PHIL 303 Review Pages
MONDAY 12/5/11 - REVISED Review Pages - PLATO - THE REPUBLIC:
#1 --- mid-bottom201:"Then listen, ... the stronger.'": What is "just" or "right"? In whose interest? And who rules and makes the laws? + mid203: "But the most ... the stronger.": subjects do what is "right" as ruler so decides
#2 --- lower204-upper205: "So then, ... into its opposite.": governance/rulership is for/on behalf of the governed/ruled + lower208: "and it would become ... for the stronger.": good rulers benefit subjects
#3 --- bottom212-mid213: "Come then, ... profitable than justice.": SOC vs. Thrasymachus: virtue engenders happiness (= Virtue is its own reward) - on the "just soul" and the "just man"
#4 --- lower-mid234-mid235: "But it appears to me, ... a certain harmony.": on "self-mastery" in practicing the virtue of temperance (= meaning?) - Who should rule/govern the multitude? WHY?
*** The ABOVE PAGES will offer you a choice of 2 out of 4 short essay-questions. See below for themes correlated to #1-4 for Exam-PART I - Plato's REPUBLIC: Choice of 2 out of 4 @ 10 pts. = 20 No notes - No book
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# 1 --- mid236-upper237: "This, then, my friend, ... 'That's so.'": How does SOC define justice? Which other virtues contribute to "the excellence" of the polity/communality? + mid243-lower245: "Well, with a lot ... 'Let's claim it.'": SOC sums up how the virtues, guided by reason, work in parallel ways for both Soul and State.
#2 --- mid268-top269: "I'm in for it ... follow a leader.": famous passage where SOC proposes who would be best to rule. So, WHO and WHY? + upper286-bottom288: "Now this image [= fable, parable], than they, he said.": SOC's famous cave-parable/allegory of the soul's "upward journey" from unwisdom to contemplation of divine things = the Forms, esp. the Form of Goodness/the Good, which like the Sun is the Source of our objects of knowledge both tangible/visible and intelligible/invisible. + 281 diagram + 284 drawing-diagram: Socrates envisions rulers as enlightened caretakers of the communality - WHY does he think so? What's his visionary explanation?
*** The ABOVE PAGES will offer you a choice of 1 out of 2 longer essay-questions. See below for focused themes correlated to #1-2 of Exam-PART II - Plato's REPUBLIC: Choice of 1 out of 2 @ 20 No notes - No book
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*** From the PAGES BELOW will derive Exam-PART III which will be Matching Names to QUOTATIONS - 14 in all - with the names being used more than once: 7 from Aristotle, 2 from Epicurus, 2 from Epictetus, and 3 from Marcus Aurelius = 14 pairs to be matched @ 2 pts. = 28 pts.
ARISTOTLE - METAPHYSICS: bottom344-top345: "All human ... by art and reasoning.": Book I - #1: just from this 1st paragraph: our humanity's unique attributes
- ON THE SOUL: lower-bottom374: "And seeing that ... of some body.'": what is the nature of the soul?
ARISTOTLE - POLITICS: top451: #1: "Every state is ... some good; ... highest good.": a societal entity, a polity/communality exists for human betterment
-- lower-mid452-top453: "Now, that man is ... political society.": human society is natural, yet humans must endeavor to be at their best - how so?
-- ARISTOTLE - ETHICS: mid383: #7: "The Good is Final ... anything at all.": on happiness again -- "happiness" = eudaimonia = "good spirit within" = "well being" = "human flourishing"
-- bottom399-top400: #9: "How to Attain ... and noble.": on virtue as the mean - WHY does ARI say that "good conduct is rare"?
-- upper446: "Therefore, the activity ... or contemplation." : another meaning of "happiness"
EPICURUS: mid483: his words of wise counsel = "Let no ... to gain it." = from his Letter to Menoeceus + top487: on Prudence: "Of all this ... the virtues.": practical wisdom is the source
EPICTETUS: upper521: his words of Stoical advice = Ch. 8: "Do ... well." + top-mid530: his words of encouragement = Ch. 51: "For how ... be Socrates."
MARCUS AURELIUS: lower533-upper534: #3: "men seek ... understanding [= constant relearning/changing opinion]." + #17 + #18 + #26 + #43 + #46 + mid538-top539: #48-49-50: "Journey then ... three generations?"
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Exam-PART IV - 2-page typed ESSAY with choice of 1 topic out of 2: one from Marcus Aurelius and one from Epictetus - see BELOW for proposed topics. DUE NO LATER THAN MONDAY 12/12 IN MY CAMPUS MAILBOX.
