The Great Ideas: Session One--Aristotle on Virtue as the Golden Mean

Exploring Great Ideas: Gardening the Soul

Join us for this series of six sessions, led by the award-winning philosopher Scott Samuelson, on the greatest ideas of ancient Greco-Roman and Chinese philosophy for living a flourishing life. Each session will begin with a brief but comprehensive lecture on one great idea and then move into conversation and exploration of it. No preparation or prior knowledge is required. 

Session One: Aristotle on Virtue as the Golden Mean

One of the most influential thinkers who has ever lived, Aristotle spells out the central idea of Greco-Roman philosophy: the key to the good life lies in cultivating the virtues, the excellences of our character. We’ll examine his timeless ideas about the nature of virtue and how to develop it in ourselves.

Scott Samuelson is a prominent professor of philosophy, with writing in the Atlantic, Wall Street Journal, and other major outlets. He is the author of Rome as Guide to Life, Seven Ways of Approaching Pointless Suffering, and The Deepest Human Life.

No prior knowledge or reading required. This is your chance to get to know the thinkers and ideasdr

Host or Publisher The Des Moines Lyceum