About
Delphic Philosophy is an exploratory series of videos and an open anthology of readings tracing threads in ancient Mediterranean thought, circling the twin themes of psychological self-knowledge (gnothi seauton) and self-care (epimeleia tou heautou). We’ll explore classical philosophical ideas primarily from ancient Greek literary sources. Eventually, we’ll try to cover each of the key narrative beats in Greek thought—the early poets, Presocratics, Sophists, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the “Socratic movements,” Hellenistic schools, Roman reception, and late antique Neoplatonism.
We’ll also explore classical philosophical ideas from the vantage points of the Greek Neoplatonists, who aimed to tell a coherent story about the evolution of their disciplines. Partly by highlighting the influence of “oracular,” divinatory and oral knowledge in early and late Greek philosophy, we’ll explore contributions attributed to influential women: the Pythiai or lineage of Oracles at Delphi, with named cases including Phemonoe, Themistoclea, Aristoclea, and Clea; prophets, like Diotima and Sosipatra; and thinkers influential on particular fields and schools, like Theano, Aspasia, Hipparchia, and Hypatia.