Old Athenian Education and Sophistic Revolution

This week we step back and sideways in time to examine other practices and conceptualizations of Greek education. This week, please do launch your own interests as you move through these readings. I'll do the same. For example, I'm reading Marrou now on the old Athenian education and would like to discuss sometime with someone these pre-Isocrates notions of virtue/morality (e.g., the line on Solon on p. 42) or the role of emotional bonding in pedagogy--lots of contrastive material available here. If you look carefully at the Greek words, you'll find "paideia" in chapter 3 of Marrou--so take a look at how it's defined there. I'll try to translate for you some of the other Greek terms with my trusty Liddell in hand. Don't anyone hold your breath. Note: you may also, of course, take up the suggested reponse paper prompts, which we will certainly attend to in class.

Isocrates

Post here a working excerpt from your Response Paper 2 on Isocrates. For example, you might raise questions for us about certain passages or terms in the Antidosis or Against the Sophists--thus soliciting conversation; you might offer a reading (or 2 readings) of a given passage; you might comment on Fleming’s use of Isocrates as a “site for idealizing rhetorical education.”

Fleming's Paideia

How about we get started by posting the part of your Response Paper 1 that deals with David Fleming's vision for rhetorical education. You may either cut and paste from what you've got in hand, or you may modify the posting to reflect an new take.

Use the comment function to post and be sure to read what other people say. I'll post a response to Fleming myself after we get going.