CLST 316S · also ETHICS 316S
Self-Knowledge and the Pursuit of Wisdom
Jose M. Gonzalez
Description from DukeHub
This course looks to the Classical Tradition for guidance on how to grow in wisdom through a deeper knowledge of the self in relation to others. Students explore questions of personal meaning and significance by reading literary, philosophical, and biographical classics of the Western Tradition. Focus on wisdom and fulfillment in life, and the means for attaining them through friendship and community. Topics include: wisdom, conscience, happiness, justice, passion, moderation, guilt, shame, excellence, character, purpose, prudence, and choice. Authors may include Homer, Vergil, Sophocles, Plato, Aristotle, Epictetus, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, St. Paul, Augustine, Calvin, Hobbes, Spinoza.
Skills
No skill passed the confidence bar. Weak matches go to review instead of this page: an AI pass that has to quote the description, then a person.
AI-resilient: 2 of 5
- No: Physical, lab or field work
- No: Live work with people
- Yes: Judgment someone is accountable for · "justice"
- No: A craft you practice with your hands or body
- Yes: Small, in-person format · seminar, 18 seats per section
The checks lean on Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025), which found generative AI applies least to physical work and hands-on work with people. A signal, not a promise. How the score works
More in CLST
- Ancient Athenian Law CLST 107CNS
- Principles of Archaeology CLST 144
- Monstrous Women in Myth, Literature, Art, and Film CLST 209CC
- History of Ancient Philosophy CLST 271
- Roman History CLST 284
- Drama of Ancient Rome CLST 304