris in Plato's story, and the reflection on modern world's state.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Absence From Classical Sources Undercuts Historicity
- No independent ancient sources mention Atlantis outside Plato, making its historicity extremely unlikely.
- Aristotle and later classical writers largely ignored or dismissed the story, which supports the view it was Plato's creation.
Atlantis As Plato's Warning Against Imperial Hubris
- Plato used Atlantis as an allegory to critique imperial hubris and bad political choices in his own era.
- The story mirrors Persian invasions and Athens' later folly in the Peloponnesian War to warn against overreach.
Renaissance Scholars Recast Atlantis As The New World
- After Columbus's voyages in 1492, Renaissance thinkers began reimagining Atlantis as the newly discovered Americas.
- Marcellio Ficino and others used the idea to link Greek myth to colonial claims via Spain.