Ancient Philosophy 2

Hellenistic-Roman philosophy and Neoplatonism.
1. Hellenism; descending to acosmic human being; man – world; ideal of the wise. Establishment of sciences: astronomy, mathematics, medicine; philology. New cultural centres.
2. Epicurus and his school: theory of nature as theory of Being – physics; theory of knowledge, the question of the criterion of truth – canonics. Ethics: the ideal of ataraxia, hedonism.
3. Stoicism: its history from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius. Philosophy as system: physics, logic, ethics; dogmatism. Theory of nature: laws, necessity, freedom. Logic: theory of lekton and propositional logic. Ethics: theory of values, choice. Theory of passions: the ideal of apathy. Middle Stoicism.
4. Scepticism: Pyrrho and Sextus Empiricus. Sceptical method: opposition of arguments, suspension of judgement (epoche). Arguments against knowledge and causality. Ethics: ideal of ataraxia.
5. Philosophy in Rome. The atomism of Lucretius; Cicero: rhetoric and philosophy. Roman stoicism: Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius.
6. Greek philosophy in the Roman Empire: Pythagoreanism, cynicism. Jewish-Alexandrian philosophy: Philo. Middle Platonism: Plutarch.
7. Neoplatonism. Plotinus: theory of the One and theory of hypostases; emanation. Ethics and mysticism. Aesthetics. Return to the One.
8. Neo-Platonic schools: a. Syrian School: Iamblichus; b. Athenian School: Proclus, Damascius; idealistic monism and negative theology. c. Alexandrian School: Hypatia.
9. Christianity and philosophy. New Test.: a new understanding of history. Saint Paul. Apostolic fathers. Apologetics: Tertullian. Gnosis. Alexandrian school: Clement of Alexandria and Origen.
10. Christian humanism: Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa. Neo-platonism and mysticism: Psevdo-Dionysius Areopagite.
11. Latin patristics. Avgustine: truth and illumination; metaphysics of interiority; ethics; philosophy of history.
12. Neoplatonism and Aristotle commentaries. Boethius.