Senior Honors Research Thesis

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This course will examine those dialogues of Plato that deal primarily with political philosophy. Plato, like nearly all early political philosophers, did not restrict his analyses of politics to merely questions of institutions. Rather, Plato's political thought extends well beyond politics to encompass and incorporate ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, aesthetics, and theology into a philosophy that asks the fundamental questions of how we may best live both as individuals and as members of political communities. The answers that Plato gives to these questions do not depend on well-designed institutions as the key to successful politics, instead Plato requires us to first attend to the well being of the individual if good political practice is to be enjoyed by all citizens. In addition to considering Plato's political thought as a combination several branches of philosophical inquiry, the course will also examine the way in which his views on politics altered over time. There is a strongly marked difference between the political philosophy of the Republic and the ideas about politics offered in Plato's last work, Laws. Not only did Plato modify his proposed solutions and how they may be implemented, but also the grounds on which his arguments are based changed significantly from dialogue to dialogue. The importance, complexity, variety, and depth of Plato's political philosophy will be central to the lectures and discussion of this course. By understanding Plato's political thought, the student will be able to gain an appreciation of the manner in which he profoundly influenced the history of political philosophy.