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<p class="MsoNormal">Dear all,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Just a reminder that <span style="color:black">Associate Professor Matthew Sharpe (Deakin University)</span> will be presenting at the Critical Antiquities Workshop
<b>tomorrow</b>, <b><span style="color:black">Friday March 5 from 11am-12:30pm</span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color:black"> </span></span><span style="color:black">Sydney time.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">His paper is entitled, <span style="color:black">‘Lucian (or Lycinus) on how (not) to choose (a) Philosophy’. Here is the abstract:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Lucian’s <i>Hermotimus</i> has attracted comparatively little critical attention. Yet it is one of Lucian’s longer texts, and of all of his texts, the closest in form
to a Platonic, Socratic dialogue. Hermotimus, an aspiring Stoic, converses with the more sceptical Lycinus, who affects concern to understand how Hermotimus came to choose this philosophical way of life, and not others. Why did Hermotimus become a Stoic,
rather than an Epicurean, or Platonist, etc.? If he knew enough to choose a philosophy wisely, wouldn’t that only be possible if he were already wise? He would then not need a philosophy at all. But if he didn’t know enough to be sure the Stoic path was
the true way to wisdom, won’t his decision to become a Stoic have been little more than a stab in the dark? Philosophy will hence not be meaningfully different from a religion or superstition. By posing this dilemma, I will contend, this artful dialogue
asks questions which remain relevant for young students today, as they are confronted with competing philosophical and theoretical perspectives which bid for their allegiance. In this way, it echoes and aims to complement Plato’s educational reflections, as
certain signs in the text flag. The dialogue in addition poses dilemmas also for us as teachers, in differentiating between philosophical training and indoctrination to one or other sectarian perspective. If there is no good reason to become a Platonist
rather than a Bourdieuian, a Camusian rather than a Agambenian, etc., or if any such reasons can only emerge having studied for many years in one perspective or another, aren’t we forced to admit that the love of wisdom is groundless, founded on an arbitrary
leap of faith, perhaps nudged along by charismatic teachers? I argue that at several moments, Lucian’s dialogue suggests a different possibility, but one which turns upon a self-reflective turn from content to form: to learn to philosophise in a way which
is distinguishable from what we would call ‘blind faith’ is to learn to be able to ask questions, and above all, to learn to question the epistemic bases of one’s own beliefs, and even to be courageous enough to retract them in the face of rebuttal. But this
is uncomfortable, unglamorous, and social factors also push against it. So, it is telling that Hermotimus ends the dialogue by wishing to leave philosophising behind altogether.</span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<b><span style="color:black">To receive a Zoom link, please sign up for Critical Antiquities Network announcements<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/bJajC1WLPxcMDnwRPcLnUGk?domain=signup.e2ma.net/" title="https://signup.e2ma.net/signup/1930251/1916146/"><span style="color:#0563C1">here</span></a></span></b><span style="color:black">.
The Zoom link will be sent to the mailing list on the morning of each workshop.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="color:black"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="color:black">Best wishes,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="color:black">Tristan<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#4D4D4D">Tristan Bradshaw</span></b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#4D4D4D"> <br>
Postdoctoral Research Fellow | Co-director, Critical Antiquities Network <br>
<b>The University of Sydney<br>
</b>Department of Classics and Ancient History<b> <br>
</b>School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#4D4D4D">Office: H606, Main Quadrangle | The University of Sydney | NSW | 2006 <b><br>
</b> +61 406 747 955 </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><br>
</span><b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="mailto:tristan.bradshaw@sydney.edu.au"><span style="color:#0563C1">tristan.bradshaw@sydney.edu.au</span></a></span></b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#4D4D4D">
|</span><span style="color:black"> </span><b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="mailto:fass.can@sydney.edu.au"><span style="color:#0563C1">fass.can@sydney.edu.au</span></a></span></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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