Intro to Philosphy: Not Just for College Students

If you feel stressed out and want something more, the School of Practical Philosophy may have the answer.

This fall the school expands to Chatham for a 10-class introductory course covering everything from western philosophy, such as Plato, Socrates or Henry David Thoreau, to eastern opinions from the likes of Buddha, Bhagavad Gita, Confucius or yoga sutras from Pantajali.

The course runs for 10 weeks and meets Monday evenings beginning on Sept. 19. On Sept. 12 David Beardsley, who will teach the course, holds an introductory course for $10 at 7 p.m. at the . The full course costs $90, half-price for students.

"[The first introductory] lecture will focus on practical idealism and the ideal tradition that started with Plato and Socrates," said David Beardsley, who is head of the New Jersey branches of the school and will lead the lecture. "We will be looking at Plato's formulation of what he called the ideal or the good and his description of that in 'The Republic'."

Beardsley said the talk will explore ways to make the theories more practical in every day life. "We will be doing exercises and it will be very interactive," he said

The School of Practical Philosophy is an international school that was founded during the Great Depression by a group of Economists in London. The school's initial emphasis was on why things such as depressions and recessions happen, but it eventually took on a more philosophical approach from questions philosophers have traditionally looked at, according to Beardsley.

The introductory session Monday will give people an idea of what the course and the school are about.

“It can really improve the quality of your life,” said Chatham resident Jennifer Moskowitz, who took the course when she was working in New York City. “Since 2006, I have been mediating daily using the technique I learned through the school.”

According to Moskowitz, there is no preparation needed for class. “The only requirement is to be ‘Present” when attending,” she said. Homework assignments are simple exercises of observation during the week based on the material covered. During classes, new material is introduced and students review observations.

The full course includes sessions ranging from "What is Philosophy? Why Study Philosophy" to "Consciousness: The Nature of Beauty — a Description from Plato’s Symposium." In it, students and professors discuss the philosophical questions so many people may ask themselves at one time or another: Ever stopped to ask yourself: why am I here? or how can I be happier?

"We think philosophy can be made practical," says Beardsley, who has studied at the School of Practical Philosophy for over 15 years. Paul Sheppard, who will teach the Chatham course, has also studied at the school even longer.

It's a special study based on years of studying lots of different philosophies, Beardley said. "Philosophy shouldn't just be confined to academic philosophies."