A Religious Revolution? How Socrates' Theology Undermined The Practice Of Sacrifice,
2010
Stonehill College
A Religious Revolution? How Socrates' Theology Undermined The Practice Of Sacrifice, Anna Lannstrom
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
Mark McPherran and Gregory Vlastos argue that Socrates’ theology threatened Athenian sacrificial practices because it rejected the do ut des principle (aka the principle of reciprocity). I argue that their arguments are flawed because they assume that the Athenians understood sacrifice as something like a commercial transaction. Drawing upon scholarship in anthropology and religious studies, I argue that we need to revise that understanding of sacrifice and that, once we do, McPherran’s and Vlastos’ arguments no longer show that Socrates would have been a significant threat to the practice of sacrifice. Finally, I argue that McPherran’s Socrates does undermine sacrifice, …
Sagp Newsletter 2010/11.1 East Philol,
2010
Binghamton University
Sagp Newsletter 2010/11.1 East Philol, Anthony Preus
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
No abstract provided.
A Critique Of The Historiographical Construal Of America As A Christian Nation,
2010
Liberty University
A Critique Of The Historiographical Construal Of America As A Christian Nation, John David Wilsey
SOR Faculty Publications and Presentations
The Christian America thesis has grown in popularity over the past thirty years. This essay will critique the Christian America thesis, and instead offer the assertion that America was founded as a nation with religious liberty. Six lines of critique of the Christian America thesis will be presented, and the essay will attempt to show the significance of religious freedom in the founding. America‘s history points to a mixture of sacred and secular ideas. The nation is defined more realistically by religious freedom rather than a Christian identity. Evangelicals can approach those who do not share their faith commitment in …
Sagp/Ssips 2010 Program,
2010
Binghamton University
Sagp/Ssips 2010 Program, Anthony Preus
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
No abstract provided.
Teaching The Bill Of Rights In China,
2010
University of Dayton
Teaching The Bill Of Rights In China, Kurt Mosser
Philosophy Faculty Publications
Recently, I was asked if I was interested in teaching a relatively short course on a topic of my choosing at Nanjing University in Nanjing, People's Republic of China. I agreed, and designed a course called "American Political Theory" to be taught three days a week for five weeks. Each class session would meet for two hours. China has changed a great deal over the last few decades, of course. That change continues, and the pace of that change continues to accelerate. While I was in Nanjing, the government announced China's seventh consecutive quarter of double-digit GDP growth; soon after, …
Ex Aliquo Nihil: Nietzsche On Science And Modern Nihilism. Acpq, 84-2 (Spring 2010): 231-256.,
2010
Fordham University
Ex Aliquo Nihil: Nietzsche On Science And Modern Nihilism. Acpq, 84-2 (Spring 2010): 231-256., Babette Babich
Articles and Chapters in Academic Book Collections
This essay explores the nihilistic coincidence of the ascetic ideal and Nietzsche’s localization of science in the conceptual world of anarchic socialism as Nietzsche indicts the uncritical convictions of modern science by way of a critique of the causa sui, questioning both religion and the enlightenment as well as both free and unfree will and condemning the “poor philology” enshrined in the language of the “laws” of nature. Reviewing the history of philosophical nihilism in the context of Nietzsche’s “tragic knowledge” along with political readings of nihilism, willing nothing rather than not willing at all, today’s this-worldly and very planetary …
Intelligible Matter In Aristotle,
2010
Western University
Intelligible Matter In Aristotle, John Thorp
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
The oxymoronic phrase ‘intelligible matter’ occurs three times in Aristotle. In two passages it has the same meaning; in the third the meaning seems radically different. This gives the impression that the Aristotelian language of metaphysics is distressingly slack. This paper argues, against the nearly unanimous voice of two millennia of commentaries, that ‘intelligible matter’ has the same meaning in all three loci. In doing so it develops a capital distinction that tightens up the apparatus of Aristotelian metaphysics.
Aristotle On Learning In De Anima Ii.5,
2010
University of California, Santa Cruz
Aristotle On Learning In De Anima Ii.5, John F. Bowin
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
Just as the coming to be of a substance may be described as either an extended process or the completion of an extended process depending on whether it is described as the coming to be of the composite or of the individual form, so the process of learning may be described as either an extended process or the completion of an extended process depending on whether it is described as the oscillation between states of truth and error or as the ‘settling down’ or cessation of this oscillation at the stage where knowledge has become a stable disposition (hexis). And …
Causation, Agency, And Law In Antiphon: On Some Subtleties In The Second Tetralogy,
2010
St. Norbert College
Causation, Agency, And Law In Antiphon: On Some Subtleties In The Second Tetralogy, Joel Mann
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
That no one can or should be convicted in a law court on pollution charges is, I suggest, the implicit message of Antiphon’s second Tetralogy. More than a mere rhetorical exercise, Antiphon offers us a rational and compelling critique of religious law and of legal responsibility generally. In so doing, he anticipates modern puzzles in the philosophy of law as well as some of their more sophisticated solutions. A work not only of ingenious skepticism but also of considerable subtlety, the second Tetralogy should be considered the product of a philosopher who made perhaps the most substantial extant contribution to …
The Decline Of Western Civilization: How Value Relativism Caused The Erosion Of Western Philosophical Activity And Cultural Identity,
2010
Morehead State University
The Decline Of Western Civilization: How Value Relativism Caused The Erosion Of Western Philosophical Activity And Cultural Identity, Michael D. Alley
Morehead State Theses and Dissertations
A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Business and Public Affairs at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Public Administration by Michael D. Alley on April 18, 2010.
