Active Outline
General Information
- Course ID (CB01A and CB01B)
- PHILD020A
- Course Title (CB02)
- History of Western Philosophy - Ancient Greece
- Course Credit Status
- Credit - Degree Applicable
- Effective Term
- Fall 2024
- Course Description
- This course examines the problems of knowledge, reality, truth, value, agency, morality, and wisdom in Greek philosophy from Thales to Aristotle. Emphasis will be given to applications of Greek thinking to social, aesthetic, cultural, gender, historical, and religious issues.
- Faculty Requirements
- Discipline 1
- [Philosophy]
- FSA
- [FHDA FSA - PHILOSOPHY]
- Course Family
- Not Applicable
Course Justification
This course is a transfer-level course for both the CSU and UC systems. The course meets a general education requirement for °®¶¹´«Ã½, CSU GE, and IGETC. This course is part of the Philosophy AA-T degree at °®¶¹´«Ã½. The course is the first in a sequence of courses in the history of Western philosophy and covers fundamental texts and thinkers from ancient Greece. As such, it prepares students for advanced and upper-division study in the discipline of philosophy.
Foothill Equivalency
- Does the course have a Foothill equivalent?
- No
- Foothill Course ID
Formerly Statement
Course Development Options
- Basic Skill Status (CB08)
- Course is not a basic skills course.
- Grade Options
- Letter Grade
- Pass/No Pass
- Repeat Limit
- 0
Transferability & Gen. Ed. Options
- Transferability
- Transferable to both UC and CSU
| °®¶¹´«Ã½ GE | Area(s) | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2GC2 | °®¶¹´«Ã½ GE Area C2 - Humanities | Approved |
| CSU GE | Area(s) | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| CGC2 | CSU GE Area C2 - Humanities | Approved |
| IGETC | Area(s) | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| IG3B | IGETC Area 3B - Humanities | Approved |
| C-ID | Area(s) | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| PHIL | Philosophy | Approved | C-ID PHIL 130 |
Units and Hours
Summary
- Minimum Credit Units
- 4.0
- Maximum Credit Units
- 4.0
Weekly Student Hours
| Type | In Class | Out of Class |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture Hours | 4.0 | 8.0 |
| Laboratory Hours | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Course Student Hours
- Course Duration (Weeks)
- 12.0
- Hours per unit divisor
- 36.0
Course In-Class (Contact) Hours
- Lecture
- 48.0
- Laboratory
- 0.0
- Total
- 48.0
Course Out-of-Class Hours
- Lecture
- 96.0
- Laboratory
- 0.0
- NA
- 0.0
- Total
- 96.0
Prerequisite(s)
Corequisite(s)
Advisory(ies)
EWRT D001A or EWRT D01AH or ESL D005.
Limitation(s) on Enrollment
Entrance Skill(s)
General Course Statement(s)
(See general education pages for the requirements this course meets.)
Methods of Instruction
Lecture and visual aids
Discussion of assigned reading
Discussion and problem solving performed in class
In-class essays
In-class exploration of Internet sites
Quiz and examination review performed in class
Homework and extended projects
Guest speakers
Collaborative learning and small group exercises
Collaborative projects
Assignments
- Reading
- Assigned reading from required texts which introduce students to the primary writings of the major Greek thinkers both from historical as well as contemporary perspectives. In so doing, students will identify and assess the central figures, questions and themes of ancient philosophy in the Western tradition.
- Assignments should help students apply the concepts learned in this class to one’s own existence in the world. Towards this goal, there will be assigned reading (when available) from required texts which foster students' awareness of cultural and gender diversity.
- Writing
- Essay type assignments. Assignments will assess and analyze arguments and approaches to philosophical problems as found in ancient philosophical texts. In addition, essay assignments will foster skills that will enable students to articulate and defend one's own stance on at least one ancient philosophical problem, figure or theory from Ancient philosophy.
- Group writing assignments.
- Oral
- Participation in small group discussions of assigned texts and projects.
- Participate in large group discussions of course materials.
Methods of Evaluation
- Grading of assignments that reflect understanding of, and critical reflection upon, the assigned readings. Written assignment, essay, or project, showing ability to analyze, argue, synthesize, and present philosophical ideas in writing.
- Evaluation of writing by way of papers and final projects that develop writing skills, as well as critical thinking. Quizzes, exams, homework, and final which includes multiple-choice and/or essay components that requires students to summarize, integrate, and critically analyze and apply concepts examined throughout the course.
- Participation in and contribution to class discussions.(Specific evaluation criteria will be clearly stated on the course syllabus.)
