Explore the works of Plato, Aristotle, Heraclitus and other originators of Western philosophy in an immersive study of ancient Greek and Roman philosophers. This philosophy course explores the origins of Western philosophy – a rich tapestry of ideas that began with the most noted ancient Greek and Roman philosophers.
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By examining the work of these historic figures, students will attain a strong grasp of Western philosophy’s basic spirit. In doing so, they’ll cultivate deeper thinking abilities, explore noble values, and learn to contemplate the world around them in new ways.
What you'll learn:
- A basic understanding of ancient Greek and Roman philosophers’ rich thoughts and ideas
- Concepts, ethical foundations and allegories that were developed in support of these ideas
- Cultural and geographic influences that shaped ancient philosophies
Syllabus
Week 1: Introduction (Part I): Philosophy, Religion and Culture
- Philosophy
Etymology
Definition
The history of philosophy
- Religion
Definition
Factors
The relationship with philosophy
- Culture
Definition
Axial Period
The spirit of philosophy
Week 2: Introduction (Part II): A Sketch of Ancient Greek Philosophy
- The setting of the birth of Greek Philosophy
Geography and history
Races and language
Religions and society
- Periods and schools
The early period
The classical period
The late period
- The termination of Ancient Greek Philosophy
Fading
Sublating
Realistic significance
Week 3: Seeking “shi”（是）- The Sprout of Rationality
- A transition to rational thinking
A primitive thinking
A child-state thinking
A poetic metaphysics
- Heraclitus’ thinking
A dipolar thinking
The features of Heraclitus’ thinking
An analysis to the fragments of Heraclitus’ texts
- Parmenides’ thinking
A long poem written by Parmenides（on being or “be”）
Rational argument
Evaluation criteria for the birth of philosophy
Week 4: Seeking “ben”（本）- Ontology & Metaphysics, Synopsis of Lecture IV
- Seeking the origin: the early philosophers
A lexical meaning
An essential question
What is the essence
- Seeking the essence: Plato’s theory of Form
The allegory of sun
The divided line
The allegory of the cave
- Seeking to on: Aristotle’s ontology and metaphysics
A lexical meaning
Metaphysics
The First Philosophy
Week 5: Seeking “zhi”（知）- The Ancient Epistemology
- The lexical meaning
The connotation of Chinese character
A corresponding Greek word
Equivalent to wisdom
- Epistemology
Plato
Cicero
Augustine
- The features
The objectification of knowledge
Priori
Knowability
Week 6: Seeking “zhen”（真）- Methodology & Logic
- A lexical meaning
True and truth
Two types of reality
Truth and Logos
- Plato’s Dialectics（authentic true）
The implication of epistemology
The implication of methodology
The implication of ontology
- Aristotle’s Logics（judging true）
Establishment
The name of logics
The Chinese translation
Week 7: Seeking “shi”（实）- Natural Sciences
- A lexical meaning
Science
Nature and knowledge
Natural sciences
- The occurrence and development of the ancient Greek Science
The reason for occurrence
Nature-ology
Practice and theory
3．The technicalization and application of ancient Greek Science
The Hellenization Period
The Roman Empire Period
Some reflections
Week 8: Seeking “mei”（美）- Odes to the Love
- A Lexical meaning
Beauty
Love
Aesthetics
- Plato’s theory of Love
The essence and principle of love
A psychological view on love
Platonic Love
- The high praise to the love god: A reading on Symposium
A brief introduction
Six viewpoints
Conclusion, philosophy of love
Week 9: Seeking “shan”（善）- An Ethical Thought
- A lexical analysis
Goodness
The ultimate goodness
Ethics
- The development of the Classic Greek Ethics
The early period
The middle period
The late period
- From the ultimate goodness to the common goodness
To reach the ultimate goodness
To converge to the common goodness
Some reflection on the goodness
Week 10: Seeking “ren”（仁）- A Humanism
- A lexical meaning
A man with benevolence is a true man
Humanistic
Humanistic spirit
- Ancient humanistic trend of thoughts
Traditional viewpoints
Social setting
The sophistic movement
- A theoretical summary
Week 11: Seeking “yi”（义）- On Justice
- A lexical analysis
Justice and righteousness
Chinese words
Justice in Greek
- The story of Gyges
A synopsis of the story
An explanation
A conclusion
- The Ancient theory of justice
Plato’s essential justice
Cicero’s natural justice
Augustine’s justice in theodicy
Week 12: Seeking “li”（礼）- States and Legislation
- An explanation to the related words.
Physis
Normos
Politeia
- A Platonic Republic
The influence from Socrates
Rule the state by virtues
Rule the state by law
- Cicero’s people’s Republic
Being relevant to Plato’s thoughts
Definition of state
Natural law
Week 13: Seeking “fu”（福）——A Spirit of Religions
- A lexical analysis
Blessings
Fortunate
The true fortunate
- The religious trends in the late period of ancient Greek philosophy
The fading of the traditional religions
The birth and development of Christianity
The rationalization of Christianity
- The collision between faith and reason (Tertullian)
Week 14: Seeking “sheng”（圣） - Communion with gods
- An explanation to the related words.
Sacredness
Mystery
Mysticism
- Communion with gods.
Communion with gods by rituals
Communion with gods by ration
Communion with gods by ecstasy
- Plotinus’ mystical system of thoughts
Week 15: A General Summary - A Basic Spirit of the Ancient Greek Philosophy, Synopsis of Lecture XV.
- The local characteristics of the ancient Greek Philosophy.
- The progressive universalization of the ancient Greek Philosophy.
- The basic spirits of the ancient Greek Philosophy.
