El "mito" del demiurgo y la interpretación del <i>Timeo</i>

Abstract

According to the traditional interpretation of the metaphysics of the Timaeus, the demiurge is the efficient cause, whereas the world of Forms represents the paradigmatic cause of the cosmos. Usually these two entities are understood as separate. The aim of this essay is to show that according to the text of Plato’s dialogue the demiurge cannot be considered as an independent principle, but it is the metaphorisation of the causal function, active and efficient, of the world of Forms. Through the mythical account Plato aims to expose complex metaphysical relationships in a didactical way: the two main instruments of this didactical method are the temporalisation and the personification of metaphysical relationships.