F0916 The Perfect City. Government and Religion in the Philosophy of al-Farabi, the Plato of Islam

The greatest Arab mediaeval philosopher, and one of the greatest in the entire Middle Ages, al-Farabi (d. 950), wrote a number of works in most areas of philosophy. He dealt with metaphysics, politics, language, logic, as well as the theory and practice of music. His influence extended to other important Muslim philosophers such as Ibn Sina (d. 1037), al-Ghazali (d. 1111), and Ibn Rushd (d. 1198), and Jewish ones, such as Maimonides (d. 1204) and Spinoza (d. 1677).
Llike Greek predecessors, especially Plato, Aristotle, and the Neo-Platonists, he offered a wholesome philosophical system, but unlike them, his had to take religion into consideration. His solution to the conflict between religion and philosophy was based on a universalistic view. His framework is a universalistic one, which is manifest in his logic, language, music, religious theory, and politics. Judged against the views, beliefs, and institutions of his time, his philosophy is innovative and most courageous.
In this seminar the English translation of his most celebrated work will be read, namely The Opinions of the Inhabitants of the Perfect City. We will concentrate on the issue of his political theory, as compared with Plato’s Republic.