Essential Student Materials/Essential College Facilities
Essential Student Materials:Â
- None
- None
Examples of Primary Texts and References
| Author | Title | Publisher | Date/Edition | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aristotle. Ed. J.L. Ackrill. | A New Aristotle Reader | Princeton University Press | 1988 | 9780691020433 |
| Aristotle. Trans. Terence Irwin. | Nicomachean Ethics | Hackett Publishing | 2019/3rd | 978-1-62466-815-9 |
| Plato. Trans. C.D.C. Reeve. | Republic | Hackett Publishing | 2004 | 978-0-87220-736-3 |
| Plato. Ed. John Cooper. | Complete Works | Hackett Publishing | 1997 | 978-0-87220-349-5 |
| S. Marc Cohen, Patricia Curd, and C. D. C. Reeve (eds.) | Readings in Ancient Greek Philosophy: From Thales to Aristotle | Hackett Publishing | 2016/5th | 978-1-62466-532-5 |
Examples of Supporting Texts and References
None.
Learning Outcomes and Objectives
Course Objectives
- Examine and evaluate the discipline and methods of philosophy, with an emphasis upon the historical movements and figures of Western philosophy in ancient Greece.
- Examine and evaluate the metaphysical claims of various pre-Socratic and post-Socratic Greek philosophers.
- Examine and evaluate various epistemological claims, theories, and methodologies in ancient Greek thinkers.
- Examine and evaluate different claims concerning ethics and morality in ancient Greek philosophy.
- Examine and evaluate different sociological / economic claims made by various Greek thinkers.
- Examine and evaluate various religious concepts and ideas within the thinking of various theistic and non-theistic Greek philosophers.
- Examine and evaluate the influence of Greek thinkers, including Greek thinkers' impact upon the arts and sciences within various traditions.
CSLOs
- Identify and assess the central figures, questions and themes of ancient philosophy in the western tradition.
- Assess and analyze arguments and approaches to philosophical problems as found in ancient philosophical texts.
- Articulate and defend one's own stance on at least one ancient philosophical problem, figure or theory.
- Exhibit an application of the concepts learned in this class to one's own existence in the world.
Outline
- Examine and evaluate the discipline and methods of philosophy, with an emphasis upon the historical movements and figures of Western philosophy in ancient Greece.
- Analyze and evaluate the historical origins of Greek philosophy, particularly its pre-Socratic and post-Socratic phases, with an emphasis upon the cosmos, the nature of knowledge, the nature of reality, self-knowledge, and gender issues.
- Locate and analyze the origin of the concepts stemming from Greek philosophy, such as "eudemonia" and the philosophical heritage associate therein.
- Identify and appraise ancient Greek methodologies and evaluate their similarities and differences in relation to other traditions and other philosophical types of inquiry.
- Examine and evaluate the metaphysical claims of various pre-Socratic and post-Socratic Greek philosophers.
- Measure the positions of Realism and Anti-Realism in Greek metaphysics and meta-ethics.
- Analysis and comparison of the concepts of existence, being, and essence in various philosophical traditions and their correlates in Greek philosophies.
- Analyze and interpret the ontological status, problems, and features of existence, human existence, and the relation(s) between human beings and non-human beings.
- Examine and evaluate various epistemological claims, theories, and methodologies in ancient Greek thinkers.
- Appraise, assess, and relate various theories involving the nature, structure, and essence of consciousness.
- Analyze and interpret various Greek thinking on freedom of the will and human agency. compare and contrast differing conceptions of human freedom and formulate an argument in support one's beliefs about freewill.
- Summarize differing conceptions of consciousness and conscious experience.
- Examine and evaluate different claims concerning ethics and morality in ancient Greek philosophy.
- Analysis of value(s) in relation to human beings' search for truth and meaning.
- Analysis and examination of culturally determined values or cultural values that impact the formation of philosophical theories.
- Analysis, examination, and evaluation of gender, gender concepts, human sexuality, culturally assigned sex-roles, and their metaphysical and social dimensions.
- Compare and contrast various ways of resolving problems in human action associated with freedom, necessity, and responsibility.
- Examine and evaluate different sociological / economic claims made by various Greek thinkers.
- Compare and evaluate various socio-economic models, as well as Greek critiques of such models.
- Analyze, appraise, and assess various issues involving technology and its meaning within (and for) human society.
- Identify, summarize, compare, and contrast various theories that aim at resolving various socio-economic issues.
- Examine and evaluate various religious concepts and ideas within the thinking of various theistic and non-theistic Greek philosophers.
- Compare, contrast, and evaluate differing views of religious experience in relation to non-religious experience.
- Debates over the history of how the importance of the Greek legacy has been evaluated in western societies.
- Examine, compare, and contrast various relations of knowledge and faith within human experience.
- Examine and evaluate the influence of Greek thinkers, including Greek thinkers' impact upon the arts and sciences within various traditions.
- Analyze Greece's impact upon the disciplines of literature, art, and music.
- Assess the influence of Greek philosophical thinking upon literature and the arts.
- Appraise the political and environmental impact of Greek thinking upon various cultures and settings.
