This essay aims at reconsidering Giovanni Pugliese Carratelli’s brilliant comparison of the description of the «true earth» in the Phaedo to the near-death vision recalled by Carl Gustav Jung in his ‘autobiography’. The scarce ancient sources on near-death-experiences (NDE) pointed out by Pugliese are put in relation with the rich medical contemporary evidence as well as with a few recent studies that explore the possible connection of such experiences with the wealth of ancient ‘visions’ of the afterlife (yet just with the myth of Er, in so far as Plato is concerned). On the one hand, the importance of Pugliese’s insight, which has been passed unnoticed inthe scholarship, will show off as it deserves. On the other, the question of whether Plato’s visionary picture might actually be derived from some report of a near-death experience is assessed.
La terra contemplata dall'alto (Plat., Phaed. 110B5-111C3): un'esperienza premorte? Da Pugliese a Jung, e oltre
Maria Michela Sassi
2022-01-01
Abstract
This essay aims at reconsidering Giovanni Pugliese Carratelli’s brilliant comparison of the description of the «true earth» in the Phaedo to the near-death vision recalled by Carl Gustav Jung in his ‘autobiography’. The scarce ancient sources on near-death-experiences (NDE) pointed out by Pugliese are put in relation with the rich medical contemporary evidence as well as with a few recent studies that explore the possible connection of such experiences with the wealth of ancient ‘visions’ of the afterlife (yet just with the myth of Er, in so far as Plato is concerned). On the one hand, the importance of Pugliese’s insight, which has been passed unnoticed inthe scholarship, will show off as it deserves. On the other, the question of whether Plato’s visionary picture might actually be derived from some report of a near-death experience is assessed.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
