ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
201-01-12864
Fall 2013
Tu/Th 11:00-12:15
EAS (1): 3355
Dr. Terezakis
terezak@rit.edu
Office EAS (1): 3218
Office hours after class and by appointment
ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
“Ancient Philosophy” refers both to a historical epoch and to a series of inaugural intellectual
positions that continue to inspire and anchor the discipline of philosophy. The historical epoch
spanned by the term “Ancient Philosophy” runs from about 585-322 BCE. It entails the works of
the Pre-Socratics, of Plato, of Aristotle, and of their immediate followers, as well as the various works
of the Hellenistic period, including the schools of Stoicism, Skepticism, and Cynicism. During this
period and within these bodies of work, most of the major branches of philosophical inquiry were
established, among them ontology, metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics, and epistemology. As we
will see, the earliest philosophical texts of the Western canon made assertions about the nature of
physical reality and the principles governing physical bodies, as well as about human reason and its
suitability for grasping any fundamental natural or supernatural reality. With increasing nuance, the
ancient Greeks investigated the character of human knowledge, questioning its source and scope;
they explored the connection between knowledge and the emotions, social and political influences,
and aesthetic experience. In this course, we will identify and contextualize elements of Pre-Socratic
thought, and of the thought of Plato, Aristotle, and their earliest inheritors. Our approach should
allow participants a working knowledge of key themes in Ancient Philosophy and thus, a strong
foundation for further philosophical research.
THE SEMINAR FORM
This class is taught as a seminar. The seminar structure is based upon the ideal of a small community
of scholars, exploring arguments together, while working out their interpretations and objections in
verbal and written conversation. A seminar assumes the equality of its members; its vitality depends
on each taking responsibility for the potency of the discussion.
For this seminar, at least one prior philosophy course is recommended, although no particular kind
of expertise or theoretical knowledge is required. The seminar format presupposes an interest in
philosophy and a concern with the life of the mind. It requires of all students a willingness to think,
argue, and critically engage the texts and one another, and to do whatever background research is
necessary for orientation in class discussions.
READINGS
Required and available at the campus bookstore:
Plato. Plato’s Erotic Dialogues (The Symposium and the Phaedrus). William S. Cobb, Tr.
SUNY Press, 1993.
Plato. The Republic of Plato. Allan Bloom, Tr. 2nd Ed, Perseus Pub, 1991.
Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics. Terence Irwin, Tr. Hackett Publishing Co., 1999.
Hadot, Pierre. What Is Ancient Philosophy? Michael Chase, Tr. Harvard University Press, 2002.
Please be sure to get the above noted editions/translations (this is especially important
regarding the Plato texts).
All other required texts and handouts will be provided on myCourses, where students will find
either links to translations in the public domain or pdf’s.
The online accessibility of these texts is a matter of convenience. Should you wish to purchase your
own books or to search out alternative translations, please do.
In any case, please come to each class prepared with the translation the instructor has provided, in
order to facilitate our general communication.
SCHEDULE
Every couple of weeks, myCourses will be updated with details regarding the next set of
readings. (mycourses.rit.edu > phil201.01 Ancient Philosophy). Students should refer to
myCourses for the reading schedule and for texts. For your orientation, the course of general
study is as follows:
Week I
The Character and Scope of Ancient Philosophy
Pre-Socratics: Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes
Week II
Pre-Socratics: Parmenides and Heraclitus
Week III
Aristotle, Metaphysics A (On the Pre-Socratics)
Plato, Phaedrus
Week IV
Plato, Phaedrus
Week V
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Plato, Phaedrus
Week VI
Plato, Republic
Week VII
Plato, Republic
Week VIII
Plato, “Seventh Letter”
Week IX
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
Week X
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
Week XI
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
Week XII
Aristotle, Poetics
Week XIII
Epicurus, “Letter to Menoeceus” (Guest lecture: Professor Suits)
Week XIV
Hellenistic Schools
Week XV
Sextus Empiricus, Outlines of Pyrrhonism (Skepticism)
Week XVI
Neo-Platonic and Neo-Aristotelian schools and review
REQUIREMENTS
1. Micro-essays. Each student will regularly write a short essay on an element of our readings –
either the primary texts or Hadot’s secondary text. Further details regarding the intellectual
expectations for the micro-essays will be discussed in class. Micro-essays should be between 7001,000 words (about 2-3 pages without font or margin abuse). They are due no later than 10am on the
Tuesdays of Weeks 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, and 14 (this schedule will be noted on myCourses), unless
otherwise specified. (“Otherwise specified,” here, means that a take-home micro-essay might be
replaced with an in-class quiz.) In the case of the usual, take-home micro-essays, students will upload
essays directly to the dropbox of myCourses; essays will not be accepted late or in any other format.
