Ancient Greece and Ancient India: An Introduction to Comparative Philosophy

Timetable

Module aim (aims)

1. To gain a deeper understanding of comparative philosophy, its aims and methods
2. To learn about the specific challenges of comparative philosophy, such as descriptive chauvinism, and about how to successfully avoid them
3. To develop the ability to find the common ground among different traditions needed as a basis for intercultural comparison
4. To acquire the ability to compare selected philosophical ideas of ancient Greece and ancient India, taking into account the wider cultural and social context of their origin and their development over time

Pre-requisites in terms of knowledge, skills and social competences (where relevant)

English skills - advanced level

Syllabus

Course learning content:

 

selected philosophical ideas of ancient Greece, and their development over time

 

selected philosophical ideas of ancient India, and their development over time

 

the cultural, social, and political contexts of the origin of philosophical ideas in Greece and in India

 

similarities and differences between selected Greek and Indian philosophical ideas and between their development over time in both regions

 

 

Reading list

1. Halbfass, Wilhelm, India and Europe: An Essay in Understanding. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1988.
2. McEvilley, Thomas. The Shape of Ancient Thought: Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies. New York: Allworth Press, 2002.
3. Seaford, Richard (ed.), Universe and Inner Self in Early Indian and Early Greek Thought, Edinburgh University Press, 2016.
4. West, Martin L., Early Greek Philosophy and The Orient, Oxford University Press, 1971.
5. Seaford, Richard, The origins of philosophy in ancient Greece and India: a historical comparison. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
6. Harris, B. (ed.), Neoplatonism and Indian Thought, Albany, 1982.