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SoSe 21: Aristotle On the Soul (De Anima)

Barbara Vetter

Kommentar

Aristotle’s „On the Soul“ (De Anima) is one of his most famous works, and probably one of the most influential works in the history of philosophy. In it, Aristotle gives his account of the soul, as a principle of life in a natural body; of perception; and of thought. In doing so, he uses some of his most central conceptual tools, such as the distinctions between matter and form, and between actuality and potentiality. In the seminar, we will focus on understanding the core ideas that Aristotle argues for in this work, as well as reconstructing his main arguments for them. We will also use the arguments of „On the Soul“ to introduce and clarify some of the more general Aristotelian ideas in the background, so that students will get a sense of Aristotle’s philosophy in general. No previous knowledge of Aristotle’s philosophy is required. Since this is a complex and sometimes difficult text, we will go slowly, aiming for comprehension rather than comprehensiveness. The seminar will be conducted in English, and we will use the „Clarendon Aristotle Series“ edition: Aristotle, De Anima, translated with an introduction and commentary by Christopher Shields. (Students may, but need not, buy the book for themselves.) Schließen