| CODE | ATS5517 | ||||||||
| TITLE | The Greek Philosophical Legacy | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Faculty of Arts | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Greek philosophy was the earliest Western philosophy. It was born in and around the Mediterranean, hence its crucial relevance to the course. All later philosophy passes through the channels opened by the Greek mind. As Bernard Williams famously (and succinctly) put it, "The legacy of Greece to Western philosophy is Western philosophy." In philosophy, as well as in the arts and sciences, Western civilization was built on Greek initiatives. Study-Unit Aims: The unit aims to cover the history and ideas of Greek philosophy from its origins down to Neoplatonism, a span of roughly 1000 years. It will take students on a guided tour of Greek thought, signposted at the beginning by the speculations of the philosophers prior to Socrates (the Pre-Socratic 'naturalists'), and then by the flowering of the philosophical enterprise in the works of Plato and Aristotle, to be followed by the contributions of the philosophic movements that succeeded the death of these two great figures. By the time they come to the end of the journey, students would have formed a good idea of the kind of web that holds the various strands of the philosophical enterprise together, and of the methods by which the conclusions arrived at by its protagonists were reached. The social and historical background to the lives of the philosophers will also be alluded to and briefly described. No special preliminary instruction or training is required of those subscribing to the unit. Still, every philosophical doctrine, without exception, is there to be scrutinized and challenged, and students will be encouraged to do just that. In learning about the history of philosophy, they will also be learning something about the nature of philosophy itself. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - consolidate their knowledge of Greek philosophy by placing it within its broader historical and cultural context; - engage critically with primary texts in Greek philosophy and intellectual history; - analyze more closely Greek philosophical texts and; - identify and review relevant secondary literature concerning specific authors and/or themes in Greek philosophy and intellectual history. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - identify and reflect upon key concepts and debates in Greek philosophy; - read analytically and critically a selection of texts in Greek philosophy; - engage in meaningful discussions on the main themes covered in the unit; - present coherent arguments related to topics in Greek philosophy and their bearing on contemporary ideas; - write an assignment on a specific author/theme/text of Greek philosophy Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: Terence Irwin, Classical Thought (OUP, 1989). Supplementary Readings: Jonathan Barnes, Early Greek Philosophy (Penguin Classics, 1987). C.C.W. Taylor, Socrates: A Very Short Introduction (OUP, 1998). R.M. Hare, Plato (OUP, 1982). Jonathan Barnes, Aristotle (OUP, 1986). A.A. Long, Hellenistic Philosophy (Duckworth, 1974). D. O'Meara, Plotinus (OUP, 1995). |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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