Study Group Details
803: Spinoza's Ethics
Wednesday9:45 - 11:15
Starting September 28
In-Person
Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677) is a tragic and most controversial figure in the history of early modern philosophy. Maligned and ostracized from his Jewish community in Amsterdam for his alleged atheism, he was nevertheless also described as “the most God-intoxicated philosopher” who ever lived (Novalis). In this study group we will examine Spinoza’s five-part Ethics in some detail, attempting to make sense of contradictions and misunderstandings shackling his work to this day.
We will be guided by some of the following questions: (1) How did his views of God deviate from traditional religious positions, Jewish and Christian? (2) What are we to make of the emotions being a source of “bondage” as well as providing “strengths” for moral actions? (3) How in the end is freedom achieved? Finally, is Spinoza an atheist or not?
This study group is new
Class Type: Lecture and Discussion
Class Format: TBA
Hours of Reading: No required reading
Study Group Leader(s):
Irmgard Scherer
I. Scherer, a US citizen born in Germany, is associate professor of philosophy emerita at Loyola University Maryland, where she taught core courses, as well as courses in Kant's critical philosophy, 18th-century aesthetic theory, and topics on the interface between philosophy and science. She has published on Kant and related issues. Since retiring, she has taught popular courses for students in retirement.
Reading List
Ethics, Treatise on the Emendation of the Intellect and Selected Letters (Baruch Spinoza) | 1992: Hackett Publishing Co. | ISBN: 13:978-0-87220-130-9 | Required