Quizzes Oct 9/10, 11/12

Oct9/10-DR 13

1. In the Hellenistic period Western philosophy came to be seen as what? What did the Hellenistic philosophies all praise, and what did they all see as the key to wisdom?

2. Of what later philosophy was Epicureanism the main ancestor?

3. What central problem of philosophy was Epicurus apparently the first to state?

4. From what did the Stoics take their name?

5. What was the one thing the Stoics thought the Epicureans were right about?

6. How does Gottlieb say the Stoics were inconsistent?

The Ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus was born in 341 BC, on the island of Samos, a few miles off the coast of modern Turkey. He had an unusually long beard, wrote over three hundred books and was one of the most famous philosophers of his age.

What made him famous was his skilful and relentless focus on one particular subject: happiness. Previously, philosophers had wanted to know how to be good; Epicurus insisted he wanted to focus on how to be happy.

Few philosophers had ever made such a frank, down-to-earth admission of their interests before. It shocked many, especially when they heard that Epicurus had started a School for Happiness. The idea of what was going on inside was both entirely shocking and deeply titillating. A few disgruntled Epicureans made some damaging leaks about what was going on in the school. Timocrates said that Epicurus had to vomit twice a day because he spent all his time on a sofa being fed luxurious meats and fish by a team of slaves. And Diotimus the Stoic published fifty lewd letters which he said had been written by Epicurus to some young students when he’d been drunk and sexually obsessed. It’s because of such gossip that we still sometimes now use the adjective ‘Epicurean’ to describe luxury and decadence... SoL

What is the best life we can live? How can we cope with whatever the universe throws at us and keep thriving nonetheless? The ancient Greco-Roman philosophy of Stoicism explains that while we may not always have control over the events affecting us, we can have control over how we approach things. Massimo Pigliucci describes the philosophy of Stoicism...Ed.ted

‘Stoicism’ was a philosophy that flourished for some 400 years in Ancient Greece and Rome, gaining widespread support among all classes of society. It had one overwhelming and highly practical ambition: to teach people how to be calm and brave in the face of overwhelming anxiety and pain.

We still honour this school whenever we call someone ‘stoic’ or plain ‘philosophical’ when fate turns against them: when they lose their keys, are humiliated at work, rejected in love or disgraced in society. Of all philosophies, Stoicism remains perhaps the most immediately relevant and useful for our uncertain and panicky times... SoL
DQ

• What do you think of when you hear the word "therapy"? Do you think philosophers can be good therapists?
•  Do you think "the greatest happiness of the greatest number" is an appropriate goal in life? Can it be effectively pursued by those who shun "any direct involvement in public life"?
• If the motion of atoms explains everything, can we be free?
• Is it true that your private thoughts can never be enslaved?
• Do you agree with the Stoic critique of Plato's Forms? (321)
• How do you distinguish things that are and are not subject to your control?

Oct11/12, LH 3, DR 13 (p.336-357)

1. What was the main teaching of skepticism? ("Scepticism" in Br. spelling)

2. How did Pyrrho say you could become free from all worry? Does Warburton think this would work for most of us?

3. How does modern skepticism differ from its ancient predecessor?

4. Why does Gottlieb think Pyrrho must not have been as radically skeptical as legend has it?

5. What did David Hume say about too much skepticism?

6. What did "throwing in the sponge" mean, in Sextus Emiricus's story?

Skeptic Magazine...

DQ

• Is it possible to go through life questioning and doubting everything, committing always to nothing, and holding no firm opinions? Is it desirable or useful to try doing so?
• Whose view on the reliability of the senses do you find more persuasive, Pyrrho's or Epicurus's (see DR 309-10)
• In what ways are you skeptical? In what ways are you not?
• Comment: "Even determinists and fatalists look both ways before crossing the street."
• What do you think of "the Empiricist approach to medicine"? (350) Does anyone still practice it?
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Skepticism mentioned under last week's quiz...

It’s certainly a long way from “Grand Theft Auto.”

Henry David Thoreau’s classic “Walden” is the inspiration for what Smithsonian Magazine is calling the world’s most improbable video game: “Walden, a Game.”

Instead of offering the thrills of stealing, violence and copious cussing, the new video game, based on Thoreau’s 19th-century retreat in Massachusetts, will urge players to collect arrowheads, cast their fishing pole into a soothing pond, buy penny candies and perhaps even jot notes in a journal — all while listening to the author’s meditations on nature... (continues)