4AANA001 Greek Philosophy I Syllabus Academic year 2014/15

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1 4AANA001 Greek Philosophy I Syllabus Academic year 2014/15 Basic information Credits: 15 Module Tutor: Dr Joachim Aufderheide Office: 706 Consultation time: TBA Semester: 1 Lecture time and venue: Tuesdays hrs; Strand Edmond J Safra Theatre Module description (plus aims and objectives) This module is an introduction to ancient philosophy by means of studying classic works of Plato and Aristotle. Aiming to impart the skill of closely reading classical philosophical texts (in translation), the first five of the weekly tutorials will focus on some of Plato's dialogues; the last five on extracts from Aristotle's works. The lectures will emphasise a wider historical perspective, making reference especially to the Sophists (who were rivals to the philosophers in providing higher education). Focal point of the lectures will be broadly Socrates question How should we live?, thus allowing for some thematic unity, while encouraging excursions into other important topics such as epistemology and metaphysics. Assessment methods and deadlines Formative assessment: 2 x 1000 word essays Summative assessment: a two-hour exam in May/June (Period II) NB Please note that for semester I-only Study Abroad students, assessment requirements may vary. In particular, May exams will be replaced by summative essays to be submitted by the end of term (date TBC) Outline of lecture topics (plus suggested readings)

2 Week One, 23 September: How to do ancient philosophy (and a bit of Plato) primary (p): Plato, Euthyphro secondary (s): P. Geach, Plato s Euthyphro: an analysis and commentary in R. Kamtekar (ed.), Plato s Euthyphro, Apology and Crito: critical essays; further (f): Irwin, Terence. "Socrates and Euthyphro: The Argument and Its Revival." In Remembering Socrates : Philosophical Essays. Edited by Vassilis Karasmanis and Lindsay Judson. Oxford: Oxford University Press, Week Two, 30 September: Why Ethics matters (p): Plato, Apology, Crito (s): Vlastos, Socratic Piety, Burnyeat, The Impiety of Socrates, both in Kamtekar (ed.) Plato s Euthyphro, Apology and Crito: critical essays; (both essays have also appeared elsewhere). (f): V. Harte, Conflicting values in Plato s Crito and other essays in Kamtekar s collection. Week Three, 7 October: Can virtue (being good) be taught? (p): Plato Protagoras 309a-328d (esp. Protagoras long speech); Meno 70a-80a (s): Frede, Introduction in S. Lombardo and K. Bell (trs.) Plato Protagoras, vii-xxiv; Broadie, 'The Sophists and Socrates' in Sedley (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Greek and Roman Philosophy (f): Scott, Meno, Part 1 Week Four, 14 October: What is inquiry? What is teaching? What is learning? The value of knowledge. Reading (p): Meno 80a-100b. (s): Fine, Inquiry in the Meno, in R. Kraut, ed., The Cambridge Companion to Plato. (f): Scott, Meno, Parts II-III. Week Five, 21 October: What is the right means to inquire? Reason vs Senses. What is there and how can we understand it? Forms & explanation. (p): Plato, Phaedo 72e-77c; c (s): G. Vlastos, 'Reasons and causes in the Phaedo, The Philosophical Review 78 (1969), , reprinted in Vlastos, Platonic Studies (Princeton: 1973); Sedley, 'Platonic Causes', Phronesis 43 (1998), (f): Bostock, Plato s Phaedo, pp First Formative Essay due: 31 October Outline of lecture topics (plus suggested readings) continued

