Introduction to Philosophy

The course is designed to introduce students to philosophical questioning of the kind used by major thinkers in Western tradition, as well as to the methods behind this questioning, and also to provide answers.  

The general introduction will reveal the specific characteristics of the philosophical approach in relation to those of other major subjects (e.g. science, religious discourse, myths, arts).

By looking at various philosophies characteristic of each period (Antiquity, Middle Ages, modern and contemporary periods), each on a comparable scale, the course will introduce students to the great questions in ontology, epistemology, practical philosophy and aesthetics as well as to the basic concepts of these main categories of philosophy. 

The course will use excerpts, with commentaries, from important texts.