This is Ancient Philosophy

KIRK FITZPATRICK is Professor of Philosophy at Southern Utah University, where he teaches philosophy and Attic Greek. From 2012 to 2016, he served as Director of the Grace A. Tanner Center at Southern Utah University. His publications focus on leadership, poetry, and music in Plato’s Republic, as well as the philosophy of education, politics, and moral weakness. Fitzpatrick’s recent publications include “Two Songs in the Kallipolis of Plato’s Republic,” in The Political Science Reviewer, vol. 45, no. 1 (2021).

"A masterful introduction to ancient philosophy. Fitzpatrick knows the contemporary scholarship on these authors, so he can shift from summarizing their thought to scrutinizing individual arguments. Meanwhile the writing remains so accessible that a reader might not notice how much he covers. The prose is precise but relaxed, with details that enrich the texture: the Pythagoreans’ harmonies, the Stoic Horned Argument, Antisthenes’ daily walk to Socrates. Students and instructors alike will benefit."Nick Pappas, Professor of Philosophy and Classics at City College and the Graduate Center, CUNY."In this work, Kirk Fitzpatrick offers a valuable introduction to the leading thinkers of ancient Greek and Roman philosophy.  He provides a historical context for their thought, examines the individual thinkers and their schools, and explores common themes in a stimulating study.  He explains the advances made by the early philosophers in moving from a mythological to a rational and scientific view of the world and shows the relevance of their thought for present-day problems."Daniel Graham, Professor of Philosophy at Brigham Young University.

• Acknowledgments xiMap xiiIntroduction 1The Precursors of Philosophy: Homer and Hesiod 1This Is Ancient Greek Philosophy 4Part I Early Greek Philosophy 91 Miletus and Elea 111.1 Miletus 111.1.1 Thales 111.1.2 Anaximander 161.1.3 Anaximenes 191.1.4 Xenophanes 211.2 Elea 241.2.1 Parmenides 241.2.2 Zeno 271.2.3 Empedocles 312 Ionia and Thrace 342.1 Ionia 342.1.1 Pythagoras 342.1.2 Anaxagoras 392.1.3 Heraclitus 422.2 Thrace 462.2.1 Leucippus and Democritus 463 The Philosophic Turn 53Part II The Golden Age 694 Plato 714.1 Biography and Texts 714.2 The Socratic Dialogues 744.3 The Sophists 854.4 Plato’s Philosophy 914.4.1 Knowledge 914.4.2 The Forms 944.4.3 The Cave, Line, and Sun 994.4.4 The Soul 1024.4.5 The State 1075 Aristotle 1165.1 Biography and Texts 1165.2 Aristotle’s Philosophy 1195.2.1 The Subjects 1195.2.2 Doxography 1225.2.3 The Four Causes 1235.2.4 Hylomorphism 1245.2.5 Voluntary Action 1295.2.6 Knowing and Doing 1305.2.7 Virtue 1335.2.8 Politics 1376 The Subjects of Philosophy 143Part III Hellenistic Philosophy 1517 Cynicism and Epicureanism 1537.1 Alexander’s Death 1537.2 Cynicism 1557.2.1 Antisthenes 1557.2.2 Diogenes of Sinope 1587.3 Epicurus and Epicureanism 1607.3.1 Physics, Canon, and Ethics 1637.3.1.1 Physics 1637.3.1.2 Canon 1647.3.1.3 Ethics 1667.3.2 Lucretius as Epicurean 1697.3.2.1 Physics 1707.3.2.2 Canon 1727.3.2.3 Ethics 1748 Stoicism and Skepticism 1768.1 Stoicism 1768.1.1 The Stoics 1768.1.2 Stoic Philosophy 1778.1.2.1 Physics 1788.1.2.2 Logic 1828.1.2.3 Ethics 1878.1.2.3.1 Desire 1898.1.2.3.2 Duty 1928.1.2.3.3 Assent 1948.2 Skepticism: Pyrrhonians and Academics 1968.2.1 History 1968.2.2 Pyrrhonism 1978.2.3 The Academics 2008.2.3.1 Arcesilaus 2008.2.3.2 Carneades 2039 Fate and the Good Life 2079.1 Historical Context 2079.2 Moral Weakness as Akrasia 2099.3 Fate and Voluntary Action 2279.4 The Good Life 231Index 235