Ancient Philosophy Work in Progress Talks

A recurring meeting held by Cinzia Arruzza to discuss works in progress with other ancient philosophy scholars in the Boston area. The first presenter will be Dimitris Vardoulakis (Western Sydney University): Varieties of Greek Monism: Being, Acting, and the Lack of Transcendence Abstract: The aim of this paper is not simply to reprise the arguments from diverse thinkers, such as Heidegger or Furley, that Greek thought knows of no transcendence. In addition, and more crucially, I want to outline some of the key features of the peculiar Greek notion of monism that understands being in conjunction with acting. To this end, we will examine some key passages for the four major ancient schools of philosophy. Despite their disagreements, I will argue, they all concur that the ontological question is not simply “what is?” but rather the question “what are the effects of what is?” As such, the Greek conception of ontology is from the very beginning imbued with power, which makes it resonate with post-War philosophical discourses in new and surprising ways.

When 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm on 30 September 2024
Building STH 541, 745 Commonwealth Ave