Socrates had another student who, unlike Plato, has been relegated to the dusty shelves. As we learn about Xenophon, we’ll explore the following questions:

1. Who was Xenophon, and why did he fall out of favor such that he is far less known than Plato?
2. How does Xenophon define excellence, and how is his view unique?
3. To Xenophon, what is justice? How similar is that Plato’s understanding of justice?

The questions that animate the spirit of the west can be found in Plato’s dialogues. As we discuss five of them, Rabbi Rocklin will walk us through the following questions:

1. How is Socrates’ refusal to escape an act of justice?
2. According to Socrates, how does the philosophic life prepare someone for death
3. What is the difference between the Greek and Jewish notions of love?

In his closing arguments, Socrates will continue to insist that the unexamined life is not worth living. In exploring that issue, we’ll address the following questions:

1. How does Socrates try to convince the jury that it is their loss if he is put to death?
2. Why would Socrates refuse to beg the jury for his life?
3. How does Socrates see himself as a Greek hero?

Recommended Reading: Plato. The Last Days of Socrates: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Phaedo. Translated by H. Tredennick and H. Tarrant. New York: Penguin, 2003.

The death of Socrates sets off a new phase in the world of philosophy. In today’s episode, Rabbi Rocklin will address the following questions:

1. How is Socrates’ death a continuation of the traditional Greek tragedy?
2. Why is winning his case not a priority for Socrates?
3. How does Socrates define wisdom?

Recommended Reading: Plato. The Last Days of Socrates: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Phaedo. Translated by H. Tredennick and H. Tarrant. New York: Penguin, 2003.

Our study of Plato’s Republic continues with Socrates’ remarkable insight into human nature. Rabbi Rocklin will walk us through the following questions:

1. To Socrates, what is the relationship between the form of government in a city and the ideal man within that city?
2. How does Socrates imagine cities transitioning from one form of government to another?
3. What does Socrates see as the potential dangers of the liberties that come along with a democratic society?

Recommended Reading: Plato. The Republic. Trans. Allan Bloom. New York: Basic Books, 1968.

Plato’s Republic is one of the most foundational texts in the western canon. To help us unpack why that is, Rabbi Rocklin will address the following questions:

1. What was Socrates’ goal in this very long conversation with his students
2. How does the individual fit into Socrates’ “city in speech”?
3. What is the role of knowledge in the pursuit of the good and the true?

Recommended Reading: Plato. The Republic. Trans. Allan Bloom. New York: Basic Books, 1968.

Athens’ contributions to the development of the west would be vastly incomplete without its invention of philosophy. Today, Rabbi Rocklin will walk us through the following questions:

1. What is philosophy and why did it develop as a discipline?
2. Is there any truth to the notion that philosophy is necessarily sacrilegious
3. What made Socrates different than the philosophers who came before him such that Socrates is considered the father of philosophy?

The grandeur of Greek thought is captured in the heart of Greek tragedy. On today’s episode, we’lll explore the following questions:

1. To the Greek, what was the purpose of poetry? What was its relationship to prophecy
2. How does Greek drama develop from poetry?
3. What makes Greek tragedy so compelling that it lives on to today?