Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) Western Philosophy Syllabus - Mumbai University 2026
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Syllabus for Western Philosophy
Practise with the Semester 4 past papers. They are from the old syllabus, so check each topic against this one.
Module 1: Pre-Socratics and sophists
- 1 Natural philosophers: Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes
- 2 problem of change: Parmenides and Heraclites
- 3 Pluralists: Democritus, Sophists: Epistemology and ethics (Protagoras)
Module 2: Socrates and Plato
- 1 Socratic Method, Socratic definition
- 2 Plato’s theory of knowledge (Simile of Divided Line and Allegory of cave)
- 3 Criticisms against sense perception, Characteristics of Forms/Ideas
Module 3: Aristotle and Post-Aristotle
- 1 Aristotle’s theory of Causation (reference to the notion of teleology), Form and Matter; actuality and potentiality
- 2 Stoicism: Epictetus
- 3 Skepticism: Sextus Empiricus
Module 4: Medieval Philosophy
- 1 Thomas Aquinas (Relationship between reason and faith)
- 2 Moses Maimonides (Philosophy and Theology)
- 3 Ibn Rushd (Averroes) Islamic Philosophy
References
- Annas, Julia. Ancient Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2000)
- Barnes, Jonathan. Early Greek Philosophy, (Penguin; Revised edition 2002)
- Elrouayheb K, SChmidtke S, Oxford handbook of Islamic Philosophy, Oxford University Press, 2017
- G. S. Kirk and J. E. Raven. The Pre-Socratic Philosophers. (Cambridge University Press, 1957)
- Grube, G. M. Plato’s Thought (London: Methuen, 1935)
- Guthrie, W. K. C. 1962, 1965, 1969, A History of Greek Philosophy, Vols. I, II, and III,
- IV, V, VI (Cambridge University Press. 1962, 1965, 1969)
- Jones, W.T. A History of Western Philosophy: The Medieval Mind (Harcourt, Brace and World, Inc. 1969)
- Michael Marmura, Etienne Gilson. 'Al Ghazali, The incoherence of the Philosophers'( University of Chicago Press 1998)
- Osborne, Catherine. 2004 Pre-Socratic Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press 2004)
- Stace, W.T. A Critical History of Greek Philosophy (Macmillan, 1985, 1992)
- Stumpf, S.E. & Fieser, J. Philosophy: History and Problems (McGraw-Hill, 1971)
- Walsh, Martin A History of Philosophy (London: Geoffrey Chapman, 1985)
- Frederick Copleston A History of Philosophy (volumes 1, 2, 3) Image 1993
- D.J. O’Connor Critical History of Western Philosophy Free Press, 1985