To Grow or Not to Grow --- Heores and Heroines in the Homeric Epics
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
老長大長不大
－－荷馬世界裡的豪傑英雌
To Grow or Not to Grow
--- Heores and Heroines in the Homeric Epics
講者：趙茱莉
Speaker: Chiu Chu Lee
兩部史詩，突出兩個「英雄」。
一個挾其神族血統，兇猛、矯健、俊美，怒火能發不能收。為求得永恆的榮譽，那怕是離鄉早死、敵友同亡，都在所不惜。
一個只是謙謙凡人，俊美不足，卻能屈能忍。他憑著歷練的世故、智計、辯才，贏得人神眷顧；二十年不忘還鄉夢，神女美色、不死承諾都可放棄。
三萬行詩句，展現兩段心路歷程。
由這端到那端，兩個「英雄」對己對人有沒有新的認識？在心理和道德的層面有沒有絲毫成長。
從現代的角度看，穿插在兩段歷程中的「英雌」、老者、少年，是否也是個人物，甚或更有長進？
Marx and Smith: Labor, Capital, and What It Means to be Human
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
Marx and Smith: Labor, Capital, and What It Means to be Human
講者 Speaker: Roosevelt Montas
While recognizing the fundamental importance of capital, labor, and the production of surplus value, Adam Smith and Karl Marx both struggle with existential questions about what it means to be human and about the nature of human flourishing. Urgent questions erupt from their economic and historical models which both complicate and elucidate the elementary assumptions of each. This talk will focus on unearthing those questions and examining their implications for our understanding of each author and of their impact on the development of political and social thought. The talk will pay special attention to the coherence and continuities between the two thinkers.
The Origin of Species
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
《物種起源》：達爾文、歷史、病原體與性
The Origin of Species: Darwin, History, Pathogens and Sex
講者：張雷
Speaker: Chang Lei
"In the distant future I see open fields for far more important researches. Psychology will be based on a new foundation, that of the necessary acquirement of each mental power and capacity by graduation. LIght will be thrown on the origin of man and his history."
This is taken from the ending lines of Darwin's Origin of Species published 150 years ago. The past 30 years have seen increasing interdisciplinary efforts in applying Darwinian principles to understand human cognition and behavior. I will talk about this new knowledge development and the related research on human nature and behavior that is rooted in natural selection and sexual selection theories.
The Education of Love: Plato's Symposium
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
「愛的教育」：柏拉圖的《會飲篇》
The Education of Love: Plato's Symposium
講者：張燦輝
Speaker: Cheung Chan Fai
談起柏拉圖式的愛情，一般人只想起與精神層面有關，然而這是真的嗎？柏拉圖在《會飲篇》中，對愛情之現象及問題作了多方面的探討。講者嘗試透過此講，探討《會飲篇》中愛情的多層意義，以及與我們人生的關係。
Nicolaus Copernicus, On the Revolutions of Heavenly Spheres
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
哥伯尼的《天體運行論》
Nicolaus Copernicus, On the Revolutions of Heavenly Spheres
講者：朱明中
Speaker: Chu Ming Chung
哥伯尼的《天體運行論》是歷史上最重要的科學經典著作之一。它提出離經叛道、既違反權威學說又與人們經驗相逆的日心地動說，打破千年迷思。它帶來的思想革命，不但奠下現代科學的典範，更標誌著理性主義的抬頭。不過，這本改變了世界的書，卻幾乎沒有面世、極少人讀過、而且還有很多錯誤。五百年後的今天仍有閱讀它的價值嗎？現代人還能夠從這些科學經典吸取甚麼養份？講者將與大家分享他對這些問題的思索。
Laozi's Daodejing and Modern Life
寫給當代的經典 Classics for Today
老子《道德經》與現代社會人生
－－兼論現代人如何讀古代經典
Laozi's Daodejing and Modern Life
--- Also on How to Read Ancient Classics in Modern Times
講者：劉笑敢
Speaker: Liu Xiaogan
書店與媒體中關於老子《道德經》的各種解說光怪陸離，令人目不暇接。如何面對這種現象？我們將以老子中的主要概念，如自然為例，討論比較穩妥和可信的閱讀方式，澄清和梳理現代人閱讀古代經典的各種態度，方法和目的。
現代人閱讀古典的目的和方法可以大致分為歷史的、學術的、客觀的追求和現代的、自我的、實踐的追求。但是，老子的時代沒有股票市場，沒有金融海嘯，沒有愛因斯坦，沒有量子力學，現代人是否可以用老子的思想來回應現代社會的問題？是否可以用現代理論來解釋老子思想？為什麼可以或不可以？回答這些問題不能簡單地訴之於自信或信仰，而需要認真的公開的思考和探索。
