Holy Family Academy
Ad Veritatem per Fidem et Rationem
Philosophy Mrs. McDonald
Syllabus 2015-2016
Description
Philosophy or the “love of wisdom” might aptly entitle every course in a classical education, as every course participates in wisdom. This course will focus on abstract thinking and discussing two major questions: Who am I? and Who is God? In order to answer these questions, we will look mainly to the great western thinkers and how they view and understand the world and the human person’s place in it.
The first semester will focus on asking “who am I?” We will look to some of the greatest thinkers of all time in order to investigate this seemingly simple, but deeply complex question. In trying to understand ourselves, we will discuss topics such as being, nature, creation, the soul, memory, causality, knowledge, and virtue, to name a few.
In the second semester, we will move on to the question, “Who is God?” in order to humbly attempt to understand our creator. We will lookat thinkers such as Anselm, Augustine, Aquinas, and, time permitting, we will end the year with a look at Joseph Pieper’s Leisure the Basis of Culture/The Philosophical Act, which gives a look at the importance of leisure to both philosophy and religion – an appropriate insight as students prepare for graduation.
Objectives
In this course, we have one main objective: to develop a love and longing for the truth. As we work toward that main objective, we will also learn how to approach philosophical texts and to communicate, both through writing and speaking, in a philosophical manner.
Scope and Sequence
Semester I: Who am I?
-Presocratics
-Socrates
-Plato
-Aristotle
-Descartes
Semester II: Who is God?
-Descartes
-Anselm
-Augustine
-Aristotle
-Aquinas
Course Texts
The First Philosophers: The Presocratics and the Sophists. Translated by Robin Waterfield. Oxford: Unicersity Press, 2000.
Plato. Protagoras and Meno. Translated by W.K.C. Guthrie. New York: Penguin, 1957.
Plato. Six Great Dialogues: Apology, Crito, Phaedo, Phaedrus, Symposium, and The Republic. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. Mineola, NY: Dover Thrift Editions, 2007.
Aristotle. The Basic Works of Aristotle. Edited by Richard McKeon. New York: Modern Library, 2001.
Rene Descartes. Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy. Translated by Donald A. Cress. Indanapolis: Hackett, 1998.
Saint Thomas Aquinas. Summa Theologiae. Editions T.B.D.
Joseph Pieper. Leisure the Basis of Culture/The Philosophical Act. Translated by Alexander Dru. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2009. (Time permitting).
N.B. Various supplemental materials, drawn particularly from Saint Anselm and Saint Augustine, will be distributed in the form of photocopies.
Supplies
Three ring binder or notebook
Folder for keeping handouts organized
Writing implement
Grading
Participation20%
Tests20%
Papers20%
Homework/Quizzes15%
Final25
Nota bene
Students should not hesitate to contact the instructor if they are having difficulty comprehending, discussing, or writing about the material. Remember: studying philosophy is first about entering into relationship with the true, the good, and the beautiful – not about perfect understanding
The instructor reserves the right to modify the syllabus subject to notification.