All programmes > Ancient Philosophy: Advanced Course

Ancient Philosophy: Advanced Course (B-KUL-W0Q02A)

6 ECTSEnglish39 Second termCannot be taken as part of an examination contract
Opsomer Jan
This course is taught this academic year, but not next year. This course is taught this academic year, but not next year.
POC Philosophy (internationaal)

Aims

The students acquire a thorough knowledge of key texts and problems of ancient philosophy, are able to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate arguments and philosophical positions (testing their coherence, consistency, plausibility), can relate arguments and doctrines to their historical context, assess their place in the history of (Western) philosophy, comparing them with other relevant philosophical positions, gain insight in solid scholarly methods and learn to apply them. At the end of the course, the students should be able to express their well-considered views about the issues mentioned above in a clear and coherent way, discussing the evidence and counter-evidence for specific interpretations and using the appropriate terminology in a precise and appropriate manner. The students should develop an open-minded, critical approach to texts, interpretations, and philosophical positions, as well as the ability to give a nuanced and balanced assessment of them, applying the principle of charity, challenging received views, and showing a willingness to reconsider one's own assumptions and preconceived views. They should be able to present their arguments and interpretations in the seminar and in a written paper.

Previous knowledge

Students ought to be well-acquainted with the history of ancient philosophy and have a broad knowledge of the history of Western philosophy in general. Good knowledge of English (grammatically and orthographically correct and stylistically well-formed, academic English), a capacity for abstract, conceptual, and critical thinking, an openness for inquiry, intellectual honesty, a capacity (at least rudimentary) for close and careful reading, a capacity for listening with concentration to longer oral presentations and taking notes are required. Students ought to be familiar with the traditional methods for finding relevant secondary literature and giving correct bibliographical information that meets scholarly standards. Knowledge of ancient Greek and/or Latin is not required; but those students who know these languages will be able to reach a more precise understanding of the text. Students who have good reading skills in German, French, or Italian are allowed to make presentations (in English) based on secondary literature in these languages.

 

Is included in these courses of study

Activities

6 ects. Ancient Philosophy: Advanced Course (B-KUL-W0Q02a)

6 ECTSEnglishFormat: Lecture39 Second term
Opsomer Jan
POC Philosophy (internationaal)

Content

The content of the course changes from year to year. For 2024-2025 the topic will be ancient theories of the material elements, in particular Plato's geometric atomism and later debates about this theory. Central texts are Plato's Timaeus, Aristotle's On the Heavens and On Generation and Corruption, Simplicius' Commentary on Aristotle's On the Heavens. Plato designs a geometrical model meant to explain the mutual transformation of the four elements (earth, water, air, fire) and to explain the supervenience of qualitative properties, such as hot and cold, on geometric structures. Aristotle and his followers (e.g. Alexander of Aphrodisias) reject the use of mathematical models to explain qualitative processes and advocates infinite divisibility against the idea that elements consist of atomic corpuscles. Some later Platonists (Simplicius; also Proclus, extensively quoted by Simplicius) defend Plato's model against Aristotle's criticism. 

Course material

Primary and secondary texts are available in the library, can in some cases be freely accessible online through Limo, or can be purchased in bookstores (there is no guarantee that all texts will be in print). A detailed list of introductory readings, commentaries, and secondary literature related to the course text will be found in the course syllabus. The syllabus and other practical information related to the course will be made available on Toledo. Other materials may be made available on Toledo, depending on copyright restrictions. The students are required to check Toledo as well as their university e-mail account on a regular basis for further practical information pertaining to the course.

Course texts:

  • Zeyl, D.J. (2000) Plato. Timaeus. Translated with introduction (Indianapolis - Cambridge). Also in: Cooper, J.M. and Hutchinson, D.S. (1997) Plato. Complete works (Indianapolis - Cambridge)  
  • Aristotle. On the Heavens, translated by J.L. Stocks, in: The Complete Works of Aristotle, Volume 1: The Revised Oxford Translation edited by Jonathan Barnes, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1984, p. 447-511 (freely accessible online through Limo: https://doi-org.kuleuven.e-bronnen.be/10.1515/9781400835843-011).
  • Aristotle. On Generation and Corruption, translated by H.H. Joachim, in: The Complete Works of Aristotle, Volume 1: The Revised Oxford Translation edited by Jonathan Barnes, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1984, p. 512-554 (freely accessible online through Limo: https://doi-org.kuleuven.e-bronnen.be/10.1515/9781400835843-012).
  • Mueller, I. (2009) Simplicius On Aristotle On the Heavens 3.1-7 (Ancient commentators on Aristotle) (London)
  • Mueller, I. (2009) Simplicius On Aristotle On the Heavens 3.7-4.6 (Ancient commentators on Aristotle) (London)

Greek editions (optional for students who have Greek):

  • Burnet (1902) Platonis opera, recognovit brevique adnotatione critica instruxit Ioannes Burnet. Tomus IV tetralogiam VIII continens (Oxford Classical Texts) (Oxonii) 
  • Moraux, P. (1965) Aristote, Du ciel (Collection des  Universités de France) (Paris).
  • Rashed (2005) Aristote. De la génération et la corruption. Texte établi et traduit par Marwan Rashed (Collection des  Universités de France) (Paris)
  • Heiberg (1894) Simplicii in Aristotelis De caelo commentaria consilio et auctoritate Academiae Litterarum Regiae Borussicae edidit I.L. Heiberg (Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca, volumen VII) (Berolini) 

Format: more information

The course will be given in the form of lectures with active student participation.

