Module CLAS3191: GREEK SCEPTICISM

Department: CLASSICS AND ANCIENT HISTORY

CLAS3191: GREEK SCEPTICISM

Prerequisites

• Early Greek Philosophy (CLAS1101), Classical Theories of Soul (CLAS1531), Epicureanism (CLAS2??1), Stoicism (CLAS2261), Knowledge and Reality (PHIL1021).

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To examine the historical development of Academic and Pyrrhonist Scepticism in debate with Dogmatic schools of thought (especially Stoicism).
• to introduce a topic that is central to the philosophical thought of antiquity and beyond.

Content

• Under the leadership of Arcesilaus, Plato's Academy introduced Scepticism (the denial of knowledge) into the heart of philosophical debate.
• This course will examine Arcesilaus, his precedents, motives and arguments, and trace the development of Scepticism through the work of his successors - including Carneades, one of the most important philosophers of the Hellenistic age, Philo of Larissa (who numbered Cicero among his followers), and Aenesidemus, who broke away from the Academy to found the Pyrrhonist school in the first century BC.
• We shall look at a wide range of different Sceptical positions, and consider the wider implications of Scepticism for philosophical practice, and for theories of ethics and action in particular.

Learning Outcomes

• Close familiarity with the texts needed for an understanding of Greek Scepticism from the fourth century BC to the 3rd century AD.
• An understanding of the range of different sceptical positions adopted by different thinkers in antiquity, and the argument adduced for each.
• Knowledge of how the issue of scepticism impacted on the fields of ethics and of medical theory in antiquity.

• The ability to use knowledge of other philosophers in antiquity, especially Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics, in developing plausible accounts of Scepticism in its full historical and polemical context.
• An ability to engage critically with the full range of textual evidence, including fragments and full texts, and polemical report in reconstructing the philosophical positions of individual Sceptics.
• Confidence in handling and deploying basic philosophical concepts covering the fields of, especially, epistemology and ethics.

• Capacity for self-motivated work, and for working with other people in tackling particular analytical tasks and research projects.
• The ability to present a well-researched, well-articulated, and well-balanced account of the evidence for a particular topic, which takes the views of other commentators into account.
• The ability to read philosophical texts of a wide range of styles with confidence, and the capacity to identify and engage critically with arguments set out in them.
• The ability to reconstruct a plausible line of thought from evidence that is imperfect, biased, or indirect.
• An independence of mind which is strengthened, not compromised, by the sympathetic understanding of alternative points of view.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Teaching for this module is by weekly two-hour classes, which will normally be structured around a lecture and one other activity: seminar, presentation, or class discussion, or revision, as appropriate.
• Lectures are used to provide factual information and to give models for interpretative procedures in the selection and interpretation of fragments. Seminars, class discussions, and revision classes are used to consolidate knowledge and practise interpretative procedures. Corresponding to this is a 50% examination component, which tests general assimilation and understanding of material across the breadth of the course. A summative coursework essay contributing 25% of the final mark gives students the opportunity of exploring a topic in greater depth, and to explore connections with previous philosophical exposure as appropriate.
• Group presentations are used to explore areas of the secondary literature on Greek Scepticism. Students are asked to work in small groups on particular themes or periods, and to present their findings to the class as a whole. It is hoped in this way that students come to have a wider and deeper knowledge of the subject as it is currently studied (as they explore it themselves, or hear it from others, respectively). This is written up as a literature review, and forms 25% of the summative assessment for the module. Each student writes their own reviews in the end, but it is expected that they will work together with their group for much of the research it involves, and benefit from each other???s work and example by doing so.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

3 written assignments (1,500-2,000 words) and 1 seminar presentation. No collections.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University