INTRODUCTORY UNIT Socrates and the Life of Philosophy
Welcome to the Introductory Unit of “Live Like a Philosopher”! This first part of Lecture 1 discusses the question “what is philosophy?” and the idea of philosophy as a way of life. The video also includes an overview of the syllabus and the arc of the semester, along with some tips on how to succeed in the course.
This second part of Lecture 1 introduces you to the study of Plato’s dialogues and the figure of Socrates, focusing on Plato’s Apology. We discuss what it was that Socrates did in Athens, and why he was put on trial and eventually sentenced to death. The lecture ends by discussing Socrates’ influence and legacy.
This first part of Lecture 2 continues our Introductory Unit and includes a discussion of the kind of heroism that Plato saw in Socrates, followed by a deeper dive into the Socratic method found in the Apology.
This second part of Lecture 2 concludes the Introductory Unit of our course. In this video we focus on Plato’s Symposium, beginning with another exercise in analyzing Socrates’ method of elenchus. Other topics include the notion of love as “giving birth in beauty” that Plato develops in the Symposium and the way he wants us to see the beauty in Socrates.
