Greek Philosophy
| Andrew
Mills'
Homepage |
Course
Resources
Homepage |
Dept.
of Religion
and Philosophy |
This is the Homepage for Philosophy 200/300: Greek Philosophy. From this page, using the links to the left, you will be able to access all the on-line class materials, including a syllabus, the schedule of readings, study questions, paper topics, as well as copies of any handouts and class assignments. Using the links above, you will be able to access Andrew Mills' Homepage, the Class Resources Homepage (containing links to all the courses Prof. Mills teaches) as well as the Department of Religion and Philosophy Homepage. If you ever get lost, clicking on the picture of Plato (top left) will bring you back to this page.
This is a course in the history of Greek Philosophy. The three most important philosophers in the ancient western tradition, Socrates (470-399), Plato (428/7-347), and Aristotle (384-322) will be the focus of our course. In addition to these three thinkers, we will spend some time looking at the views of the dominant schools of philosophy in the post-Aristotelian age: Stoicism, Scepticism, and Epicureanism. As regards content, we will pursue two themes: the ancient Greek conception of the good life and, secondly, ancient Greek conceptions of knowledge and reality. As regards the latter theme, we shall be especially concerned with problems surrounding the notion of permanence and change.
The primary goal of this course is to gain an appreciation of the ideas and arguments of the early philosophers, and to see how the views they gave voice to remain prominent in our thinking about the world to the present day. A secondary, but no less important goal, is to develop the critical thinking and writing skills essential to success in any philosophy class. We shall spend a good deal of time interacting with these texts, and doing so serves both goals: it is only by responding to what these philosophers have written that we will come to understand their positions, and by engaging in a philosophic conversation with them we will hone our critical skills. The reading for this course is, at times, quite difficult, but with the help of the professor and the other students, and with a good deal of effort on your own part, you will come out of this class with a deeper appreciation of Western philosophical thought, and the roots of Western culture in general. Students who are enrolled in Phil 300 will also spend some time thinking more deeply about Plato’s masterwork, the Republic, and reading some contemporary scholarly discussions of Plato’s text and the themes it raises.