6th Workshop

6th Nagoya Meta-Philosophy Workshop

Date: 13:00 to 18:00pm, Jul 23, 2019

Venue: Liberal Arts and Sciences Main Building S11, 1st Floor

"Socrates’ Humaneness: What His Last Words Meant"

Yahei Kanayama (University of Nagoya): 13:00-14:30pm

Abstract: Confucius emphasises the importance of humaneness (ren 仁) and rites (li 禮). Socrates, on the other hand, is often interpreted as a person who places far more importance on rational thinking, even to the exclusion of natural human feelings, especially on the ground of his attitude towards the sorrow of his wife and friends on his last day as described in Plato’s Phaedo. Through clarifying two long-time riddles in this dialogue—namely, “What did Socrates mean by his last words, requesting Crito to offer a cock to Asclepius?” and “Was Plato really absent from the prison on Socrates’ last day, due to illness, as is mentioned by Phaedo?”—this paper argues that Socrates kept in mind the best interest of his wife and friends even at the moment of his death, and that his humane attitude is expressed in his last words, which were not only an expression of gratitude for Plato’s recovery from a critical illness but also an exhortation to his friends to continue their care of the soul.

"Aristotle on the Prospects for Philosophical Progress"

Matthew D. Walker (Yale-NUS College): 14:45-16:15pm

Abstract: In surviving fragments of his lost Protrepticus, Aristotle responds to worries about the excessive demandingness of theoretical philosophy. In response, he argues that such philosophy is actually generally feasible for human beings. As evidence, Aristotle highlights his contemporaries’ success in making rapid progress in attaining philosophical understanding. I explore and evaluate Aristotle’s argument in the light of recent worries about philosophy’s ability to make progress.

"Archery and Liezi's Conception of Virtues"

Masashi Kasaki (University of Nagoya): 16:30-18:00pm

Abstract: Virtue plays an important role in both Eastern and Western traditions of philosophy. When philosophers discuss virtue in both traditions, they often use one or another example of archery to derive essential characteristics of virtues. Interestingly, most of the philosophers draw a similar lesson from their favored examples of archery, although the examples of archery significantly differ in settings and background: that is, a virtuous person deliberates what to do or contemplates on what is correct and then acts accordingly. In a nutshell, having a virtue requires being self-reflective on one’s beliefs and actions. Interestingly, Liezi, a Daoist philosopher, uses examples of archery to draw a lesson completely different from other philosophers'. Liezi’s conception of virtues is distinctive in that it denies the importance of self-reflection for virtues.