POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY I

The course is consistent with the goals of the degree program because it introduces students to the fundamental problems and concepts of political philosophy, with particular focus on the main theoretical and hermeneutic traditions.

Upon completion of the course, the students will have developed the ability to: understand the meaning of the texts and topics discussed in class; recognize their implications for the contemporary scientific and civil debate; communicate in a more appropriate and informed way.

A good level of general education is required.

Course title: Utopianism in the Modern and Contemporary Ages
This course proposes the study of some texts that are fundamental for the utopian tradition: Thomas More's Utopia (1516); Nicolas de Condorcet's Progress of the Human Spirit (1795); Friedrich Engels' The Evolution of Socialism from Utopia to Science (1882); George Orwell's 1984 (1949); Zygmunt Bauman's Retrotopia (2017). After analysing the ways in which More theorises utopia as a good non-place, we will examine Condorcet's Enlightenment uchrony, Engels' critique of utopian socialism in the name of a dialectical and materialistic progressivism, Orwell's dystopia and Bauman's retrotopia. From these texts, some of the main concepts and problems of political philosophy will be critically investigated, as they developed in early modernity and as they reverberate in the following centuries, up to the present day.

Textbooks:
Thomas More, Utopia (1516), a cura di U. Dotti, Feltrinelli, Milano 2016.
Nicolas de Condorcet, I progressi dello spirito umano (1795), a cura di G. Calvi, Editori Riuniti University Press, Roma 2020 (ch. 10).
Friedrich Engels, L’evoluzione del socialismo dall’utopia alla scienza (1882), a cura di G. Prestipino, Editori Riuniti, Roma 1970 (preface to the 1st German edition + ch. 1, 2, 3).
George Orwell, 1984 (1949), trad. it. di L.M. Sponzilli, Chiarelettere, Milano 2021 (part I, ch. 1; part II, ch. 9; part III, ch. 2, 3, 6; appendix).
Zygmunt Bauman, Retrotopia (2017), trad. it. di M. Cupellaro, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2020.
Stefano Petrucciani, Modelli di filosofia politica, Einaudi, Torino 2003.

For any further information on the course topics, please refer to:
Francesco Ghia e Fabrizio Meroi (a cura di), Thomas More e la sua utopia. Studi e prospettive, Olschki, Firenze 2018.
Bruno Bongiovanni e Gian Mario Bravo (a cura di), Nell’anno 2000. Dall’utopia all’ucronia, Olschki, Firenze 2001.
Manuela Ceretta (a cura di), George Orwell. Antistalinismo e critica del totalitarismo: l’utopia negativa, Olschki, Firenze 2007.
Vittor Ivo Comparato, Utopia, il Mulino, 2005.
Fredric Jameson, Il desiderio chiamato utopia (2005), a cura di G. Carlotti, Feltrinelli, Milano 2007.
Massimo Cacciari e Paolo Prodi, Occidente senza utopie, il Mulino, Bologna 2016.

For any further information on the nature of political philosophy, please refer to:
Leo Strauss, Che cos’è la filosofia politica? (1959), (ed. by D. Cadeddu), Nuovo Melangolo, Genova 2011;
Quentin Skinner, Significato e comprensione nella storia delle idee (1969), in Id., Dell’interpretazione, il Mulino, Bologna 2001, pp. 11-57;
Alessandro Passerin d’Entrèves, La filosofia della politica, in Storia delle idee politiche, economiche e sociali, (ed. by L. Firpo), Utet, Torino 1972, vol. VI, pp. 587-608;
Norberto Bobbio, Dei possibili rapporti tra filosofia politica e scienza politica (1971), Per una mappa della filosofia politica (1990), Ragioni della filosofia politica (1990), in Id., Teoria generale della politica, (ed. by M. Bovero), Einaudi, Torino 1999, pp. 5-39;
John Rawls, Quattro ruoli della filosofia politica, in Id., Giustizia come equità. Una riformulazione (2001), Feltrinelli, Milano 2002, pp. 3-7.

The final exam will be oral and will be related to the texts and to contents the discussed throughout the course and to the topics addressed within the textbooks.

The teaching style will be traditional. Students’ participation will be encouraged.

Italian

oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Poverty and inequalities" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development