ABSTRACT
MYintentioninthefollowingstudiesistocorrectandextend certainessentialaspectsofourpresentknowledgeofthesystem ofParmenidesbycriticismandinterpretationoforiginalfragments andtestimonia.Insodoing,Ishalltakeparticularcaretokeep closetothewordingoftheoriginaltext,asisdoneasamatterof courseintheinterpretationof'pure'literature,butiseasily neglectedinthecaseofastrictlyphilosophicaltext,wherethe contentappearstospeakforitself,quiteindependentlyofthe wordswhichhappentobeused.Andyetmuchwillberadically misunderstood,andmanyofthebest,liveliestandmostcharacteristicfeaturesofthedoctrinewillbemissed,ifonefailstoreadthe workasanepicpoemwhichbelongstoitsownperiod,and toapproachitasahistoricaldocument,throughitslanguage.
