Admission requirements
Admission to (one of) the programme(s) listed under Part of in the information bar on the right.
Basic knowledge of ancient philosophy, esp. esp. Plato is required.
Description
The subject of this year’s course “Philosophy of late Antiquity” is Plotinus on beauty and love.
We typically think of Plotinus as the founder of the Neoplatonic movement. He himself, however, claimed to be nothing but an exegete of Plato. The former perspective on Plotinus does not necessarily exclude the latter. It is precisely through his creative interpretation of Plato’s texts that Plotinus arrives at a new and influential version of Plato’s philosophy. In this seminar we will study Plotinus’s innovative readings of Plato’s Symposium, the dialogue dedicated to love (erôs) and beauty. The first part of the seminar will consist of an introduction to Plotinus’s thought. In the second part of the seminar, we’ll be reading Plotinus Enn. I.6 (On Beauty) and Enn. III.5 (On Eros) along with relevant passages from Plato’s Symposium. On Beauty, Plotinus’s study of the nature of beauty, may be read both as an expression of Plotinus’s aesthetics and as a so-called “spiritual exercise” that guides the reader towards the famous Neopatonic mystical experience of unification with the ultimate divine principle, the One. In On Love, Plotinus draws a distinction between a more mundane and a more spiritual form of love, which will play an important role in Renaissance thought and art. We will conclude our seminar by taking a brief look at the reception of Plotinus’s philosophy of love by the philosopher Ficino (in his On Love or Commentary on Plato’s Symposium) and by painters like Botticelli and Titian.
Course objectives
Students who successfully complete the course will have a good understanding of:
the philosophy of Plotinus, in particular his aesthetics and metaphysics, and its relation to Plato and Renaissance Platonism (Ficino).
factors that influence the reception of a philosophical text and thereby the historical development of philosophy.
Students who successfully complete the course will be able to:
research and analyse complex primary texts;
critically analyse and assess modern secondary literature;
independently learn about new areas of ancient philosophy;
present their findings in an oral and written forms of communication.
Timetable
The timetables are available through MyTimetable.
Mode of instruction
- Seminar.
Class attendance and participation is compulsory.
Assessment method
Assessment
Oral presentation (25%);
Final paper (75%).
Weighing
The final mark for the course is established by (i) determination of the weighted average combined with (ii) the requirement that the student has attended and activily participated in class.
Resit
The resit will consist of a revised final paper (75%). The grade for the presentation will remain in place.
Students who have obtained a satisfactory grade for the first examination cannot take the resit.
Inspection and feedback
Feedback on oral presentation by class and teacher; written feedback on final paper, with appointment on request.
Reading list
Gerson, L. P., Boys-Stones, G., Dillon, J. M., King, R. A. H., Smith, A., Wilberding, J., & Gerson, L. P. 2017. Plotinus: The Enneads, Cambridge University Press (assigned chapters) [available either in print or digitally via the University Library]
O’Brien, C. S., & Dillon, J. (Eds.) 2022. Platonic Love from Antiquity to the Renaissance, Cambridge University Press (assigned chapters) [available either in print or digitally via the University Library]
O’Meara, D.J. 1993. Plotinus. An Introduction to the Enneads, Oxford University Press [available either in print or digitally via the University Library]
Smith, A. 2016. Ennead I.6 On Beauty, Parmenides Publishing [available either in print or digitally via the University Library]
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the information bar on the right.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Huizinga.