General philosophy / European and non-European philosophy

The common thread running through Modules 1 and 2 is the polysemous Greek concept of logos (narrative, speech, reason, expression, argument, discourse, proportion, order, divine verb, etc.). In Module 1, this logos (by means of which Aristotle defined man) is considered first through its principal ancient transfigurations, but also in relation to traditions which, while "practising" something of the logos order, have emphasized other modes of rationality, other folds of thought: India and China.

The course compares the birth and development of philosophy in India, China and Greece, examining in particular the question of ontology, the paths of dialectics and the conception of human action. It considers the main figures of Greek philosophical logos, from the Presocratics to Neoplatonism, from a comparative point of view, clarifying concepts and posing problems that are in turn epistemological, aesthetic, ethical, political, anthropological, cosmological or metaphysical.

The course is lecture-based, with occasional elements of active teaching. Students are required to read a philosophical text, which also forms part of the examination material.