On the 13th of December, as the concluding lecture of this semester’s Academy Year Program, ECLA welcomed Professor Christof Rapp for a lecture on the theme of emotion and reason in Aristotle’s ethics. Professor Rapp holds the chair of Ancient and Contemporary Philosophy at Humboldt University here in Berlin and is a leading figure in the field of Aristotle studies. Among his many other projects, he has recently co-edited the book: Wissen und Bildung in der antiken Philosophie.
Professor Rapp’s presentation on Wednesday morning began by articulating how Aristotle understood the emotions and the ways in which they were to be distinguished from judgments. From this perspective, he then developed an interpretation of the specific roles played by emotion and reason in Aristotle’s understanding of ethical training. Professor Rapp’s exacting elaboration of this theme was very well received by students and faculty alike, who, over these last weeks, have been reading Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics. In many ways, Professor Rapp’s lecture was a very fitting conclusion to this semester’s study of ancient Greek philosophy.
By Tracy Colony (Faculty)