Basic concepts of Greek philosophy

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Basic concepts of Greek philosophy

• Physis (nature) and zoe (life)
• Psyche (soul) and nous (mind)
• Taxis (order) and kosmos (world)
• To on (being), ousia (essence) and genesis
  (becoming)

• Anthropos (man)
• Techne (art)
• Polis (city-state)
• Arete (virtue) and Eudaimonia (well being,
  happiness)
• Logos (speech/reason)

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Nature and Life

• Nature/physis
• 1st concept of Greek philosophy
• Known by science (episteme)
• Nature
• One material world
• Form/laws and patterns of being
• Reality

• Life/zoe
• self-moving
• self-replicating reality
• Life
• Basic form of nature
• Goal-directed
• Individual and part of the Whole

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Nature

• Nature (physis) presents itself as emergent
  reality, one material world in which human
  persons are embedded, one mysterious whole that
  may have no overarching meaning, or one that may
  never be known by man

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Soul and Mind

• Soul/psyche principle of self-movement and
  consciousness
• Body and Soul
• Separate entities ? (dualism)
• Different aspects of zoon, living being ?
  (functionalism)
• Soul offshoot of, dependent on body ?
  (scientific materialism)

• Mind/nous principle of intellectual life and of
  knowledge
• Mind or Reason
• operates on sense-experience? (empiricists) OR
  structured by innate concepts ? (Platonists)
• directed toward its own end truth ? (Socratics)
  OR instrument of desires (Sophists)

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Question about Person

• Greeks do not have the concept person as such,
  but have
• Concept of rational agency, responsibility
• Concept of first person perspective,
  self-consciousness
• Is the person the soul? Soul body?
• Platonists person embodied immortal soul
• Aristotelians person embodied mortal soul

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Soul (Psyche)

• Note the wings the Greek psyche also meant
  butterfly.
• Psyche, born mortal, was loved by Eros. After she
  descended into Hades, Zeus made her immortal.

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Order and World

• Order/taxis mathematical structure
• Basic pattern of rationality
• Mathematical, e.g. numerical or geometrical basis
• Inherent in some physical things, e.g. musical
  harmony

• World/kosmos orderly structure of the universe
• Rational order, knowable by man
• Wholistic structure of beauty and value (kosmos)
• Evidence of harmony and possibly of Divine Mind ?

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Cosmos

• The fixed stars rotate around the geocenter,
  where elemental earth gathered, then water, air
  and fire. Sun, moon and planets circle in other
  orbits. Earth and Man are in the center, God at
  the outer limit, moving it all

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Being, Essence, Becoming

• Being what is but also and especially what
  is enduring/permanent
• Essence core of being, what makes a thing
  what it is
• Becoming phenomena of change, transformation,
  including qualities and coming-into existence and
  going-out-of existence
• Q Is there an essential structure of being, or
  is reality ever-changing, ever-becoming?

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Concepts of Human-Being

• Man (anthropos) human being, center of Greek
  kosmos
• Art (techne) human creativeness, source of
  enduring human world, division between man and
  nature
• City-State (polis) center of human world, seat
  of law and stage of action
• Virtue (arete) and Happiness (eudaimonia)
  principles of Greek ethics
• Logos (language, reason) form of human mind,
  experience, communication

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Logos

• Logos
• a given language OR speech OR reason the
  intelligible meaning of things
• Logos that through which experience is known by
  human beings
• Logos frames all things, but it is possible for
  human beings to become aware of that conceptual
  framework, and its limitations
• Men think there are many logoi, but in reality
  (physis) there is only one. Heraclitus
• In the beginning was the Logos. - John

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Man

• Man is the measure of all things, both of the
  things that are and how they are, and of the
  things that are not and how they are not.
• Protagoras
• Man is the rational political animal (zoon
  politikos echein logon).
• --Aristotle

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Techne

• Creates the enduring world of human artifacts,
  including
• Temples, warships, homes, monuments
• Works of art and music and poetry
• Laws and new forms of government
• Implies a good to be achieved, and knowledge of
  how to achieve it
• Divides nature into human vs. non-human
• Q Is there an art of living? Or is living
  wisely a something beyond craft and
  technique?

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Polis

• Polis civilized community, center of government
  including military life
• Greek city-state stage of political life, place
  to win enduring name/identity
• Linked to democracy, demos (the People), as well
  as law
• Contrast to oikos, private world of family
• Praises the life of action, citizen rather than
  the life of the mind, philosopher

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Arete and Eudaimonia

• Virtue/excellence (arete) key ethical values
• Courage (andreia)
• Self-restraint/moderation (sophrosyne)
• Justice/righteousness (dikaiosyne)
• Wisdom/prudence (phronesis)
• Well-being or happiness (eudaimonia)
  process-goal of human life (what everyone seeks
  to have and be)
• Q Is happiness found in having, doing or being?
  In family or fame, wealth or knowledge?

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Two Perspectives

• Theory (knowledge)
• Views everything objectively
• Often? explanation of underlying causes
• Q Highest theory science or philosophy?
• Practice (action)
• Views things relative to human interests
• Often ? understanding in terms of goals, values
• Q Best way of life active or contemplative?

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Dialogue

• Philosophers at the Academy. What did they
  discuss? The concepts of nature, life, soul,
  mind, order, world, being and becoming, logos,
  man, art, polis, virtue and happiness