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Exam-PART I - Plato, THE REPUBLIC: Your choice of 2 out of 4 -
#1 - 201 & 203: How does Thrasymachus define what is "just" or "right" in terms of those who rule? And what are subjects expected to do?
#2 - 204-5 & 208: How does a genuine ruler act as a true ruler should, according to Socrates/Plato?
#3 - 212-13: How does Socrates describe a life lived in accord with " justice" for the just man? [HINT: the role of the soul]
#4 - 234-35: What does Socrates mean by saying that his envisioned commonwealth/republic will be, in a practical sense, a kind of master of itself?
Exam-PART II - Plato, THE REPUBLIC: Your choice of only 1 out of 2 -
#1 - 236-37 & 243-45: Present Socrates's ideas about how certain virtues (which are?), guided by reason, work in a parallel way for both Soul and State.
#2 - 268-69: In a famous passage, Socrates declares who "ought to be our rulers." So, WHO? And explain his reasons for this choice. + 281, 284, 286-88: In the closing passages of THE REPUBLIC, Socrates envisions the best rulers as undertaking the enlightened caretaking of the polity. Again, what are their qualifications? That is, how does Socrates/Plato envision the best rulership in the proposed communality?
Exam-PART III - 14 QUOTATIONS to be matched with Names: from Aristotle, METAPHYSICS, ON THE SOUL, ETHICS, and POLITICS + Epicurus, LETTER TO M. + Epictetus, HANDBOOK/ENCHIRIDION + Marcus Aurelius, MEDITATIONS
#1 - 344-345: According to Aristotle, human beings "by nature" do what?
#2 - 374: According to Aristotle, what is the human soul's nature?
#3 & #4 - 383 & 446: What are the 2 somewhat different meanings of "happiness" that Aristotle presents in the NICHOMACHEAN ETHICS?
#5 - 399-400: Aristotle on virtue and the task to have "good conduct"
#6 - 451: According to Aristotle, for what purpose does a communality/polity exist - both for everyone in a state and for every state?
#7 - 452-53: What does Aristotle mean when he speaks of a "social instinct"? = To what end/purpose has it been "implanted" by Nature into humanity?
And as indicated ABOVE, the remaining 7 derive from the pages specified ABOVE for Epicurus - 2, Epictetus - 2, and Marcus Aurelius - 3
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Exam-PART IV - Your typed, take-home ESSAY @ 32 points - 2 proposed topics - you'll choose ONE from EITHER Marcus Aurelius OR Epictetus:
#1 - Marcus Aurelius, MEDITATIONS - Working with #3 (= pp.533-34) and #46-48-49-50 (= pp.538-39) compose an Essay of 2 pages in which you present what could be called Marcus's VISION OF HUMAN LIFE from his Stoical perspective. Incorporate brief quotations to support your ideas.
#2 - Epictetus, HANDBOOK - Working with Ch. 51 (= p.530) compose an Essay of 2 pages in which you present what could be called Epictetus's CHALLENGE TO BE LIKE SOCRATES from his Stoical perspective. Incorporate brief quotations to support your ideas.
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SUNDAY 10/1/11: GREETINGS! The total # of pages to review is about 20 (out of about 88), which is a modest number for your REreading: 15 1/2 pages of dialogue-text + 3 1/2 pages of Introduction. So, your diligent REreading AND our in-class Retrospective/Review-Session this Thursday 10/6 will serve us well. The Exam-Format as such is given after these review-pages below.
- 65-top68: helpful Introduction on Socrates (470-399) & Plato (428/27-348/47), their relationship, Soc's mission, essential ideas/themes of the Dialogues
- EUTHYPHRO: mid71: "It seems to me [= E] that ... boldly.": E & Soc on what Meletus has accused Soc of = "impiety" - note mention of Soc's "divine guide" which is, in a sense, dual: 1) his inner voice = the god within = his daimonion and 2) Apollo's oracle that he heeds = his vocation/calling
- upper-mid73: "Socrates: Yes, my dear ... And what is impiety?": E's haughty claim to possess vast knowledge regarding the nature of piety (= traditional religious devotion & practice, with ethical components) - Soc's eagerness to learn from E
- APOLOGY: upper-lower89: "The truth is, Athenians, ... This is joking.": dialogue between Soc & his principal accuser, Meletus, who denounces Soc as "a complete atheist" - Soc will point out Mel's contradictoriness on lower89: #27 & top90: "Is there any ... I believe in divinities."
