This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "The unity of the Republic is complete- from the first words of Socrates at his trial to the last words at the end of the Republic we have an ever deepening reflection on the order of things..." For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetow…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Books Eight and Nine concern the decline of existing states. After the city in speech is argued in the first seven books, a theme from the end of book four reappears, that of the order of "decline" of states and the reasons for it. The citizen and the state are parallel,…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Book Seven of The Republic is most famous. It contains the story of the Cave, which is a summary of the whole book and of much of Plato's philosophy. It deals with the city and philosophy, as well as with the proper education of the philosopher. For over 35 years, Fr. Ja…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Book 5 is the famous book about the communality of wives, children and property. It is Socrates' explanation of why the king and philosopher should be joined, then he speaks of the education of the philosopher. Book 6 wants to know why philosophers are not welcome in mos…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Book 4 of the Republic wants to know whether the philosophers are happy, since they get no rewards. Socrates explains that they are happy because their good is the common good. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, wher…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Book Three continues where Book Two left off, with the reasons why Socrates thought that it was the poets, especially Homer, who corrupted the city. It was because the arts, music, poetry, dancing, gymnastics are disordered and effect the souls. This inaugurates the famo…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Book Two of the Republic begins with the concern of Glaucon and Adeimantus about the arguments of book one about justice. They want justice praised for its own sake, not for its awards and punishments. This conversation leads Socrates into forming a "city in speech or mi…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The first book of the Republic is written some time after the death of Socrates. Plato wants to know why it happened. The sub-title of the Republic is "on justice," that is, what happens if in…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The Phaedo is the dialogue about the last day of Socrates. He is in jail. The boat returns so his execution takes place immediately. He spends his last day in conversation with the potential philosophers about why it is all right to die. He finally drinks the hemlock and…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. We end by reading the three dialogues on the death of Socrates, "The Apology," "The Crito," and the "Phaedo", then finally five talks on "The Republic". These dialogues are the dramatic foundation of political philosophy as well as of philosophy itself. They are to be re…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "[Beyond Good and Evil] sums up what is wrong with much of modern philosophy and opens up and predicts in a certain way what will take its place...a belief that there is no order in nature, man can put into effect whatever he wants to do..." For over 35 years, Fr. James …

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "...Everything that Nietzsche says, in a certain sense, has a reference to something that he's rejecting." For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he was legendary among generations of students. If you want an exper…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. In the political philosophy series, the next book that we read is E. F. Schumacher's A Guide for the Perplexed. This book comes near the end of the course as a summary and insight into the whole nature of philosophy and political philosophy. It is a short, remarkable boo…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The Conclusion of the book recalls the overall thesis of the book and argues for a settled place for political philosophy as a discipline open to both human and higher things in a coherent whole. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgeto…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Polity and family exist for virtue, but virtue exists for friendship, for the activities of the virtues. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he was legendary among generations of students. If you want an experie…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 12 is on friendship. This is a question that arises in political philosophy and presents several fundamental enigmas that serve to conclude our reflections on the relation of revelation to political philosophy, why questions in political philosophy are open to an…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 11 is on the relation between freedom, truth, and law. It is important so see how they are related to each other in a limited polity that is open to the truth and transcendence. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown Univers…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "A polity open to truth is open both to revelation and science without in any way denying that a polity has its own existence and actions- themselves seeking to put truth into its laws and ultimately into the things of common importance that take place among human beings…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 10 begins the last series of chapters which, in contrast to earlier chapters, arise out of man's nature and not from some Fall or fault. Science, technology, and law are all good things. They can be abused, but as such are proper manifestations of what it is to b…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. To possess the virtues and to act according to them was to fulfill human potentiality--to be happy according to the proportion and the possibilities given to a human being. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 9 is a consideration of Aristotle's understanding of virtue and vice, basically it is a guide through Aristotle's Ethics, where in hapiness, the four moral virtues, the minor virtues, pleasure, and the notions of choice and reasons are considered in the context o…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 8 is a consideration of the relation between the philosophic notion of happiness and the revelational notion of salvation. Happiness can be understood in a practical or political sense and in a theoretic sense. But both senses leave us perplexed even in their ful…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "Political authority is not merely an abstract principal or form. Political authority and hence political life are not merely philosophically justified, but religiously grounded. Neither of these foundations contradicts the other but in fact they are directly related as …

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 7 looks at the deaths of Socrates and Christ as key events that bring reason and revelation together in the light of political philosophy. The remarkable parallels of these two trials is occasion for seeing how politics is both limited and transcended by philosop…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "Death limits politics not merely because the polity must articulate the reasons for which the taking of life is permitted or necessary, but because the polity must remember those who have died in the defense of the common and continuing life." For over 35 years, Fr. Jam…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 6 is on death and political philosophy deals with the relation of the memory of the city, of its heros and villans, and of the efforts to explain and evaluate the meaning of death in political life. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy …

