Plato’s Symposium: Philosophy and The Seduction Of The Soul
Sundays, October 14-28, 2018 (three sessions)
5:30-7:30 p.m.
Guide: Monica Vilhauer, Tuition: $125
In its beginnings, philosophy–literally the love of wisdom–was not understood to be an abstract intellectual exercise. It was a passionate quest for truth, beauty, and the good life. It was a deeply spiritual and erotic form of life that turned desire toward wisdom, transformed the soul, and created justice. Join us to investigate genuine love, the relationship between words and deeds in the life of love, and the roles of gender and sexuality. This seminar accompanies Plato’s Phaedrus (Spring 2019), but may also be taken as a stand-alone.
Reading List: The Symposium and the Phaedrus: Plato’s Erotic Dialogues (trans. William S. Cobb, SUNY Press)
SEMINAR GUIDE:
Monica Vilhauer earned her Ph.D. in philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York. After a decade of teaching philosophy in college classrooms, Monica founded Curious Soul Philosophy, a Portland-based business offering workshops that emphasize the practical value of philosophy for everyday life. Monica’s specialties are in ethics, social-political philosophy, existentialism, feminism, and the philosophy of communication.