- mid-bottom91: "'Athenians, I hold you ... many times.'": Soc's exhortation as a "preacher-man" to his fellow-citizens to pursue arete = virtuous excellence
- lower93: "Why is it, then, ... the truth, Athenians,": Soc's religious vocation proclaimed unequivocally
- mid-bottom96: "Perhaps someone ... for my death.": Soc's most celebrated words on the "unexamined life" in his trial-context - his "gadfly"/horsefly role
- bottom97-99 (end): "And now I wish ... to the god alone.": Soc's visionary belief in his imminent death as beneficial to him - either as eternal, dreamless slumber or endless, philosophical conversations, in the realm of the "just" (98: #41) gods, with those who "died through an unjust judgment" and with the great poets, among "countless" others, men and women
- CRITO: bottom99-mid100: "Socrates: Why have ... be here today.": Soc and Crito dialogue about Soc's predicament & Cr's devoted admiration for his friend - Soc's calming reassurance
- PHAEDO: 108-upper109: from Characters listed to "... and his ways.": Phaedo's dialogue with Echecrates about the circumstances of Soc's last day in "prison" = both in his cell and in his body
- bottom124 (79a-b)-mid126 (81b): "Let us assume, then, he [Soc] ... Yes, certainly, said Cebes.": Soc's reflections on body vs. soul and on how the philo-sopher/lover-of-wisdom is the person best prepared/readied to face death with confidence and even "good cheer" + lower-mid127: "... all those who have ... purification.": philosophy = "salvation"
- upper148-150: from "A man of sense ..." to the end: Soc's final moments - what he says and does - in his imprisoned state, but with a prayerful vision looking beyond his corporeal confinement towards a "prosperous," god-blessed "journey" worthy of his philosophizing soul
EXAM-FORMAT:
PART I: MATCHING QUOTATIONS with the speakers selected from a name-bank. 8 quotations @ 4 points = 32 pts. Names = Euthyphro; Socrates - to be used 3 times; Meletus; Crito - to be used twice; Phaedo.
PART II: Essay-Style RESPONSES to longer QUOTATIONS: Choice of 2 out of 4 @ 16 points = 32 pts. 1 out of 2 quotations from the APOLOGY, and 1 out of 2 quotations from the PHAEDO - correlated, of course, to the RevPp given above
PART III: Typed Take-home ESSAY - within 3 pages (more if you wish) - @ 36 points on a given topic. This will be due NO LATER THAN Tuesday 10/18. Of course, you may deliver it to me anytime before that date - in person, in my mailbox, or via e-mail. TOPIC: First, REread lower84-lower87: APOLOGY: "Perhaps some of you ... that this is so." + top91-lower92: "When the generals ... for a short time." + upper95 (d): "Therefore, Athenians, do ... and for me." So, REread these pages in which Socrates proclaims his "gadfly" role (92: 30e) in his "service to the god" (87: 23a) - it is his mission to Athens to stimulate her citizens out of their "sluggish" (92: 30e) state into self-examination ("soul-searching") morally and otherwise. And so, drawing upon your REreading of these pages from the APOLOGY, compose an Essay in which you offer a portrait of Socrates as a man of intellectual, moral, and spiritual/religious fervor in carrying out his vocation/mission/calling to serve his city-state as a loyal "private citizen"(92: 32) who challenges his fellow Greeks to live the examined life in pursuit of excellence/virtue/arete. You must quote from Plato/Socrates to justify/support your ideas. Old Soc has lots to say, even in these limited pages, about 1) his "divine" inner voice, 2) his moralistic/humanistic exhortation, and 3) his "gadfly"/horsefly service-role. Needless to say, you may quote from other passages in the Dialogues that we've read (CRITO, PHAEDO), but I expect to see these pages well utilized. And if you use any secondary source/s - book/s or on-line article/s - do use citation-notation you are comfortable with + Bibliography, in acknowledgement of it/them. (The ideas of others, of course, can stimulate our own thoughts - always a good thing!) AND in a PART II concluding section of your Essay (at a minimum, 1 substantial paragraph) present YOUR OWN reflection as to how YOU view the Socrates who appears in the early Dialogues that we've read. Is he a person with something of relevance to say to our modern 21st century? = Is his preacher-man's "message" to the Athenians merely an ancient curiosity, or could it have genuine contemporary interest? ... And beyond his dialoguing and speechifying, is Socrates in any sense an important historical figure in YOUR EYES? Whether yes or no, explain. Why should we know about Socrates?
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MON 9/12/11 - Greetings! O studious students of mine! I'll hand out in class on Thursday these RevPp and we'll "retrospect" our way back from Thales onward to what we do this Thursday. Please studiously REread these selected pages with extracts for our Retrospective next Tuesday prepping for our Exam #1. As for the exam-format, I'll present that next Tuesday during our review-session.
