Tra gli uomini e il divino: il saggio nelle Enneadi e nella Vita di Plotino

The aim of this paper is to reconsider the ontological and cognitive condition of the sage and to assess the extent to which an analogy between the sage and metaphysical entities can be theorized, so as to construct the hypothesis that the sage also exerts a practical action toward men. Particularly useful for this purpose is the biography written by Porphyry, which appears to be an effective literary tool to clarify certain aspects implicit in the Enneads, such as some interpretative problems related to Plotinus’ ideal of the sage. By discussing, moreover, how the sage achieves a view of the world from above that enables him not only to see himself as part of it, but also to contribute to its perfection, I will bring out an ethical theory of the Plotinian sage that also concerns the perfection of the world, and not merely the sage’s own happiness.