SOPHIA COMMENTARIES AND COURSES

Original philosophical text commentaries, notes, articles and courses provided by the Molloy College Department of Philosophy, local scholars, as well as some of the great scholars of the early 20th century.  

"The difference between "popular" and "philosophical" is the amount of time a thing takes.  Ask a man:  do you know this, or do you not know it--if he answers immediately then the answer is popular, he is an undergraduate.  If it takes ten years for the answer to come, and if it comes in the form of a system, if it is not quite clear whether he knows it or not:  then it is a philosophical answer and the man is a professor of philosophy--or at least that is what he ought to be." (Kierkegaard)

"Vain is the word of a philosopher which does not heal and suffering of man.  For just as there is no profit in medicine if it does not expel the diseases of the body, so there is no profit in philosophy either if it does not expel the suffering of the mind."  (Epicurus)

 

 

 

 

 

"The surest way to corrupt a young man is to teach him to esteem those who think alike than those who think differently."  (Nietzsche)

 

 

 

 

 

 

If they cannot bear with you, let them slay you.  For it were better so than to live their life (Marcus Aurelius).

Aristotle
Argument of Ethics 1-2  

A concise analysis of the first two books of the Ethics
Aristotle's Virtues   Brief summary of Aristotle's virtues in chart form
Notes on Aristotle's Rhetoric   Background notes for Aristotle's Rhetoric

Augustine
Reflections of a Disordered Youth   An analysis of Confessions 1-2 from a pedagogical perspective
Notes on Augustine's Confessions   Dr. Michael Russo's guide to Books 1-10 of the Confessions

Cicero
Background:  Old Age and Friendship   Frederick Dewey's summary of the texts.
Cicero Bibliography Secondary sources on Cicero

John Dewey
Dewey's Version of Pragmatism   Article by Dr. Michael J. Quirk.

Martin Heidegger
The Heidegger Case   Article by Dr. Michael J. Quirk
Being, Beings and Truth   Article by Dr. Michael J. Quirk

Immanuel Kant
Deontology and It's Discontents   A summary of Kant's approach to ethics.

John Stuart Mill
Utilitarianism in a Nutshell   For those seeking a simplified account of utilitarian ethics

Plato
Reading Plato's Apology   Analysis of the text of the Apology
Commentary on the Republic   Drs. Stephan Mayo and Michael Russo's Notes on Books 1-7 of the Republic
Commentary on the Symposium   Analysis of the text of the Symposium
The Philosophy of Plato   Overview of Plato's thought for beginners
Notes on Plato's Gorgias (449c-466a)   Sketchy notes on Plato's critique of the Sophists
Who was Socrates?   Brief overview of Socratic philosophy for beginners
Summary of the Crito   by Benjamin Jowett
Summary of the Euthyphro   by Benjamin Jowett
Summary of the Gorgias   by Benjamin Jowett
Summary of the Phaedo   by Benjamin Jowett
Summary of the Euthydemus   by Benjamin Jowett
Summary of the Apology   by Benjamin Jowett

Ludwig Wittgenstein
Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations   Article by Dr. Michael J. Quirk

Historical Resources
The Fabulous Fifth Century   Athens in the 5th c BC
The Hellenistic Age   Greek society during the period after the death of Alexander the Great
The Early Church   The rise and spread of Christianity
The African Church in an Age of Persecution   Article examining the causes of the Christian persecutions in North Africa
Historical Background:  Medieval Thought   Dr. Stephan Mayo's brief guide to the study of the Middle Ages
Annotated Bibliography: Medieval and Renaissance  Everything you've ever wanted to know about Medieval and Renaissance literature.
Medieval Chronology More than you ever wanted to know about what was going on during the magical Middle Ages

Ethics Resources
Medical Ethics Forum Resources Dr. Stephan Mayo and the Students of his Graduate Medical Ethics class

Miscellaneous Resources
Notes on Greek Philosophy   Brief guide to Pre-Socratic thought
Introduction to Stoic Ethics   Article by Dr. Michael S. Russo

Sophia Courses
The Problem of Happiness   Dr. Michael Russo's on-line text on the problem of happiness in classical thought
Rhetoric:  The Art of Persuasion   On-Line Rhetoric course materials focused primarily on Aristotle's Rhetoric
Philosophy of Education   Anthology of reading in the Philosophy of Education from Socrates to the present.

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Molloy College Department of Philosophy

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© M. Russo, 1999.  For information about this site contact Dr. Michael S. Russo, Molloy College Department of Philosophy