Course: Methodology of thinking in ancient philosophy

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Course title Methodology of thinking in ancient philosophy
Course code KFHS/K516
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course Master
Year of study not specified
Semester Winter and summer
Number of ECTS credits 3
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory-optional
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Konrádová Veronika, Mgr. Ph.D.
Course content
1) Introduction 2) Narration, image, paradigm: structures of thought and methods of communication in oral culture (Homeric epic) 3) Truth: the archaic concept of truth (eteos, némertés, atrekés, aléthés), truth as a speech quality, truth and deception 4) Truth: the transformation of the concept of truth in the classical period, truth as an object of inquiry 5) Alétheia and peithó: truthfulness and persuasiveness in social and political contexts, plurality of truths, sophistic rationality 6) Thinking in the medium of changeability and stability: what can be coherently thought and expressed, how to think and grasp changeability in speech (Heracleitos, Plato's dialogue Kratylos) 7) Thought and speech: logic, dialectic, rhetoric 8) Typology of cognitive faculties, distinction between episteme and doxa 9) Causes and knowledge: science as knowledge of causes and principles, the concept of causality in the Hippocratic corpus, the search for causes in Plato, the Aristotelian concept of causality 10) Processes of knowledge: anamnetic, maieutic and dialectical models of knowledge in Plato 11) Aristotle's philosophical method: axiomatic-deductive and empirical approach, origins of inquiry, endoxa 12) Final reflection

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified, unspecified, unspecified
Learning outcomes
This course is designed to demonstrate the methods of thought profiled in the archaic and classical periods of Greek antiquity. The broader perspective of interpretation first introduces specific methods of organising knowledge in a pre-philosophical oral culture. It then traces the formation of the concept of science and knowledge in ancient philosophical authors. Simultaneously, it focuses on the concept of truth and the transformation of the concept of truth in archaic and classical times. It also traces the functioning of this concept not only in an epistemological but also in a social and political context. The relationship between thought and speech is analysed in detail from different perspectives. Furthermore, the course addresses the concept of knowledge conceived as knowledge of causes and presents models of knowledge and characteristics of cognitive processes in Plato and Aristotle. The methodology of the course complements the theoretical interpretation with work with primary texts.
The student will understand the thought processes in the archaic and classical periods of Greek philosophy. The student will learn about the process of the formation of the concept of science and knowledge, the ancient models of knowledge and the interpretation of cognitive processes in philosophical authors. The student will be able to work with the literature and present the knowledge gained.
Prerequisites
none

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
75% participation, presentation of paper, active participation in the seminar, discussion
Recommended literature
  • Aristotelés. Metafyzika; Rezek. Praha, 2008. ISBN 80-86027-27-9.
  • Detienne, M. Mistři pravdy v archaickém Řecku. Praha, 2000.
  • Oesterreich, P. L. Podoby veřejného rozumu. Filosofičtí učitelé v prostoru politiky.. Praha, 2013.
  • Ong, W. J. Technologizace slova. Praha: Karolinum.
  • Platón. Sebrané spisy. Praha, 2003. ISBN 80-7298-067-X.
  • Platón. Spisy I-V. Praha, 2003.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester