THE ACADEMY AND THE LYCEUM: Let None But Geometers Enter Here

Supposedly, these are the words that were inscribed above the door leading into Plato’s Academy; a place where intellectuals congregated to discuss and solve the problems of the day—both philosophical and analytical. After a time, the place and the gatherings became more formal. Aristotle joined the scholars and though his philosophies had diverged greatly from Plato’s, he stayed on for two decades until Plato’s death. When he was passed over as the successor to head the Academy in favor of Plato’s nephew Speusippus, he parted ways and eventually founded his own school named the Lyceum. The Lyceum was more deliberately devoted to scholarly pursuits than the Academy. The Academy did not have teachers and students per se, and seemed to work its way around to scholarship by means of provocative debate. The Lyceum was structured for teaching and learning and its students benefited from lectures and rigorous research.

Education is the foundation of civilization. Language, culture, health, innovation; they all advance through education. These two bastions of learning in Ancient Greece were the foundation of thought and innovation that transformed life beyond their ancient time. Today, millennia later, we continue to be blessed by the fruits of their labor. Metaphysics, realism and Nicomachean ethics all hail from these two institutions. The Lyceum movement in the United States was strong from the mid-nineteenth century to early twentieth century. Its name was derived from Aristotle’s ancient school and the movement was dedicated to promoting adult education. Steven Covey may have read Aristotle's numerous thoughts on habit formation prior to publishing his bestselling book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Both the Academy and the Lyceum were founded by strong males and perpetuated the dominance of men in ancient Greece. There are only two women known to have studied at The Academy with Plato.

Education led to the development of a standard that represented the ideal Greek. He possessed military prowess, a strict moral compass and a richly cultured presence. There was a worship of the hero and the pursuit and celebration of high performance. Truly, every aspect of ancient Greek life, and the centuries of success and enlightenment, evolved from an emphasis on education.

Almost a century before the birth of Christ and the epic rise of Christianity that followed, both the Academy and Lyceum were destroyed by the Roman Sulla during at a time when much of the world was turning away from polytheistic religion.

As a student of psychology and philosophy, I am aroused by the consideration of these sons of philosophy and the intellectual force and vitality that must have been present in the very spaces they occupied. Visiting these schools affords an opportunity to reflect upon their great contributions to the process and substance of learning and to contemplate the learning possibilities that might yet be.

Entrance to the Modern Day Academy of Athens flanked by seated Plato and Socrates