24.200
Ancient Philosophy
Investigates the origins of Western philosophy in ancient Greece. Aims both to understand the philosophical questions the Greeks were asking on their own terms, and to assess their answers to them. Examines how a human being can lead a good life, the relationship between morality and happiness, our knowledge of the world around us, and the entities we need to appeal to in order to explain that world. Students taking graduate version complete additional assignments. Enrollment may be limited; preference to Course 24 majors and minors.
Fall 2004
Topics
- Introduction
- Socrates and the Sophists
- Socrates and the Law
- Socratic Method
- Knowledge and Learning
- Prudential Paradox
- Immortality and the Soul
- Introduction of the Forms
- Why Be Moral?
- Justice in the City
- Justice in the Soul
- Theory of Forms
- Happiness, Liberty, and Social Engineering
- Aristotle on Plato
- Matter and Form
- Essence, God
- On the Soul
- Perception, Understanding
- Happiness
- Virtue
- Weakness of Will
- Friendship
- Contemplation
- Epicurean Atomism
- Epicurean Morality
- Death
Readings
- Cohen, S. Marc, Patricia Curd, and C. D. C. Reeve., eds. Readings in Ancient Greek Philosophy from Thales to Aristotle . Indianapolis, IN: Hackett, 1995. ISBN: 0872203131. [RAGP]
- Carus, Titus Lucretius. On the Nature of the Universe . Translated by Ronald Latham. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1951. [ONU]
- Shields, Christopher., ed. The Blackwell Guide to Ancient Philosophy . Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing, 2003. ISBN: 0631222146.
- LEC #: 2 · TOPICS: Socrates and the Sophists · READINGS: Introduction to RAGP
- LEC #: 3 · TOPICS: Socrates and the Law · READINGS: Crito
- LEC #: 4 · TOPICS: Socratic Method · READINGS: Euthyphro
- LEC #: 5 · TOPICS: Knowledge and Learning · READINGS: Meno
- LEC #: 6 · TOPICS: Prudential Paradox · READINGS: Meno
- LEC #: 7 · TOPICS: Immortality and the Soul · READINGS: Phaedo
- LEC #: 8 · TOPICS: Introduction of the Forms · READINGS: Phaedo
- Symposium (201d-212c)
- LEC #: 9 · TOPICS: Why Be Moral? · READINGS: Republic I-IV, especially II, III: 412c-417b
- LEC #: 10 · TOPICS: Justice in the City · READINGS: Republic IV: 427d-445e
- LEC #: 11 · TOPICS: Justice in the Soul · READINGS: Republic V-VII, especially V: 449a-468, 471c-480a
- LEC #: 12 · TOPICS: Theory of Forms · READINGS: Republic VI: 502d-511
- Republic VII: 514a-525
- LEC #: 13 · TOPICS: Happiness, Liberty, and Social Engineering · READINGS: Republic X
- LEC #: 14 · TOPICS: Aristotle on Plato · READINGS: RAGP , pp. 473-482
- Categories 1-5
- LEC #: 15 · TOPICS: Matter and Form · READINGS: Physics I: 7-9, II
- Parts of Animals I: 1, 5
- LEC #: 16 · TOPICS: Essence, God · READINGS: Metaphysics VII: 1-4; VIII: 1-2; XII: 6-9
- LEC #: 17 · TOPICS: On the Soul · READINGS: De Anima II: 1-3
- LEC #: 18 · TOPICS: Perception, Understanding · READINGS: De Anima II: 5, 12; III: 4-5
- Posterior Analytics I-III
- LEC #: 19 · TOPICS: Happiness · READINGS: Nichomachean Ethics I-II
- LEC #: 20 · TOPICS: Virtue · READINGS: Nichomachean Ethics III
- LEC #: 21 · TOPICS: Weakness of Will · READINGS: Nichomachean Ethics VII
- LEC #: 22 · TOPICS: Friendship · READINGS: Nichomachean Ethics VIII
- LEC #: 23 · TOPICS: Contemplation · READINGS: Nichomachean Ethics X
- LEC #: 24 · TOPICS: Epicurean Atomism · READINGS: Selections from Epicurus TBA
- Lucretius, ONU , Chapter 1-2
- LEC #: 25 · TOPICS: Epicurean Morality · READINGS: Selections from Epicurus TBA
- Lucretius, ONU , Chapter 3 (pp. 96-121)
- LEC #: 26 · TOPICS: Death · READINGS: Lucretius, ONU , Chapter 3 (pp. 121-29)
Prerequisites & course information
Prereq: One Philosophy subject or permission of instructor U (Spring) Not offered regularly; consult department 3-0-9 units. HASS-H
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026–2027
- MIT OpenCourseWare ↗Fall 2004
- MIT OCW calendar ↗
- MIT OCW readings ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.