The teacher will give an introduction and assist the close reading of texts. He will provide terminological and conceptual clarifications and explain the argumentative and textual strategies that are typical of the author(s) of the text(s) studied in this course. Students should have read carefully the sections of the text to be studied each week as well as the secondary literature assigned for that week. Students are required to take notes that enable them to reconstruct the ideas and arguments expressed during classes. They are strongly discouraged from making audio or video recordings, as this is in most cases counterproductive (no recording may be made without explicit prior permission). They have to participate actively in the discussion, ask for clarification when necessary, and students may also challenge various views and interpretations (including those of the teacher), in a respectful way.

Students will be assigned sections of the relevant ancient texts and/or modern commentaries on it. They are required to give at least one short individual presentation or, depending on the number of students in the class, to give several group work presentations (the precise modalities of the different types of presentations will be specified in class). For these presentations, they are expected to explain the core of the interpretation of the ancient text or the modern commentator assigned to them, the relevance for the passage at hand and for the broader issues, and the implications for the interpretation of key passages. Feedback will be given for the presentations. Students are required to submit a short text in which they set out the main lines of the interpretation they presented, either individually or presenting the results of the group work (min. 350 words, max. 500 words). The students will also be required to write a final paper (min. 2500 - max. 3000 words, references and notes included - only the first 3000 words will be read and marked) on specific problems or sections of the text, which will be different from the sections discussed in their presentations. The precise topics will be assigned by the teacher. The submission of a draft version, on which they will receive written feedback, is obligatory. The final version of the paper will need to be uploaded to Toledo. Students are expected to inform themselves about the faculty guidelines for papers and bibliographical referencing and about the faculty guidelines with regard to plagiarism.

Precise deadlines for each of these tasks will be given in the syllabus and/or in the Toledo course announcements.

Attendance and active participation are required for this course. A student who is repeatedly and for illegitimate reasons absent can be denied further access to class by the teacher of the course.

Evaluation

Evaluation: Ancient Philosophy: Advanced Course (B-KUL-W2Q02a)

Type : Continuous assessment without exam during the examination period
Description of evaluation : Paper/Project, Presentation, Process evaluation
Learning material : Course material, Reference work

Explanation


The evaluation consists of

  • the oral presentation(s), accompanied by (a) written report(s) (25 %)
  • active participation (for instance, in Q&A sessions) (5%)
  • the draft version of the long paper (it should contain at least an outline of the argument; minimally 15 lines of text, on a pass/fail basis)
  • the long paper, on the topics assigned by the teacher (70 %)

Each of these components is required. The student cannot pass the class if they receive the “NA” result for one or more of these tasks (special arrangements can be made in cases of illness or emergency). The student cannot get a mark higher than 12 if they receive a “fail” for one or more of these tasks. In case the student passes for all of the components the final grade will be calculated in accordance with the percentages indicated in the list above.

The students have to show that they meet the requirements as specified under "aims". More particularly, they have to prove that they have acquired a thorough understanding of the text. They should be able to explain the main difficulties of the texts assigned them and relate them to the interpretation of other sections and the whole. In doing so, they should be able to discuss every element of the text (phrases, concepts) discussed in class. They have to show that they are able to explain in a comprehensive and clear manner the views expressed in the ancient texts studied in class, to analyse the arguments and to give a critical assessment of the philosophical views and arguments contained in them. They should be able to discuss the broader philosophical and historical context.

Deadlines are to be respected strictly. For each day of delay (starting from the first minute the deadline has expired) one point will be subtracted from the mark for that specific requirement. If the deadline is exceeded by more than four days the student will receive an NA for that part of the class. The final day late work will be accepted cannot be later than the last day of the exam session.

Information about retaking exams

Students participating in the third examination session are required to submit the draft version and the final version of the long paper by the deadlines specified in the syllabus and/or on the Toledo page of the course. Different topics for the paper  may be assigned by the teacher. Participation, presentations and accompanying short papers cannot be retaken. Students who fail to give the required presentation(s) and submit the accompanying written report(s) during the teaching term will not be allowed to partake in the third examination session. In exceptional cases, provided the ombudsperson grants a special permission, an additional task will be assigned as compensation for the failure to give one presentation with accompanying written report. The student who in the course of the academic year did not attend class as required or who did not give the required presentation(s) will again receive the NA result.