3 Week Six, 4 November: How and why do we inquire? (p): Aristotle Metaphysics I.1-4; 6-9. (s): ): J. Lear, Aristotle: the Desire to Understand, Ch. 1. (f): Posterior Analytics I.2-3; II.8; II.19; Taylor Aristotle s Epistemology in Everson (ed.) Epistemology. Week Seven, 11 November: What is nature? And how do natural things change? (p): Aristotle, Physics II. (s): J. Lear, Aristotle: the Desire to Understand, Ch. 2. (f): Parts of Animals I.1; I.5; S. Waterlow, Nature, Change, and Agency in Aristotle s Physics, Chs. 1-2; D. Bostock, Aristotle on Teleology in Nature (in D. Bostock, Space, Time, Matter, and Form: Essays on Aristotle s Physics). Week Eight, 18 November: What are we? Body, soul, or both? (p): Aristotle, On the soul, II.1-4. (s): J. Ackrill, Aristotle s Definition of psychê (in J. Ackrill, Essays on Plato and Aristotle); (f): Everson, Psychology in Barnes (ed.) Cambridge Companion to Aristotle. Week Nine, 25 November: The human goal: happiness (p): Aristotle Eudemian Ethics I.1-7. (s): Woods, Aristotle: Eudemian Ethics (translation and commentary), (f): Bobonich, Aristotle s Ethical Treatises (in R. Kraut (ed.), The Blackwell Guide to Aristotle s Nicomachean Ethics) Week Ten, 2 December : Virtue and other goods (p): Aristotle Eudemian Ethics II.1-6. (s): Woods, Aristotle: Eudemian Ethics (translation and commentary), (f): Pearson, Phronesis as a mean in the Eudemian Ethics, Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy (32) ; Hursthouse, The Central Doctrine of the Mean (in R. Kraut (ed.), The Blackwell Guide to Aristotle s Nicomachean Ethics). Second formative essay due: 12 December

4 Suggested essay questions Write a formative essay on a topic from each of the sections: Section I: Is Meno s paradox an impediment to Socrates project of enquiry? Is the theory of recollection a plausible account of how we acquire knowledge? Is virtue teachable? Answer by reference to the Protagoras. What is the difference between knowledge and true belief in the Meno? Is Socrates last argument for the immortality of the soul in the Phaedo convincing? Section II: Does Aristotle provide a persuasive account of wisdom? Discuss by reference to the Metaphysics I.1-4. Why should we think that natural processes are for the sake of some good? Discuss by reference to Physics II.7-8. What is Aristotle's conception of the soul? Why should happiness be the highest good? Discuss by reference to the Eudemian Ethics. Is Aristotle's account of virtue in the Eudemian Ethics plausible?

5 Suggested additional readings In general, reading more Plato and Aristotle is the best way to improve one's understanding of their thought. There are good collections of their works. Plato Although the Hackett volume Plato: complete works, edited by John Cooper, is very handy and worth having, it leaves out the often substantial introductions which the translators add to the text. M. Frede's introduction to the Protagoras, for example, is a helpful overview and worth reading. These introductions also contain useful hints for secondary literature. Socrates Ahbel-Rappe and Kamketar (eds.), A Companion to Socrates Brickhouse and Smith, Plato s Socrates Judson and Karasmanis (eds.) Remembering Socrates : Philosophical Essays. Vlastos, Socrates: Ironist and Moral Philosopher Plato Benson (ed.), A Companion to Plato Fine (ed.) Plato 1: Metaphysics and Epistemology, and Plato 2: Ethics, Politics, Religion, and the Soul. Fine, Oxford Handbook of Plato Irwin, Plato s Ethics. Kraut (ed.), Cambridge Companion to Plato. Aristotle Jonathan Barnes has edited the revised Oxford translation (two volumes) which is worth having. Most of the texts we cover are in Fine and Irwin Aristotle: Introductory Readings -- which is an abridged version or their Aristotle: Selections. For the Eudemian Ethics (NB NOT Nicomachean Ethics), use either Kenny s translation (Oxford World Classics) or Inwood/Woolf s (Cambridge). In general, the Clarendon Oxford Series contains very good translations of and commentaries on select books of Aristotle's. You might want to get hold of M. Woods translation and commentary of (part of) the Eudemian Ethics. Good introductions are by Ackrill, Aristotle the Philosopher and Lear, Aristotle, the Desire to Understand. Good collections are Anagnostopoulos, A Companion to Aristotle Barnes, Cambridge Companion to Aristotle (which contains a very full and commented bibliography which should form an excellent starting point for further research on pretty much any topic in Aristotle) Shields, Oxford Handbook of Aristotle