Preparing for Tues 10 Jan

It's been great to hear all of your contributions in class so far. I'm hoping that to start our class on Tuesday, many more of you will be interested in talking a bit about your first impressions of the readings for Tuesday, or your thoughts about Apology.

On Tuesday, we will begin our discussion of Phaedo, which will be an exploration of some key early components of Plato's philosophy.

To prepare for Tuesday's class, please do the following:

Read

• Phaedo, 57a - 69e (pp. 94-107)

Think About

• Why do you think the dialogue begins with an exchange between Phaedo and Echecrates in which Phaedo explicitly reports that Plato was not present during the last few hours of Socrates' life?
• When Simmias and Cebes first ask Socrates why he is facing death so calmly, what does Socrates reply? What do you think of his reply? What does Simmias say about Socrates' reply?
• What do you think Plato means when he says that philosophy is training for dying and death, and how is this related to the activity of purifying our soul?
• According to Plato, what is a form? What are some examples of forms?
• According to Plato, what is wisdom and how does one achieve it?
• What kinds of things should you do, and what kinds of things should you avoid doing, if you want to live the type of philosophical life Plato describes as a training for dying and death?
• How does Plato's conception of wisdom in Phaedo compare to Socrates' conception of wisdom in Apology?
• According to Plato, what role do the emotions play in the quest for wisdom?