Heraclitus and Ephesus: Philosophy of the cosmos on a city-state scale

Abstract

This paper, inspired by Vernant’s belief that Greek reason is “a creature of the city”, explores the connection linking Heraclitus’ thought to the political and social circumstances prevailing at Ephesus. Indeed, the tension arising from Heraclitus’ own historical framework and this philosopher’s resulting outlook on it led him to conceive of a rule for organizing a city, according to which a pólis should be governed by the same principle guiding the universe —i. e. the lógos—, which would materialize in concrete form as a monarchical government.