"Gurtler's approach through these themes and their exploration through carefully selected entire treatises allow him to reveal new connections in Plotinus' thought and fresh insights, both in detail and in a larger vision of the shape of his philosophical program. Makes a very significant contribution as a corrective to many often distorted conventional interpretations of Plotinus."?Andrew Smith, University College Dublin"The most striking and distinctive feature of the book is Gurtler's method. He neither focuses on the treatises, principally in Ennead IV, that are expressly devoted to the subject of soul, nor constructs a synthetic account based on a synoptic approach to the Enneads. Instead, he addresses selected treatises in their chronological order, providing close, sequential readings with special attention to key passages in their particular contexts and careful dissection of Plotinus' metaphors and images. In this way he brings to light recurring themes and fundamental principles of Plotinus' thought in a variety of different applications."?Eric D. Perl, Loyola Marymount University
"From the Alien to the Alone is a brilliant and eminently readable contribution to the study of Plotinian Psychology. An exceptionally lucid guide and an insightful interpreter of this notoriously difficult material, Gurtler aptly navigates Plotinus's elaborate philosophical system. Soul in Plotinus represents a metaphysical reality extending well beyond the level of the individual self and rooted in the highest levels of reality. Accordingly, Gurtler's book not only makes contributions to philosophical psychology but offers a clear and compelling reading of Plotinus' overall metaphysics. Gurtler vividly brings out what is most characteristic of Plotinian thought while convincingly arguing that it puts forward viable philosophical positions. This volume will be useful and accessible for both advanced scholars and for students and students of Plotinus."?Daniel Regnier, St. Thomas More College, University of Saskatchewan
"Gurtler's decades-long encounter with Plotinus has resulted in a very thoughtful book from a rather unusual perspective."?Thomist
