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UT CC 301 - Greek Philosophers

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CC 301 1st Edition Lecture 7 Outline of Last Lecture I. Discussion of poetic forms and same sex behavior justified.Outline of Current Lecture II. PhilosophersIII. “Our Nature”IV. Groups of PhilosophyV. Historians VI. Questions and Answers regarding Greek philosophy and philosophers.Current LecturePhilosophersXenophanes - verseHomelius – another 5th century philosopher who wrote in prose, but still poetic. “Our Nature”“Our Nature”- 3 parts: cosmos (physical), theology, and politics. His prose has many metaphors and is still quite poetic although pretty obscure. 1) Flux – penta rhei – “all things flow”“As they step into the same rivers other waters and still other waters flow upon them.”2) Unity of opposites – harmony, agreements between opposites3) Language – ambiguity of language4) Fire - UnstableSome apocalyptic thinking, war is good because it brings about change. But, you can’t always trust your senses. Groups of PhilosophyLogos has many different definitions but it mainly attributes to logical thinking (word, speech,truth, logic).Some major themes of Ionian philosophy – challenged gods, life, politicsAnother group of philosophy was the Pythagoreans who dedicated time to music, art, science,math and astronomy. These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.HistoriansHistorians before Heodotus: Hecataeus of Miletus, Hellanieus of Legbas Herodotus travelled a lot, acted like an ethnographerHistorai – in greek, means inquiry or investigation.Questions and Answers about Greek philosophy in accordance with this lecture derivedfrom http://public.wsu.edu/~brians/wcsyllabus/answers/greekphil.html. Was Protagoras in essence an atheist? He seems to present the idea that there is no connection between God and Humanity. His writings imply agnosticism: refusal to decide whether gods exist or not. But it is significant that he was charged with impiety during his lifetime, had his books burned, and was finally exiled from Athens for his beliefs (or lack of them).Why did Protagoras not believe in a God? How does he think the world began if man is the measure of all things.The simple answer is that it is not clear Protagoras disbelieved in a God (see above). But more tothe point, not all religions connect the origin of the world with the activity of a god. Often enough the world is just "born" through natural processes which produce the gods as well. Many Greeks believed the world to be eternal--it might not have had a beginning at all.Explain more about Xenophanes. I don't understand anything you were saying about him.Look at my introductory note to the selection from him. This is a very simple passage which just argues that people all over make up images of gods which look like them.How many Gods were there in ancient Greece?The Greeks welcomed the opportunity to worship gods appropriate for every occasion. The number was indefinite, counting them made difficult by some of them blending together or splitting off. There was also a large number demigods and other immortals which make any census difficult.I am unclear about the atomists and Leucippus.The atomists argued that the world is made up of tiny indivisible particles which they called "atoms." That's really all you need to know about them. Their importance is exaggerated becausethey turned out to be (sort of) right; but their speculations didn't lead to any scientific revolution in the ancient world.Why did the Athenians sentence Socrates to commit suicide?They accused him of atheism and of corrupting the youth of Athens. But the real reasons probably had more to do with his opposition to the government of the day. We don't know for sure what caused the trial. You can read his famous defence called "The Apology" for his view ofthe matter. For an interesting modern book arguing that Socrates was guilty, see I.F. Stone: The Trial of Socrates.How did Plato avoid winding up like Socrates with the way that people disliked his opinions?Like most of Socrates' closest companions, Plato went abroad after the old philosophers' death.I want to know more about the Socratic method.The best way to learn is simply to read some of Plato's dialogues and observe the method at work. Socrates argues that everyone already has buried within the truth, and that adroit questioning can bring it out. But you can see him framing his questions in such a way that he steers the people he is questioning toward what he wants them to say. To some degree, his famous method is a series of rhetorical tricks that try to convince people that they have arrived atagreement with him voluntarily. But we praise the method today as aiming at getting people to think and not just parrot back what they're told.Maybe a clearer explanation on the difference between Socrates's thinking and Plato's. Same? Different?Since most of what we know about Socrates' thought we get from Plato, it is very difficult to distinguish between the two, and ultimately it doesn't matter very much. The important and lasting ideas are those that they shared. Scholars will continue to argue endlessly about just where one ends and other begins.I would like to know more about the actual relationship between Socrates and Plato: were they close, or is it known?Frustratingly, he never depicts himself talking with Socrates in his dialogues. He met the older philosopher when he was about 20, and remained fascinated with him for life, so he clearly felt he knew him fairly well. Beyond that, we cannot say.Why did people trust and believe Plato since changed his mind about his beliefs and made hem more like Socrates' beliefs?Plato appears as a follower of Socrates from the earliest writings we have by him. He may have changed later in his career, as he developed his own ideas in addition, but he was not known as a philosopher before his studies with Socrates.Since Socrates believed in an "after life," I wonder how he felt that Plato was taking his place and his words on philosophy? What was Socrates thinking: insulted or grateful?Plato began his writing after Socrates' death, so I unless he was worrying about it in the next life,I doubt he cared one way or another.I was wondering about Socrates' family. Did he have a wife or children or siblings?The wife he married late in life, Xanthippe, was said by some to be hard to get along with; but hecan't have been a very


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UT CC 301 - Greek Philosophers

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