PLATO PHILO 380(W) Dr. V. Adluri Sec. 001 [4921] Office: Hunter West, 12th floor, Room 1242 Spring 2009 Telephone: 973 216 7874 Prof. Adluri Email:
[email protected] Monday/Wednesday, 4:10-5:25pm Office hours: Wednesdays, 6:00 – 7:00 P.M and by appointment DESCRIPTION: This course on Plato provides an in-depth account of this seminal thinker’s philosophy. Major themes such as the nature of knowledge, soul, universe, city, God, language, love, and art will be discussed based on selections from all of his dialogues. Plato’s relationship to Pre- Socratic philosophy, especially Parmenides and Heraclitus will be discussed. We will pay special attention to Plato’s use of the dialogic form and its main protagonist: Socrates. In the second half of the course, we will read the Republic in detail, with special attention to the legacy of Plato’s thought in the history of Western Philosophy. Required Text: Plato. Complete Works. Edited by John Cooper. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1997. $54. All textbooks are on order at Shakespeare & Co. Booksellers (939 Lexington Avenue between 68th and 69th streets; 212 570 0201). Shakespeare & Co. also has a limited number of used copies available at lower prices. COURSE OBJECTIVES: This course is intended to give students a basic familiarity with the Platonic corpus and an in-depth knowledge of the Republic. In the first half of the course, students will gain a basic familiarity with Platonic philosophy, including its method of argumentation, its ultimate aims, and its wider political and literary context. We will then apply these insights to a close- reading of the Republic.