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 5 is on Hell in political philosophy. What are the punishments civil and eternal for crimes and sins? The teaching on hell, originally brought up in Plato's Republic, has to do with the significance of human actions and the worth of human life. For over 35 years,…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "The power to declare but not make evil to be good is at the very root of political power and no doubt one of its principal dangers." For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he was legendary among generations of stu…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Part 9 is on evil and political realism - it goes into the question of why is there evil in the world and its relation to politics. Politics in one sense has to be concerned with the realities of evil, yet it cannot provide the explanation or remedy for it in all its for…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "Modernity has produced regimes that were better than others. It has also produced the worst regimes in history. It has not produced any best regime." For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he was legendary among g…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 3 is on modernity. This is the expression used for modern political thought, its understanding and its nature. Basically, modernity it the effort to explain reality by a politics based on will in which nature and reason are removed as the basic tools to understan…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. "Modernity in its autonomous sense sought to eliminate the question of God by solving the question of politics. Medieval political philosophy at its best sought to solve the question of God and thereby found a solution to the question of politics. 'Seek ye first the king…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter 2 on the sequence of political philosophy is a brief attempt to give the background of classical, medieval and modern political political philosophy. It seeks to give some insight into each of the periods and the unity that belongs to understanding a limited poli…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Section two of the first chapter deals with the place of political philosophy in the city, how truth and the city relate and the relation of the best regime to existing regimes For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, wher…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Chapter ​​One is on the Intellectual Horizons of Political Philosophy. It recognizes both the unique of political philosophy, how it relates to political science, and how it relates to philosophy itself and ultimately to revelation. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall ta…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The Introduction of ALPP gives an overview of the book and its way of approaching political philosophy, both to its limits and to why and how it is open to more than itself. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where h…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. At the beginning of the text of At the Limits of Political Philosophy are four classic statements, one from Aristotle, one from Leo Strauss, one from Samuel Johnson, and one from Frederick Wilhelmsen. They give the spirit of the book, and each contributes something of it…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The three modern "social contract" political philosophers need to be seen in their similarities and divesities. They are founders, with Machiavelli, of modern political philosophy. Each shows a logical deviation from the groundings of political things in Aristitle and Aq…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The four plays discussed in the BloomJaffa book relate human virtue and dignity to political office. They also serve to limit or show the limits of political office. When a politician claims to be a god, he transcends the limits of the human. Lear himself did this by con…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The Bloom/Jaffa book on Shakespeare's Politics is a very good treatment of why Shakespeare, who follows Machiavellli in the following century has significant political insights. Bloom and Jaffa point out the broader range of Shakespeare's interests in the characters of k…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The understanding of The Prince is largely understanding chapter 15 where Machiavelli indirectly attacks Plato. The purpose of The Prince is to replace Socrates and Christ, their principle that it is never right to do wrong, with and freedom to do wrong to achieve politi…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The reading of The Prince is usually considered the beginning of modern political philosophy, What makes it modern is its rejection of the classic distinction between good and evil. This frees the prince to use both good and evil means to stay in power. This undermines a…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Here we will briefly go through the questions I-II, 90-97 where Thomas discusses law and its various kinds, along with a more complete explanation of each aspect of law. For over 35 years, Fr. James Schall taught Political Philosophy at Georgetown University, where he wa…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Thomas Aquinas' treatise on law can be found in several paper editions. It is part of a much larger work called the Summa Theologiae. Everything in Aquinas fits into a logical and reasonable order that explains why the subject is treated and what it means. Law has a cert…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The last two chapters and conclusion of the Deane book are most insightful. Here Augustine treats the question of war and its abiding presence among men. Augustine is not an utopian. He is called rightly a "political realist," someone who knows that one must be prepared …

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The two middle chapters of Deane's book on Augustine bring up specifically what is meant by Augustinian political realism and how it differs from other sorts of realism. This is also the best statement of Augustine's view of the state not as by nature but the result of t…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. We next consider the book of Herbert Deane, The Political and Social Ideas of St. Augustine. This books looks at the darker side of political life and its potential, a view that is very often not seen or seen only from a negative side. Deane is very good on the understan…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. Following the Simon's A General Theory of Authority, we will take a look at the political significance of the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament is the longer and more "political" document. The issue is what it teaches about political regimes and public morality. …

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The end of A General Theory of Authority discusses the nature of authority in the pursuit of truth and the acquisition of the good. It has a very fine explanation of natural parental authority, as well as a discussion of truth and freedom from the self. For over 35 years…

This course was recorded in 2015 in an informal setting by Fr. Schall himself. The second consideration of A General Theory of Authority will review the arguments for the necessity of authority in practical matters. They are called the argument from unity of action and the argument from the material willing of the common good. The purpose of this b…