- pages 1-3: introductory overview "Before Socrates"
- 8: on THALES
- 9: [1]: the absent-minded prof + [2]: what are philosophers really interested in? + [5]: water as the active "cause" + [8]: How to explain this?
- 10: on ANAXIMANDER
- 11: [3]: on the apeiron = the "substratum" = under-lying ordering/patterning principle - the Boundlessssssssssss
- 12: on ANAXIMENES + [1] & [2]: air as the "material principle"
- 12-13: [4]: contrasted with Anaximander: boundless and unlimited = apeiron vs. definite/defined yet still unlimited/infinite + [6] & [7]: on "infinite air" as like an immortal god
- 14-15: on PYTHAGORAS - - - 15: [5]: on his famous theorem
- 15: [6]: reincarnation - the dog-example ("giving tongue" = yelping with tongue dangling, as doggies tend to do)
- 16: [7] & [8]: doctrine of the soul's immortality and cycle of reincarnation + [29]: What do philosophers look for in the festival of life?
- 17: on XENOPHANES
- 17-18: [2] [6] [9]: on the god in contrast to the godS + [11] & [12]: humility in the face of ignorance AND humanity in the pursuit of answers - a state of knowledge can always be bettered
- 18-19: on HERACLITUS "The Obscure" - "The Dark Philosopher" - "The Riddler" = ainiktes
- 19: [3]: the awake world vs. the dream world +[4]... [7]: on the Logos = Cosmic Reason in contrast to logos = human or microcosmic reason = reasoning faculty
- 20: [14] & [15] & [16]: famous words!
- 21: [36]: FIRE!!! - poetic metaphor for cosmic reality
((- 21: [53] & [54]: Heraclitus was a mysterious, oracular figure like the Delphic Sibyl whose voice echoed the god Apollo's in prophecy))
((No Parmenides, but keep pp. 22-23 in mind because of Parmenides' influence on Plato, who was challenged by P's ideas - leading to Plato's vision of the "Forms" as Ultimate Reality, as we'll see))
*** No Zeno!
- 31-32: on EMPEDOCLES "the great synthesizer": adds earth
- 32-top33: [9]: on the 4 Elements and their paradoxical "continuous exchange" - "love" = attraction and "hate" (or "strife") = the opposite (think of two magnets). (Just to note: it's a word-play in Greek: love/union = erOs - hate/strife/repulsion = erIs.)
- 36: on ANAXAGORAS
- 38: [15]: on the nature of the cosmic/universal MIND (Gk - nous), about which Socrates will speak in the PHAEDO. Anax's nous seems to parallel H's logos.
- 39: on DEMOCRITUS (original founder of the Atomic Coffee chain)
- 41: [11]: the atomic theory of reality. NOTE that he, too (like Empedocles), speaks of attraction/coming together and its opposite: "cling to and staying together" vs. "shakes and scatters"
- 42: [27]: I'll use this passage for your typed take-home Essay - more tomorrow 9/13
- 43-44: on the Sophists in general and PROTAGORAS in particular + [1]: famous statement + [3]: intellectual humility
*** Since "Nothing exists," neither does Gorgias, so 46-top47: on CRITIAS
- 47: [3]: ancient lawmakers "invented" the Gods/religion to guide & control human behavior - this was to instill "fear of Gods" in order to compel "sinners" to avoid immoral actions in private as well as in public
- 50: on PERICLES: "However, ... in 404 B.C."
- 53: read just on Athenian democracy: "Our constitution does ... acknowledged disgrace [= dishonor/shame]." Can we recognize in P's description of Athenian democracy as "a pattern to others" - that is, as a model "school of [and for] Hellas [= all Greek city-states]" - some aspects of modern (American) democracy? Which? Explain. Just focus on THIS paragraph.
- 63: on Aspasia: [1]: "Aspasia, some say, ... and kissed her.": on Pericles' love for her
- 64: [5]: "Socrates: ... matchmaker as well.": Aspasia praised honest marriage go-betweens
*** EXAM FORMAT: total points-potential 100:
--- PART I: Matching numbered Names with appropriate statement: 12 names numbered in reading-sequence (#1 = Thales, #12 = Aspasia) @ 2 pts. =24
--- PART II: SAME design as PART I: different statements, of course: 12 @ 2 = 24
--- PART III: In-Class handwritten ESSAY (lined-paper provided) @ 22 pts.: topic based on p.53 above: think about Pericles' vision of Athenian democracy & 21st-century parallels
--- PART IV: Typed 2-page Essay @ 28 pts.: topic based on p.42 [27] = Democritus on the virtue of moderation: Is this still wisdom for our modern age?