Paris Practical Philosophy Seminar: Seneca and Plutarch on anger

Anger, according to the Stoics, is a form of temporary madness, the quintessential example of an unhealthy emotion, because it is in opposition to reason. Seneca the Younger wrote a whole book on the subject.

But the Stoics were not the only ones to have a problem with anger. So did the Platonist Skeptic Plutarch of Chaeronea, who wrote on the subject in his Moral Essays. Which is interesting, because Plutarch was also fairly critical of the Stoics!

Come join us in beautiful Paris this January to spend two and a half days exploring Seneca's and Plutarch's ideas about anger and how we can apply them to modern life. Whether you'll end up agreeing or disagreeing with them, you are guaranteed a stimulating time in the City of Light, together with fellow practitioners of philosophy as a way of life.

Suggested readings:

Plato, Phaedrus, tr. by A. Nehamas and P. Woodruff, Hackett Classics. (Also available online free.)

Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, tr. by R.C. Bartlett, University of Chicago Press (focus on section 4.5). (Also available online free.)

Cicero, Tusculan Disputations, tr. by J.E. King, Harvard University Press (focus on Tusculan Disputations 3 and 4). (Also available online free.)

Seneca, Anger, Mercy, Revenge, tr. by Robert A. Kaster and Martha C. Nussbaum, University of Chicago Press (focus on On Anger). (Also available online free.)

Plutarch, Essays, tr. by Robin Waterfield, Penguin Classics (focus on On the avoidance of anger). (Also available online free.)

<<>>

Location: Hôtel Maison FL, 6 Rue de la Tour, 75116 Paris, France. (To obtain the special rate for attendees, which includes breakfast, use code ESSTS.)

This event is sponsored by the Stoa Nova school for a new Stoicism, and will be facilitated by two of its faculty, Rob Colter and Massimo Pigliucci.

<<>>

Program

Thursday, January 9

3am-6pm: Plato and the unruly horses (Rob)

8pm-10pm: dinner in small groups, philosophy chats

Friday, January 10

9am-12pm: Aristotle’s treatment of the emotions (John); Cicero’s treatment of the emotions (Massimo)

12pm-3pm: lunch break, eateries nearby

3pm-6pm: Seneca's On Anger, books I & II

8pm-10pm: dinner in small groups, philosophy chats

Saturday, January 11

9am-12pm: Seneca's On Anger, books II & III

12pm-3pm: lunch break, eateries nearby

3pm-6pm: Plutarch's On the Avoidance of Anger

8pm-10pm: group dinner (facultative)

Sunday, January 12

10am-1pm: Excursion at the National Archeology Museum. The Musée d’Archéologie Nationale is housed in what was once a royal palace – the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, on the outskirts of Paris. In the 1860s Napoleon III had the castle restored to house the nation’s archaeology collections. Today, the museum has a vast collection of artefacts from all over the country, from the earliest Palaeolithic to the early Medieval. Highlights include cave art, Bronze Age gold and Roman mosaics.

1pm-3pm: lunch at nearby eateries

<<>>

Here is a short article on the history of Lutetia, the original (Roman) Paris.

<<>>

About the facilitators:

Massimo Pigliucci is an author, blogger, podcaster, as well as the K.D. Irani Professor of Philosophy at the City College of New York. His new book is Beyond Stoicism: A Guide to the Good Life with Stoics, Skeptics, Epicureans, and Other Ancient Philosophers (with Greg Lopez and Meredith Kunz, The Experiment). More here.

Rob Colter is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Wyoming. An award winning teacher, his courses cover ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy, Philosophy as a Way of Life, and other core philosophical topics. Rob is the founder and Director of Wyoming Stoic Camp, an immersive experience in living like a Stoic based in the high Rocky Mountains of Wyoming.

John Sellars is a Reader in Philosophy at Royal Holloway, University of London (where he is currently program lead for Philosophy), a Visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London (where he is Associate Editor for the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle project), and a Member of Common Room at Wolfson College, Oxford (where he was once a Junior Research Fellow and is a member of Wolfson’s Ancient World Research Cluster).

<<>>

Fee: $200/person.

Refund (minus processing fee) if: (i) the workshop is canceled; or (ii) if you cancel by midnight (ET) on 12 December 2024.