欧洲文化入门 第三节课 06.11.

3 1/4
Introduction to European Culture Lesson 3a

Ancient Greece (continued).

Philosophy 哲学

Socrates (470 B.C.)

extracts from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socrates

Socrates lived during the time of the transition from the height of the Athenian
Empire to its decline after its defeat by Sparta and its allies in the Peloponnesian
War. At a time when Athens was seeking to stabilize and recover from its
humiliating defeat, the Athenian public court was induced by three leading public
figures to try Socrates for impiety and for corrupting the youth of Athens. This was a
time in culture when the Greeks thought of gods and goddesses as being associated
with protecting particular cities. Athens, for instance, is named after its protecting
goddess Athena. The defeat of Athens in the Peloponnesian War was interpreted as
Athena judging the city for not being pious. The last thing Athens needed was
more punishment from Athena for one man inciting its citizens to question her or
the other gods. In the Apology, Socrates insists that this is a false charge.

According to the version of his defense speech presented in Plato's Apology,

Socrates' life as a philosopher began when his friend Chaerephon asked the oracle
at Delphi if anyone was wiser than Socrates; the Oracle responded negatively.
Socrates, interpreting this as a riddle, set out to find men who were wiser than he was. He questioned the men of Athens
about their knowledge of good, beauty, and virtue. Finding that they knew nothing and yet believed themselves to know
much, Socrates came to the conclusion that he was wise only in so far as he knew that he knew nothing.

According to Xenophon and Plato, Socrates had an opportunity to escape, as his followers were able to bribe the prison
guards. After escaping, Socrates would have had to flee from Athens. In the painting "Death Of Socrates", under the death
bed, there is an irregularly-shaped tile, which many believe is an escape hatch. Socrates refused to escape for several
reasons. 1. He believed that such a flight would indicate a fear of death, which he believed no true philosopher has. 2. Even
if he did leave, he, and his teaching, would fare no better in another country. 3. Having knowingly agreed to live under the
city's laws, he implicitly subjected himself to the possibility of being accused of crimes by its citizens and judged guilty by
its jury. To do otherwise would have caused him to break his 'contract' with the state, and by so doing harming it, an act
contrary to Socratic principle.

The beliefs of Socrates, as opposed to those of Plato, are difficult to discern. Little in the way of concrete evidence
demarcates the two. There are some who claim that Socrates had no particular set of beliefs, and sought only to examine;
the lengthy theories he gives in the Republic are considered to be the thoughts of Plato. Others argue that he did have his
own theories and beliefs, but there is much controversy over what these might have been, owing to the difficulty of
separating Socrates from Plato

Perhaps his most important contribution to Western thought is his dialectic (answering a question with a question) method
of inquiry, known as the Socratic Method or method of elenchos, which he largely applied to the examination of key moral
concepts such as the Good and Justice. It was first described by Plato in the Socratic Dialogues. For this, Socrates is
customarily regarded as the father of political philosophy and ethics or moral philosophy, and as a fountainhead of all the
main themes in Western philosophy in general. In this method, a series of questions are posed to help a person or group to
determine their underlying beliefs and the extent of their knowledge.

Socrates believed that the best way for people to live was to focus on self-development rather than the pursuit of material
wealth. He always invited others to try to concentrate more on friendships and a sense of true community, for Socrates felt
that this was the best way for people to grow together as a populace.
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Introduction to European Culture Lesson 3a

Socrates chose to die according to the laws of Athenian society rather than escape to safety because he
believed that to run away from his punishment would be contradictory to his own philosophy. He
became famous for staying true to his beliefs, even in the face of death, and was considered by many
later generations to be a great hero.

