Teaching

Course Overview:  Often simply referred to as "The Philosopher," Aristotle is one of the most influential philosophers to have ever lived. Studied for over two millennia, Aristotle’s works were not only foundational in the field of philosophy, but also such varied academic disciplines as logic, zoology, physics, and psychology. Moreover, contemporary philosophers continue to engage with his views on topics such as happiness, friendship, and essence. In this class we will briefly survey of some of the core elements of Aristotle's philosophy. 

Roughly, the goal of the course is to explore Aristotle's conception of happiness, or eudaimonia, and see how it is related to his understanding of human nature. However, understanding human nature will require us to investigate Aristotle's natural philosophy -- including Aristotle's general understanding of nature as an innate principle of motion and rest, the sense in which nature is directed at the full realization of something's true essence and form, and his related claim that the soul is the form of a living creature. You will therefore gain familiarity with some of the most crucial aspects of Aristotelian philosophy and understand the interrelations between these different areas.

Course Overview:  You don't have to be a philosopher to be interested in love and sex -- both are ubiquitous features of human life. Despite their ubiquity, however, both can seem rather mysterious. What is love? How is the 'love' that friends have for each other similar to, and different than, the 'romantic love' that partners have for each other? Is 'falling in love' something we should hope for, or fear? What sorts of activity counts as 'sexual,' and what (if any) connection does sex have to romantic love? Is sex with love more desirable than sex without love? Do we have ethical reasons to cultivate or eliminate certain sexual desires?

In fact, philosophers have been weighing in on all these questions (and more!) for thousands of years. The main goal of this course is to explore some of the philosophical literature on love and sex and appreciate different approaches and perspectives that have been articulated by philosophers, both ancient and modern. As we will see, a wide variety of different views have been advanced, some of them being diametrically opposed to each other! Along the way we will also practice developing core philosophical skills – reading, understanding, and evaluating philosophical arguments for one’s position.

Course Overview:  This course is devoted to Plato’s Republic, a dialogue in which Socrates and his interlocutors attempt to explore the nature of justice and show that living justly is better and more advantageous than living unjustly. Famously, Socrates says that the best way to understand the nature of justice in a human soul is to find justice in the ideal city. The majority of the Republic is thus devoted to Socrates’ description of an ideal and virtuous city, the Kallipolis, that is overseen by philosopher-rulers.

 Enormously rich, the dialogue investigates the nature of the human soul, the ideal city, education, the virtues, poetry, tyranny, desire, pleasure, philosophy and, ultimately, the nature of reality itself. Besides the intrinsic interest of these topics, this course will also acquaint you with what have come to be seen as distinctly 'Platonic' positions within epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and political philosophy. You will consequently be well-positioned to put Plato into conversation with other historical and contemporary philosophers. 

Course Overview:  This course is devoted to Plato's philosophy and sets out to explore the contribution that pleasure, virtue, and knowledge make to a good life. We approach this topic by reading three dialogues in their entirety: the Gorgias, the Phaedrus, and the Philebus.

One of the enduring joys (and challenges) of reading Plato is engaging with the wide variety of subjects that are covered within a single dialogue. The result is that we will, despite mostly focusing on topics from Plato's ethics, also grapple with his views on metaphysics, epistemology, rhetoric, politics, and love. By exploring these topics and the interrelations between them, my hope is that you will come away from this course with a good appreciation of Plato's breadth and depth as a philosopher.