The Philosopher vs. the City: Selections from Plato's "Apology"

The Philosopher vs. the City: Selections from Plato’s “Apology”

Since antiquity, the Apology of Socrates has served as a foundational text of Western philosophy. In this course, we will study selections from Plato’s reconstruction of Socrates’ defense speech before the city of Athens prior to his being condemned to death, and we will consider the significance of courtroom speech as the proper vehicle for conveying the essence of philosophy as Plato understood it. Key themes to be discussed include the nature of the philosophical life, the relationship between philosophy and citizenship, and whether philosophy harms or benefits the city. We will also consider rhetorical elements of Socrates’ speech and the role irony plays in how Socrates interacts with his accusers.

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Dr. Aaron Tugendhaft

Aaron Tugendhaft studied history and philosophy at the University of Chicago, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the Sorbonne. Since receiving his doctorate in ancient Near Eastern Studies from New York University in 2012, he has taught broadly within the humanities on four continents and has become a staunch advocate of traditional liberal education as a corrective to premature professionalization, academic hyperspecialization, and political polarization. His most recent book, The Idols of ISIS: From Assyria to the Internet (University of Chicago Press, 2020), is a philosophical meditation on an Islamic State video of iconoclasm that explores the political power of images and the significance of their destruction. In fall 2021, he joined the history department and became a director of interdisciplinary programs at the Ramaz School in New York City.

The Philosopher vs. the City: Selections from Plato’s “Apology”

Dr. Aaron Tugendhaft

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