The Erectheion at the Acropolis, The Porch of the Maidens, Photo by R. Davis

Welcome to the Home Page for
Ancient Greek Philosophy at Carleton College, Fall 2006!

Course Description:
The course is an introduction to ancient Greek philosophy, the period that spans from the sixth century B.C.E and ends in the sixth century A.D. The central goal of the course will be to understand and assess the views and philosophical arguments of three central thinkers—Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. We examine the Socratic method, as it is represented in several of Plato's early dialogues in order to investigate Socrates' view on the nature of philosophy and its role in the good life. Next we look at Plato's views on the nature of what is ultimately real—known as his theory of forms— in three works: Republic, Theatetus, and Sophist. We study Aristotle's response to the theory of forms and investigate his ideas on the nature of physical reality, the acquisition of knowledge, and his account of happiness and ethics.

It is often said—and it is true— that we should study ancient Greek philosophy because it is the basis for all subsequent western thought. In spite of this fact, students sometimes shy away from studying classical philosophy, thinking that it cannot possibly be relevant to our current situation. In this class we will see that some of the issues that fascinated the ancient Greeks—such as what the ultimate nature of reality—are ones we still wrestle with today. But many other views held by the ancient philosophers are strange or even bizarre by our modern standards. Studying the ancient Greeks will challenge us to re-examine the basis for our modern worldview as well provide a means to consider alternative solutions to present-day problems.

This class will serve as an introduction to philosophy, should this be your first philosophy course, and it will give majors and others familiar with philosophy useful background for understanding the historical development of contemporary philosophy.