Syllabus – keep handy for reference
Dr. Aeon J. Skoble
341 Tillinghast, x2460
Email: askoble@bridgew.edu Web: http://webhost.bridgew.edu/askoble
Office hours: M 10-11, TR 11-12, or by appointment
Texts:
Plato, Complete Works, ed. by John
Cooper (Hackett Publishing)
Aristotle, Selections, ed. by Irwin
and Fine (Hackett Publishing)
Overview and objectives:
Some trendy but superficial critics of philosophy have noted the prevalence of dead white males in the canon. In this class we will devote ourselves to the study of the deadest of them all, the ancient Greek philosophers Plato (427-347 BCE) and Aristotle (384-322 BCE). One objective of the course will be to see why we continue to bother doing this. One reason might be “there’s enduring wisdom therein”; another might be “their influence shaped the development of western philosophy and is still felt today” – we shall see whether or to what extent these are true claims. More specifically, the main objective of this course is to give the intermediate or advanced philosophy student a firm command of the basic ideas and arguments of Plato and Aristotle, and where possible, Socrates (470-399 BCE), who wrote nothing, but of whom we have many first-hand reports and who was very influential on the development of Plato’s thought and, in ways we will see, all subsequent philosophy through 529 CE.
We will devote almost exactly half the semester to Plato and half to Aristotle. In the first half, we will begin with Plato’s relationship to Socrates, and read some dialogues concerned with the very nature of philosophy and its relation to religion, literature, custom, and so on. We will then look very closely at the Republic, which is a comprehensive work dealing with justice, epistemology, ontology, psychology, and art. We will then read some of Plato’s writings on love, sex, and friendship. If time allows we will also consider some excerpts from dialogues concerning truth, relativism, knowledge, reasoning, and cosmology. In the second half of the semester, we will begin with some of Aristotle’s writings on the nature of thought and reason, and consider ways in which his methodology differs from that of Plato. We will examine his theories on motion, change, causality, ontology, teleology, psychology, and cosmology. Then we will read his Nicomachean Ethics, which deals with happiness, virtue and vice, and friendship. We will supplement that with his observations about social living, and we will conclude with a look at his theory of art. I may post additional readings to the course web page from time to time, or distribute a handout.
Requirements:
Your grade will be comprised
of 2 papers, each 7-8 pages in length (45 points each), plus active
participation in class (10 points). Fair
warning: Plagiarism of any form on written assignments is not tolerated. You will receive an F in the course, and I
will recommend to the Dean that you be expelled. “Active participation” implies that regular
attendance is itself also a requirement of the class. This is a reflection of the fact that the
primary vehicle for learning the material is the class itself, of which you
should see yourself as a part. Obviously
there is such a thing as a good reason to miss class, but please be sure you
limit your absences to such occasions.
Absences in excess of three will result in reduction of your grade. Excessive lateness will count as absence. You are expected to have done the readings
and be prepared to comment on them in class.
If you do have to miss class, it is your responsibility to get the
notes, and any announcements or additional assignments, from a classmate. (On the other hand, if I am late, it almost
certainly means I am ill – call the department office at x1258 to find out.)
Adjustments
to your grade will be made for both constructive participation in discussions
and disruptive behavior, as well a
Outline:
The basic (tentative) outline for the course will be as follows, subject to change as necessary.
Sept. 6 Introduction
– why study this material?
Socrates-Plato-Aristotle: bios, context
Sept. 11-13 Plato: Apology/Euthyphro/Crito/Phaedo (nature of philosophy, religion, custom, law, etc.)
Sept. 18-20 Republic – justice (and lots
more)
Sept. 25-27 Republic (w/ excerpts
from Meno)
Oct 2-4
Republic (w/ excerpts from Statesman) (no class 10/5)
Oct. 9-11
Finish Rep., begin Symposium/Phaedrus/Lysis (love, friendship, sex)
Oct. 16-18 excerpts from Gorgias and Protagoras- reasoning and relativism
Oct. 23-25 concluding discussion of Plato, begin Aristotle 10/25
Oct. 30-Nov. 1: Aristotle: Categories, Topics (how to think, part 1)
1st
paper due 10/29, 9:00am
Nov. 6-8 Physics,
Metaphysics (motion, causation, change, the actual and the potential)
Nov. 13: no class; Nov 15: Physics, Metaphysics (realism and nominalism; how to think, part 2)
Nov. 20 De
Anima (the nature of the human soul or psyche; teleology)
Nov. 27-29 Begin Nicomachean
Ethics (happiness, virtue and vice)
Dec. 4-6
continuing Nic.
Ethics w/ excerpts from Politics
(friendship, society)
Dec. 11 Aristotle’s theory of art in Poetics
Dec. 17: 2nd paper
due 10:00am