Concentration in Ancient Philosophy

The study of ancient philosophy at Cornell is administered jointly by the Fields of Classics and Philosophy, and members of the two Fields cooperate in teaching and supervising graduate students. The program aims at training productive scholars and effective teachers of ancient philosophy who will also be well-rounded classicists and philosophers. Students apply for admission to and are accepted by the Field of Classics or the Field of Philosophy, depending on their major interests and previous qualifications. They should mention their interest in ancient philosophy when filling out the Graduate School application and include a philosophical writing sample that shows their ability to work with texts in the original language.

The concentration is designed differently for students in the two Fields, but it strongly encourages those in one Field to strengthen their preparation by relevant work in the other. Each student's course of study is decided in consultation with a Special Committee of at least three faculty members. Advanced undergraduate level knowledge of both Greek and Latin is required for admission to the Concentration as a student in Classics. Students must satisfy the general degree requirements of the graduate program in Classics, but will take Ancient Philosophy as their major area of study, and Greek Literature and Latin Literature as their minor areas. For the major area, students will complete the reading list in Ancient Philosophy.

The reading for the minor areas will include the common reading list with supplements from the reading list for the concentration in Classical Literature and Philology (see above). The student and the Special Committee will modify the supplements from the latter list to reflect the student's interests and needs. The total reading for the major and minor areas will equal that of the Concentration in Classical Literature and Philology. Minimum course work will be distributed as follows:

• Nine 400- and 600-level Classics courses
• One advanced Greek or Latin Prose Composition course
• An additional four graduate-level courses chosen in consultation with the student's Special Committee.

Students will be expected to have some knowledge of an area of philosophy other than Ancient Philosophy. Such knowledge may be demonstrated by the completion of at least one course in Philosophy approved by the student's Special Committee.