Detail of an early eighteenth-century map of the Mediterranean, with biblical illustrations. Lindenberg, De Reysen Christi des Heyland en Pauli met andere syne Bloedgetuygen, Amsterdam, 1703.
How did philosophers like Plato and Aristotle understand and categorize racial and ethnic differences?
The team on this project will edit a volume of essays on Plato and Aristotle’s understanding of racial and ethnic differences. The goal is to make the topic available to teachers, students, and researchers, as well as to set up debate for years to come.
Plato and Aristotle lived in societies that took human beings to differ according to the region in which they lived, their culture, language, and also their skin color and other phenotypic markers. These differences – whether labeled as "racial," "proto-racial," "ethnic," or otherwise – were often associated with cognitive, emotional, and moral dispositions and traits. Yet there has been little engagement with the ways in which representations of race and ethnicity shaped the philosophical views of Plato and Aristotle. This project will fill that gap by producing an edited volume of essays that maps, systematically, the treatment and significance of race and ethnicity in the writings of Plato and Aristotle. The volume will contain accessible, cutting-edge research that will make the topic of ancient Greek philosophy of race and ethnicity more available to teachers, students, and researchers, and it will set up debate for years to come.
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
University of Chicago
John Proios joined the University of Chicago faculty in 2021 as an Assistant Professor. He works primarily in ancient Greek philosophy, especially Plato's late metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, and logic. He is also interested in the moral, social, and political dimensions of...
Assistant Professor in Philosophy
University of California, San Diego
Patricia Marechal works in classical Greek philosophy, focusing on ancient theories of the soul, with a special emphasis on ethics, moral psychology, and epistemology in the works of Plato and Aristotle. She is interested in the connection between affective states and intellectual capabilities,...
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At this talk, Cinzia Arruzza (New School for Social Research) discussed Plato's ideas about the need for ethnic cohesion within the city.
Carousel with 3 slides shown at a time. Use the Previous and Next buttons to navigate, or the slide dot buttons at the end to jump to slides.
At this talk, Cinzia Arruzza (New School for Social Research) discussed Plato's ideas about the need for ethnic cohesion within the city.