How Greek Tragedy Inspired Friedrich Nietzsche's Philosophy From "The Birth Of Tragedy" To "Ecce Homo",
2010
Bemidji State University
How Greek Tragedy Inspired Friedrich Nietzsche's Philosophy From "The Birth Of Tragedy" To "Ecce Homo", Marc Le Voir
Honors Capstones
Capstone submitted as a graduation requirement for the BSU Honors Program.
Sagp Newsletter 2009/10.4 Pac,
2010
Binghamton University
Sagp Newsletter 2009/10.4 Pac, Anthony Preus
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
No abstract provided.
What Aristotle Should Have Said About Megalopsychia,
2010
College of the Holy Cross
What Aristotle Should Have Said About Megalopsychia, May Sim
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
Megalopsychia (the greatness of soul) also translated as pride, or magnanimity, is a virtue Aristotle attributes to the good person regarding his claim to be worthy of great things, namely, honor. Despite this definition, commentators like C. Rowe, H. Curzer, R. Polansky and J. Stover, all chose to de-emphasize the centrality of honor in Aristotle’s definition of megalopsychia. Aristotle’s assertion that honor is the greatest external good also seems to be in tension with megalopsychia as a virtue that is to be pursued for its own sake, not to mention its tension with his remark that friendship is the greatest …
Against Hedonist Interpretations Of Plato's Protagoras,
2010
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Against Hedonist Interpretations Of Plato's Protagoras, J. Clerk Shaw
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
In this paper, I adapt one of the pro-hedonist strategies to anti-hedonist ends. Just as some prohedonists insist that Plato’s arguments against hedonism elsewhere do not touch the actual theory found in the Protagoras (again, PH), I argue that the most natural reading of PH is inconsistent with views found in purportedly earlier dialogues (especially the Apology and Crito) as well as in purportedly later dialogues (such as the Gorgias, Phaedo, and Republic). In section 1, I argue that PH focuses entirely on bodily goods and bads.11 Then, in section 2, I argue that this makes the relationship between virtue …
Sagp Newsletter 2009/10.3 (Central Division),
2010
Binghamton University
Sagp Newsletter 2009/10.3 (Central Division), Anthony Preus
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
No abstract provided.
Empirical And Dialogical Proofs Of God's Existence In Laws 10,
2010
Binghamton University--SUNY
Empirical And Dialogical Proofs Of God's Existence In Laws 10, Lewis Trelawny-Cassity
The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter
Book 10 of the Laws is intended to prove that the gods exist, care for us, and are not persuaded by bribes (885b7-9). The arguments put forward concerning the gods in Book 10 are described as “our noblest and best prelude (kalliston te kai ariston prooimion) on behalf of the laws” (887c1). In this paper I want to investigate how Plato establishes the fact that nous, “god, in the correct sense, for the gods” (897b2), exists. Some scholars have noted the “empirical” character of Plato’s arguments for the existence of god in Laws 10. While empirical facts do provide an …
Lucian Blaga On The Nature Of God,
2010
Liberty University
Lucian Blaga On The Nature Of God, Michael S. Jones
Faculty Publications and Presentations
No abstract provided.
Review: God's Rivals: Why Has God Allowed Different Religions? Insights From The Bible And The Early Church,
2010
Liberty University
Review: God's Rivals: Why Has God Allowed Different Religions? Insights From The Bible And The Early Church, Michael S. Jones
SOR Faculty Publications and Presentations
No abstract provided.
Kierkegaard On Indirect Communication, The Crowd, And A Monstrous Illusion,
2010
Northern Michigan University
Kierkegaard On Indirect Communication, The Crowd, And A Monstrous Illusion, Antony Aumann
Faculty Works
Following the pattern set by the early German Romantics, Kierkegaard conveys many of his insights through literature rather than academic prose. What makes him a valuable member of this tradition is the theory he develops to support it, his so-called “theory of indirect communication.” The most exciting aspect of this theory concerns the alleged importance of indirect communication: Kierkegaard claims that there are some projects only it can accomplish. This paper provides a critical account of two arguments Kierkegaard offers in defense of this claim. The first argument is that he needs to use indirect communication in order to discourage …
Late Pragmatism, Logical Positivism, And Their Aftermath,
2010
Loyola University Chicago
Late Pragmatism, Logical Positivism, And Their Aftermath, David Ingram
Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works
Developments in Anglo-American philosophy during the first half of the 20th Century closely tracked developments that were occurring in continental philosophy during this period. This should not surprise us. Aside from the fertile communication between these ostensibly separate traditions, both were responding to problems associated with the rise of mass society. Rabid nationalism, corporate statism, and totalitarianism (Left and Right) posed a profound challenge to the idealistic rationalism of neo-Kantian and neo-Hegelian philosophies. The decline of the individual – classically conceived by the 18th-century Enlightenment as a self-determining agent – provoked strong reactions. While some philosophical tendencies sought to …
