Universität Wien

180087 PS Cicero De finibus bonorum et malorum (2014W)

4.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 18 - Philosophie
Continuous assessment of course work

German
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 35 participants
Language: German

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Wednesday 08.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 15.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 22.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 29.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 05.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 12.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 19.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 26.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 03.12. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 10.12. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 17.12. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 07.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 14.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 21.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
  • Wednesday 28.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

Cicero’s work, De finibus bonorum et malorum (written in 45 BCE), consists of three dialogues, each of which deals with the ethical theory of the three most important philosophical schools of the Hellenistic era, namely the Epicureans (books 1-2), the Stoics (books 3-4), and the Academic Antiochus (book 5). The historical value of the work lies not only in the thorough and systematic presentation of the ethical theories of the three main Hellenistic schools, which are otherwise only fragmentary preserved, but also in the criticisms raised by the interlocutors, which help us understand the ancient reception of these theories. The philosophical value of Cicero’s work lies in the founding of Hellenistic ethics in elaborate conceptions of the nature of the world and of the nature of man, which means that ethical notions like that of duty (officium) and of morality (honestum) are rooted in conceptions of human nature and especially in features like human rationality. Cicero’s work has exercised considerably influence in early modern philosophy (Spinoza, Locke, Rousseau), and especially the outline of Stoic ethics has informed Kant’s ethics. In the course we will use a bilingual edition (Latin-German).

Assessment and permitted materials

Requirement for attending the seminar is the willingness to undertake a presentation (oral and written).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Examination topics

Reading list

O. Gigon - L.S. Zimmerman, Marcus Tullius Cicero Über die Ziele des menschlichen Handelns, München und Zürich 1988, H. Maklin, Marcus Tullius Cicero, De finibus bonorum et malorum. Über das höchste Gut und das größte Übel, Stuttgart 1989 (Reklam), J. Annas - R. Woolf, Cicero On Moral Ends, Cambridge 2001

Association in the course directory

BA M6.1, PP 57.3.4

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:36