Origins of Western Philosophy

The student of this course will be expected to be acquainted with the following topics: the ambiguous nature of the "presocratic" chronology; the polysemic (philosophical) value of the notion of "arché"; the universalistic scope of the notion of "physis"; the blurry demarcation between "mythos" and "logos" at the so-called origin of Western thought; the proto-scientific significance of the first cosmologies and their relation with archaic cults (Orphism, Mystery cults, etc) and ancient near "East" wisdom; the early development of monistic vis-à-vis pluralist fundamental ontologies; the polarization of the "physis/nomos" debate in the Sophistic movement within the emerging Greek poleis, up to the liminal role of Socrates' oral inquiry under the the democratic regime of Athens.

1.Knowledge and understanding: Textually-informed knowledge of the archaic origins of Western philosophy and understanding of the "Eastern" side of the traditional historiographical narrative; basic philological awareness in the analysis of ancient texts, whose nature is fragmentary and/or reported.
2.Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: Acquisition of specific key-words, technical vocabulary and fundamental philosophical concepts of the archaic period.
3.Making judgments: capacity to develop an overall theoretical understanding of the history of Presocratic philosophy that must also be historiographically and philologically informed.
4.Communication skills: The ability to formulate reasoned arguments and communicate ideas about the beginnings of Western philosophy.
5.Learning skills: Acquaintance with the main "Presocratic" thinkers' tenets, their most important views, the extant testimonies and the available doxographic tradition in their regard.