Grades for each essay will appear on myCourses, but essays will not be returned. Interested students
are encouraged to discuss their writings with the instructor in person during scheduled meetings or
via email. Micro-essays are each worth 5% of the final grade, or 35% of the grade in sum.
2. Summative Essay. Each student will write a longer essay on a topic of her/his choice, either a
focused assessment of a particular text or thinker, or an analysis of the trajectory of some body of
thought relevant to our readings. Possible topics will be discussed in class. The summative essay
should be about 2,000 words; its expectations will be discussed in more detail in class. The final, non-
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negotiable due date for this essay is the reading day of December 12, by 6pm (via myCourses
dropbox). Students may write and submit the essay earlier (after the midterm), one they have gained
the professor’s approval of a topic. The benefits of an earlier submission include better knowledge of
one’s final grade, the ability to rework any problematic material if one chooses, and avoiding the
excess of assignments that tends to characterize the final week of class. The summative essay is
worth 10% of the final grade.
3 & 4. Two exams will be taken, a midterm (during week 8 or 9, tba in class) and a final. Each exam
will entail a range of formats, which could include multiple choice and true/false questions, and
which will certainly include short answer questions. All exam questions will be taken from our
readings and class discussions. Each exam is worth 20% of the final grade.
5. Each student will give an in-class presentation, as part of a presentation group of 2-3
colleagues. Students will have the opportunity to choose their presentation partners, or they will be
chosen by the instructor. The purpose of a presentation is to develop and share a more in-depth
understanding of our texts. Presenters should be able to explain and/or critique the text they handle,
and to answer questions on it with a strong degree of familiarity.
Each member of the presentation group will receive an individual grade, although that grade will be
impacted by the success of the group presentation as a whole. Each member of the group, therefore,
must speak on a section of the given text or on a different thematic elaboration of it, and each
student must write a presentation overview, which is due in class at the outset of the presentation.
The presentation overview may involve separate sections, independently written by each presenter, or
its body text may be more collaborative (though if students choose to collaborate on a unified text,
they should make sure that the whole appropriately reflects the work each has done). The overview
should be about 3 pages long. Paper copies must be distributed to each member of the seminar
before the presentation. The presentation overview should elect and remind readers of the most
pressing issues in the text at hand; it should highlight difficulties in the text and should attempt a
reading, interpretation, critique and/or elaboration of those issues. It need not, and indeed cannot, be
exhaustive. The presentation is worth 15% of the final grade.
6. Class participation is expected of any student interested in an upper-level philosophy course.
No points can be earned by participating in class, but failure to participate regularly and seriously will
negatively impact the final grade.
7. Attendance is mandatory. One absence will not be questioned, although work (exams,
presentations) that is not accomplished on the due date may not be made up, except in the case of a
documented, verified emergency. A second and any subsequent absence will negatively impact the
final grade. Repeated lateness and early departure will be treated as absenteeism.
CONTACT
In addition to the regularly scheduled office hours after our class sessions, students may make
appointments for meetings and may correspond via email (with allowances for delay time). It is
always wise to schedule an appointment, because occasionally the professor will have other
responsibilities during the usual in-office time.
Students with any special concerns or needs should discuss these with the professor as early in the
term as possible, or as soon as they arise.
All students are encouraged to meet with the professor independently in order to discuss individual
questions, concerns, and ideas.
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