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chapter 5Aristotle on melancholy1 introductionIn a number of his writings Aristotle discusses a type of people he calls ‘themelancholics’ (hoi melancholikoi), without ever giving a definition of melancholy;indeed he does not even mention the term melancholia. 1 He onlymentions, in passing, some typical features of a melancholic, sometimesadding a short psychological or physiological explanation, yet without relatingthese features to each other or to an underlying physiological theory.There is just one chapter (30.1)oftheProblemata physica (Pr.), a collectionof knowledge attributed to Aristotle, that contains a rather extensive discussionof melancholy. However, it is unlikely that the form in which thiscollection has come down to us dates back to Aristotle. 2 Recent scholarshiphas attributed the theory in this chapter to Theophrastus rather thanAristotle; according to Diogenes Laertius (5.44), Theophrastus wrote a treatise‘On Melancholy’ (Peri melancholias) and the chapter in the Problematais thought to be a summary or a revised version of this (lost) text. 3So far no attempt has been made to describe Aristotle’s concept of melancholyas based on his undisputed works, and to compare it to the theorypresented in Pr. 30.1. 4 Yet such an attempt could be useful, both becauseThis chapter was first published in German in Mnemosyne 43 (1990) 33–72.1 Literature on Aristotle’s views on melancholy: Angelino & Salvaneschi (1982); Boyancé(1936) 185–94;Croissant (1932); Flashar (1956) 43ff.; Flashar (1962) 711ff.; Flashar (1966) 60–72; García Gual (1984)41–50; Gravel (1982) 1, 129–45; S. W. Jackson (1986) 31–3; Klibansky, Panowsky and Saxl (1964) 15–40[and (1990) 55–91]; Müri (1953) 21–38; Pigeaud (1978) 23–31; Pigeaud (1981a) 122–38; Pigeaud (1984)501–10; Pigeaud (1988a); Simon (1978) 228–37; Tellenbach (1961) 1–15 [and Rütten (1992); Roussel(1988)].2 See on this subject the pioneering work by Flashar (1962) 303ff.; however, Marenghi (1966) [and Louis(1991–4) vol. iii] consider Aristotle to be the author of the Problemata.3 Müri (1953) 31; Klibansky et al. (1964) 36–41; Flashar (1962) 711–14; Flashar (1966) 61 [and Sharples(1995) 5–6]; on the reasons for this attribution see n. 91 below.4 Aristotle’s remarks are briefly discussed by Müri (1953) 38; Flashar (1966) 60; Flashar (1962) 712–13;Klibansky et al. (1964) 33–6; Croissant (1932) 35–8. On the influence of the theory of Pr. 30.1 seeFlashar (1962) 715–17 and Klibansky et al. (1964).139