Reading Groups
Venue: Worcester College
Time: Fridays, 11am-1pm
Text: Aristotle’s Physics III (starting from III.5)
Currently reading Aristotle’s Physics III, discussions within this friendly group are a great way for students and faculty to read a text slowly, cautiously, and open-mindedly. It takes place every Friday at 11am-1pm at Worcester College.
Venue: Oriel College, MacGregor Room (third quad)
Time: Mondays, 2-3.30pm
Text: Epicurus, Letter to Herodotus
This term we will read Epicurus’ Letter to Herodotus, in which Epicurus offers a compendium of the fundamental aspects of his natural philosophy (including canonic, atomic theory, cosmology, psychology, theory of perception, meteorology…).
More information can be found here.
Venue: Trinity College (sessions 1 and 3: Fletcher Room, sessions 2 and 4: Teaching Room 5)
Time: Wednesdays (weeks 2, 3, 5 and 7), 2-4pm
Text: Avicenna, Book of Healing (Shifa)
This reading group will focus on Avicenna’s innovations in the concepts of necessary and contingent existence, ontological dependence, and causation within his metaphysics. While Avicenna’s philosophy is deeply rooted in Aristotelian thought, he departs from Aristotle in significant ways, particularly in his treatment of these topics. This distinct treatment of these concepts has had a lasting influence on both Islamic and Western philosophy. The primary goal of the group is to engage with Avicenna's complex text, carefully reading through its dense and often challenging passages together, while helping each other understand and unpack the arguments presented. At the beginning of each session, I will provide some contextual background for those who may not be familiar with Islamic and Aristotelian philosophy, ensuring that all participants, regardless of their prior knowledge, can engage meaningfully with the material.
More information can be found here.
Venue: Radcliffe Humanities (Lecture Room)
Time: Tuesdays (weeks 2, 4, 6 and 8), 4-5:30pm
In this reading group, we will discuss several works of Kyoto School philosophy, a school of thought that emerged in 20th-century Japan under the influence of European and American philosophy (especially German idealism, phenomenology, pragmatism) and East Asian religions (e.g., Zen Buddhism, Pure Land Buddhism). Through a series of joint reading discussions, we aim to work together towards grasping the key ideas of the Kyoto School and their emergence in a cross-cultural space.
More information can be found here.