Fraud and pseudo-philosophers

Meaning

The introduction opposes approved philosophers, said to write truthfully from Nature’s wellspring, to pseudo-philosophers who falsely claim knowledge of the art. Their characteristic fraud includes misusing the approved writings as a cover, so citation and learned appearance do not by themselves guarantee truth. The accusation belongs to the anonymous narrator’s division of true and false authority, not an independently verified judgment on unnamed historical people. The English keeps the repeated language of falsity and deception, making clear that the target is more than innocent failure. The warning also reaches people who allow themselves to be drawn in by the display.