Description

Love takes many forms. Some say it is the most important thing in life. Poets and pop singers can’t stop talking about it.

So what is love? And why does it matter so much?

This course investigates various forms of love and friendship, drawing on a mix of ancient and contemporary philosophers for guidance. We consider Greek conceptions of love and friendship, the Chinese Confucian ideal of family reverence, and the Buddhist ideal of loving-kindness, as well as more recent philosophical work on love and friendship. We ask what makes us love the people we love, whether we can or should have reasons for loving as we do, whether and how love is related to ethics—and whether true love is possible at all.

Course content:

• Session 1: In Praise of Love: Plato part 1
• Session 2: In Praise of Love: Plato part 2
• Session 3: The Varieties of Friendship: Aristotle
• Session 4: Partial vs. Impartial Caring: Confucians and Mohists
• Session 5: “May All Beings Be Happy and Free from Suffering”: Buddhaghosa
• Session 6: Existentialists in Love: Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir
• Session 7: Loving Attention: Iris Murdoch
• Session 8: Does Love Have Its Reasons?: Troy Jollimore
• Session 9: Is Friendship Morally Good?: Alexander Nehamas
• Session 10: Can You Love Someone for their Faults?: Vida Yao