PHILOSOPHY

The course aims to introduce students to the study of Western philosophical thought, starting from the concept of humanism understood in the multiplicity of meanings and contexts in which reflection on what man is and his relationship with nature and history has taken place over the centuries. Reflection on man and his destiny will be developed from its ancient origins (Plato, Aristotle, Seneca, St. Augustine), through key figures of the Middle Ages and the early modern period up to the present day. The final module will address contemporary issues related to the radical outcomes produced by the Technological Revolution and will consider forms and possibilities of humanism in the digital age, considering the pioneering studies of Luciano Floridi. Students will acquire an understanding of the main schools of thought and their approaches.

Students will acquire the basic tools to orient themselves in the study of the fundamental moments in the history of philosophy. Specifically, students will acquire more precise knowledge about a given problem, author or historical moment through more detailed preparation that will be organized starting from the individual interests of each participant and discussed individually with the lecturer.

There are no prerequisites required.

First Module:

1. Body, Soul, and Eros in Plato's Symposium.
2. Man as a Political Animal in Aristotle.
3. Man and Time in Seneca's On the Shortness of Life.

Second Module:

1. Augustine of Hippo: Man and Memory.
2. Homo capax Dei: Happiness and Grace in Thomas Aquinas.
3. Freedom and Predestination: The Problem of Future Contingents.

Third Module:

1. Freedom and Human Dignity in Giovanni Pico.
2. The Birth of the Idea of Tolerance in Nicholas of Cusa.
3. Giordano Bruno: Man and the Infinite.

Fourth Module:

1. Homo homini lupus: Hobbes and Absolutism.
2. The Birth of Inequality in Rousseau.
3. The “Provisional Morality” of Descartes.
4. Sapere aude! Rationality and Morality in Kant.

Fifth Module:

1. Hegel and the Reason that Governs the World.
2. Schopenhauer and the Porcupine Dilemma.
3. Marx and the “Intrinsic Barbarism of Bourgeois Civilization”.

Sixth Module:

1. Nietzsche: “Man is Something that Must be Overcome”.
2. Freud: “The Mind is Like an Iceberg”.
3. Heidegger and Sartre: Is Existentialism a Humanism?

Conclusion: Humanism-Post-Humanism-Transhumanism:
1. Infosphere and New Humanism: The Perspective of Luciano Floridi.
2. Conclusion: What Humanism for the Digital Age?

• Plato, Symposium
• Aristotle, Politics
• Seneca, On the Shortness of Life
• Augustine of Hippo, Confessions
• Thomas Aquinas, On Evil
• Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, Oration on the Dignity of Man
• Nicholas of Cusa, On the Peace of Faith
• Giordano Bruno, On the Infinite, Universe and Worlds
• Thomas Hobbes, The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men
• René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy
• Immanuel Kant, What is Enlightenment?
• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Lectures on the Philosophy of History
• Arthur Schopenhauer, The World as Will and Representation
• Karl Marx, Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844
• Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy
• Sigmund Freud, Writings on Art and Literature
• Martin Heidegger, Letter on Humanism
• Jean-Paul Sartre, Existentialism is a Humanism
• Luciano Floridi, The Philosophy of Information

More precise information, specific materials and further bibliographic indications will be provided during the course.

Active participation in lessons and discussions (30%)
Written report and oral presentation on one of the topics covered, to be agreed upon with the lecturer (30%)
Final report (40%)

Lectures, use of multimedia materials, discussion groups, symposium, round table, workshops.

English

written and oral