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1 Ancient Philosophy, Lecture One I. Chronological framework of ancient philosophy. A. Dates B.C. (or B. C. E.): just as for A. D., the nth century consists of the (n-1) hundreds. E. g., the twentieth century consists of the nineteen hundreds. So Plato, who was born in 427 B. C., was born in the 5th century B. C. II. Cultural framework of ancient philosophy A. Periods of ancient Greek history 1. Mycenean period: B.C. Civilization closely related to that of Minoan Crete. Known chiefly through archeology. Written Greek language in the form known as Linear B, unrelated to the later classical Greek alphabet. Only commercial records, not literature, exist in Linear B. Whatever historical reality the Trojan War possesses occurred at the end of this period. Agamemnon, etc. were Myceneans. 2. Greek Dark Age: 12th through 9th centuries B.C. Invasions destroyed Mycenean civilization, writing was lost. 3. Archaic period: period from the rediscovery of writing and the writing of the Homeric epics to the beginning of documented history--roughly the beginning of the 6th century B.C. 4. Classical period: period of documented history to the death of Alexander the Great. Independent city-states, of which the most important were Athens and Sparta. Literary flourishing of Athens in fields of drama, historical writing, and philosophy. 5. Hellenistic period: from death of Alexander the Great to the absorption of Greece as a Roman province. City-states no longer independent, but subjected to successors of Alexander's empire. B. The seminal periods for Greek philosophy were the classical and early Hellenistic. ************************************************************** HISTORICAL PERIODS OF ANCIENT GREECE 1 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

2 B.C.: MYCENEAN PERIOD B.C.: DARK AGE B.C.: ARCHAIC PERIOD B.C.: CLASSICAL PERIOD B.C.: HELLENISTIC PERIOD ************************************************************** III. Relation of philosophy to astronomy and mathematics A. Great discoveries in astronomy and mathematics were made during the classical and Hellenistic periods of Greece. B. The history of ancient Greek philosophy is closely connected with that of Greek astronomy and mathematics. C. Euclid's Elements, written about 300 B.C., codified the mathematics of the classical period in a logically developed system. D. Mathematical discoveries of the classical period (reflected in Euclid): 1. The existence of irrational quantities. 2. That every integer has a unique prime decomposition. 3. The existence of an infinity of prime numbers. 4. That there are exactly five regular polyhedrons. E. Astronomical discoveries of the classical period (reflected in the works of Aristotle, who was a contemporary of Euclid and who thus also came at the end of the classical period): 1. That the earth, moon, and sun are spherical. 2. That the moon shines by reflected light. 3. The causes of the phases of the moon, and of eclipses. 2 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

3 4. That the morning star and the evening star are the same object. F. Mathematical discoveries in the Hellenistic period. 1. Many are by Archimedes, widely regarded as the greatest mathematician of antiquity. 2. Discoveries of Archimedes a. Formulas for areas of figures bounded by conic sections (parabola, hyperbola, ellipse) b. Method of calculating pi. c. Method of expressing large numbers. In The Sand Reckoner he devises a method for expressing the number of the grains of sand required to fill the celestial sphere. G. Physical discoveries of the Hellenistic period 1. (Archimedes): Laws of levers. 2. (Archimedes): Laws of hydrostatics (floating bodies). H. Astronomical discoveries of the Hellenistic period. 1. Aristarchus of Samos: that the earth revolves around the sun (however, this was rejected by most intellectuals until the time of Galileo). 2. Eratosthenes: the value of the diameter of the earth (according to one interpretation to within 1 percent of the true value). 3. Hipparchus: a catalog of visible stars classed according to brightness; the correct distance to the moon within 2 percent. 4. Ptolemy: a geometrical interpretation of the solar system which predicted planetary positions with considerable accuracy. IV. The relation between mythology and the earliest philosophy: A. There were in both mythology and Presocratic philosophy of attempts to explain the origin of the totality of things--or the cosmos. [Greek word kosmos, 3 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

4 meaning order, used by Plato and others to mean what we now call "universe".] B. The view of the world expressed in Homer (from Kirk). [Note: this is very similar to the view given in the Bible, Genesis 1.] 1. The earth is a disk. 2. The sky is a solid, metallic bowl. 3. The region between the earth and the clouds is the air. 4. The region between the clouds and the sky is the aether (percieved as fiery). 5. The earth is surrounded by a river, Okeanos. 6. There is a vast gulf below the earth called Tartarus. C. The cosmogony of Hesiod (a poet of the archaic period) (from Kirk). 1. Important themes of Hesiod a. The first four things: Chaos, Earth (Gaia), Eros (Love), and Tartarus. b. The generation of the Titans, the Cyclops, and the Hundred-Handed Ones by Gaia and Ouranos (Heaven) [himself a child of Gaia]. Ouranos is the first ruler of the immortals. c. The castration of Ouranos by Kronos, one of the Titans, at the instigation of Gaia, in retribution for his not allowing the Hundred-Handed Ones to come forth. Kronos becomes ruler of the immortals. d. The generation of the Gods by Kronos and Rhea. e. The devouring of the Gods as they are born by Kronos, in an attempt to avert his prophesied overthrow by them. f. The hiding of Zeus and substitution for him of a stone, which Kronos mistakenly devours in his place. g. The vomiting forth by Kronos of his devoured children and the 4 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

5 defeat and confinement in Tartarus of Kronos by Zeus, who becomes and remains ruler of the immortals. h. The just rule of Zeus (Works and Days). *************************************************************** GENERATIONS OF THE IMMORTALS 1. THE FOUR FIRST THINGS: CHAOS, GAIA (EARTH), EROS (LOVE), TARTARUS. 2. BORN OF GAIA AND OURANOS: THE TITANS (INCLUDING KRONOS), THE CYCLOPS, THE HUNDRED-HANDED. 3. BORN OF KRONOS AND RHEA: THE GODS (INDLUDING ZEUS). *************************************************************** 1. Cosmological themes within these stories a. Personification of cosmic elements (earth, sky, etc.) and abstractions (strife,fate, justice, hours, etc.) b. Origin of almost everything conceived to be by analogy with human generation. c. Chaos may represent the gap between earth and sky. d. The story of the castration of Ouranos seems to be meant to explain the gap between earth and sky. 2. Analogies with myths of other cultures (Hittites, Hebrews, etc.) [Kirk] a. There are other myths in which the same sequence is observed: sky-god, father-of- gods, storm god. b. In some of them the father of the gods devours the genitals of the sky-god and then gives birth to the gods himself. 5 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

6 c. Other myths (for example, Genesis I, 1) contain the theme of the separation of earth from sky. d. The Hesiodic myths are in part descended from very old elements common to a number of Mediterranean cultures. 6 of 6 4/23/10 1:10 AM

The Greeks 500 300 BC. Greek City States Early Greek sates called polis Usually built around a market or fortified hill top called an acropolis

The Greeks 500 300 BC. Greek City States Early Greek sates called polis Usually built around a market or fortified hill top called an acropolis The Greeks 500 300 BC Greek City States Early Greek sates called polis Usually built around a market or fortified hill top called an acropolis Greek City-State Political Monarch - ruled by a single person