Plato (428 B.C.)

extract from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato

In Plato's writings are debates concerning the best possible form of government, featuring adherents of aristocracy,
democracy, monarchy, as well as other issues. A central theme is the conflict between nature and convention, concerning the
role of heredity and the environment on human intelligence and personality long before the modern "nature versus nurture"
debate began in the time of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke

Plato believed in many of the same ideas as Socrates, including his concepts of virtue, moral goodness,
justice, beauty etc. He also developed his own concepts of metaphysics (which describe the nature of
existence and our perception of reality). In particular, he believed that the world could be divided into
two distinct aspects: the world of ideas, and the physical reality we perceive through our bodies. He
believed that our bodies are imperfect and cannot be relied upon to perceive the true nature of reality.
On the other hand, he thought that the ideas perceived by our minds were completely real and easy to
perceive. He believed these ideas (concepts such as love, justice, virtue) to be much more important
than physical reality. His philosophy is one of Idealism.

Democritus (460 B.C.)

Democritus is famous for developing a philosophy of Materialism. He believe the opposite of Plato:
that the world we see and feel around us is the only true reality. He tried to explain ideas and emotions
in terms of physical processes (e.g. chemicals in our brain making us feel happy or sad.) He was also
one of the first people to develop atomic theory (the idea that the world around us can be broken up
into tiny particles. He believed that these particles were indestructible and eternal and that when one
thing died, the particles from its body would be incorporated into new life.)

Aristotle (384 B.C.)

see the textbook, pg 27
also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle

Aristotle occupied something of a middle ground between the Idealism of Plato and the Materialism of
Democritus. Like Plato, he believed that the world was made up of both ideas and physical reality, but
he also believed that both of these aspects of reality were of equal importance and required equal
amounts of study. Aristotle was one of the first people in history to apply a systematic scientific
analysis to the study of many aspects of life (including physics, zoology, psychology, poetry and
rhetoric) and to record his results in writing for later generations to study.

The Sophists and the 4 Schools: Cynics, Sceptics, Epicureans, Stoics

see textbook, pgs. 29-31

Modern Uses of ancient philosophical terms.

The names of the 4 schools of philosophy mentioned above are all still used in modern English, but
their meanings have changed slightly.
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Introduction to European Culture Lesson 3a

cynic – one who believes that human conduct is motivated by self interest
sceptic/skeptic – one who distrusts or disbelieves something (e.g. Mike told me he won a singing
competition last year. I’m skeptical, however, because I’ve heard him sing and he’s not that good.)
epicurean – indulgent, wasteful, fond of luxury
stoic- one who is tough and unemotional, rarely happy or sad (e.g. after breaking up with his girlfriend,
William tried to behave stoically, going to work everyday and keeping up the appearance of happiness
and contentment. On the inside, however, he felt as if his life were slowly falling apart.)
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Introduction to European Culture Lesson 3a

Homework

Due in on Friday 17 November

Write a short account (500-1000 words) in English on one of the following topics.

1) Discuss the importance of any one of the Ancient Greek poets, philosophers or historians
you
have studied. Describe their most significant works, their lives, their deaths etc.

2) Compare the historians of Ancient Greece with those of Ancient China (e.g. Herodotus and
Sima Qian). What did they write about? How accurate were they? How much did they write?
How popular were they at the time? How important have they been in later history? Do their
histories reflect differences between ancient Greek and Chinese cultures?

3) Compare the philosophers of Ancient Greece with those of Ancient China (e.g. Confucius and
Socrates, Laozi and Plato etc.) How do the concepts covered by them differ? Were some
philosophies more practical than others? What role did these philosophies play within society?
Did they have a large influence on the contemporary governments? How did the lives of the
Chinese and Greek philosophers compare?

4) Describe similarities and differences between Ancient Chinese and Ancient Greek pottery.
Which was more technologically advanced? How were they decorated? What were they used
for?

In addition to reading the textbook and class notes, please conduct your own research using library
books, internet sources etc. to supplement your essay.

This homework will be awarded a grade based upon the content and the standard of English language
in which it is presented.

Please use your own words instead of copying directly from English language sources. If it is
discovered that you have copied English language sources directly word-for-word, you will be awarded
a very low grade. Any homework handed in after the deadline (Friday 17 November) will also receive a
lower grade.

The results from this homework, and from other homeworks to be set throughout the year, will count
towards your final grade for this European Culture class.