Learning objectives
The course aims to consolidate and deepen:
1: the following knowledge and understanding (1st Dublin descriptor):
(a) in-depth knowledge of relevant authors and themes in the history of logical and philosophical thought of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance;
(b) ability to read, analyze and critically interpret some classical texts of the history of logic, both in the original language (Latin) and in the translation into modern languages;
(c) knowledge of the philosophical technical terminology necessary for the interpretation of the texts;
(d) knowledge of the main interpretative positions in contemporary debate, and knowledge of some contemporary debates in the fields of philosophy that may be relevant for the interpretation of medieval and Renaissance authors.
2: the following skills for applying the foreground (2nd Dublin descriptor):
(a) ability to recognize the structure and be able to reformulate different types of arguments of a logical and philosophical nature, ability to criticize such arguments and to argue one's own criticism in a debate;
(b) ability to elaborate one's knowledge through oral and written reports and tests, through philosophical argumentation and based on the historically documented reference to medieval and Renaissance texts, in their original version (primary literature) and in their different modern interpretations (literature secondary);
(c) ability to recognize the theoretical and conceptual connections between the history of ancient and medieval logic and some debates of contemporary philosophy.
3-4-5: the following knowledge and skills of judgment, communication and continuous learning
3rd, 4th and 5th Dublin Descriptor):
(a) ability to analyze and criticize a text, both from a historical and philosophical point of view;
(b) ability to be in a critical attitude towards the text and report one's own analysis in oral and written form, through debates and through the drafting of short written reports;
(c) ability to interact on a philosophical level with teachers and colleagues, in Italian, through the guided reading of the texts, through questions and debates during class hours; through any group work aimed at drafting written reports.
Prerequisites
No specific prerequisites. The course is aimed at those without specific medieval skills and knowledge. Only a general knowledge of the history of philosophy is recommended.
Course unit content
Title: "Determinism, Contingency and Fortune from Boethius to Macchiavelli"
The theme of the course concerns a long philosophical controversy: how much of what happens, in the human and natural world, is the result of predetermined causes (or of "destiny", "luck", "divine providence", depending on the time and of the philosophical/religious tradition) and how much instead is the result of free human choice and natural contingency? The question of free will and its opposition to determinism has been discussed by many philosophers, from ancient times to contemporary ones. In this course we will start from the study of some ancient sources (in particular, from the texts by Cicero, Alexander of Aphrodisias and Augustine) and then we will continue following the developments of the debate on freedom and determinism in some medieval authors (Boethius, Abelard, Ockham) and Renaissance philosophers (Pomponazzi, Lutero, Erasmus of Rotterdam and Niccolò Macchiavelli).
Full programme
The theme of the course concerns a long philosophical controversy: how much of what happens, in the human and natural world, is the result of predetermined causes (or of "destiny", "luck", "divine providence", depending on the time and of the philosophical/religious tradition) and how much instead is the result of free human choice and natural contingency? The question of free will and its opposition to determinism has been discussed by many philosophers, from ancient times to contemporary ones. In this course we will start from the study of some ancient sources (in particular, from the texts by Cicero, Alexander of Aphrodisias and Augustine) and then we will continue following the developments of the debate on freedom and determinism in some medieval authors (Boethius, Abelard, Ockham) and Renaissance philosophers (Pomponazzi, Lutero, Erasmus of Rotterdam and Niccolò Macchiavelli).
Bibliography
For the preparation of the exam, the study of the following text is required (accompanied by the analysis of ancient, medieval and Renaissance sources discussed during the lessons):
Libero Arbitrio. Storia di una controversia filosofica, edited by: Mario De Caro, Massimo Mori, Emidio Spinelli, Carocci, 2015.
During the lessons, some extracts from ancient, medieval and Renaissance sources on the topics of the course will also be read and discussed, and in particular from:
Anselmo d’Aosta, De libertate Arbitrii, ed. F.S Schmitt, Frommann-Holzboog, Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt 1984 (trad. it. Di I. Sciuto, in Anselmo d’Aosta, Libertà e arbitrio, Nardini, Firenze 1992).
Boezio, La Consolazione della Filosofia, a cura di Claudio Moreschini, UTET, 2014.
Erasmo da Rotterdam, Il libero arbitrio, in Il Libero arbitrio, M. Lutero, Il servo arbitrio, a cura di R. Jouvenal, Claudiana, Torino 1969.
Pietro Abelardo, Theologia Scholarium, CCCM, 13, ed. E.M. Buyaert, C.J.Mews, Brepols, Turnhout, 1987 (trad. it. Di S.P. Bonanni, in Pietro Abelardo, Teologia ‘degli Scolastici’. Libro III. Pontificia Università Gregoriana, Roma 2004.
Guglielmo di Ockham, Il Trattato sulla predestinazione e prescienza divina riguardo ai futuri contingenti, a cura di R. Fedriga e R. Limonta, Città Nuova, 2020.
Macchiavelli, Opere, a cura di E. Raimondi, Mursia, Milano 1966.
Pomponazzi, Il fato, il libero arbitrio e la predestinazione, a cura di V. Perrone Compagni, Aragno, Torino 2004.
The teacher will be responsible for providing students with a copy (in the original version and in the modern language translation) of the parts of the text discussed during the lessons.
Any other didactic material examined or distributed during the lessons will be made available on the ELLY website under the heading of the course.
Non-attending students are warmly invited to contact the teacher via email and / or during office hours (in person or on Teams) to agree on the program and exam methods and to clarify any doubts about the course preparation material.
Teaching methods
The course will consist of both lectures and moments of discussion and debate based on the reading and interpretation of the texts.
All didactic materials will be made available on ELLY website, under the heading of the course.
Assessment methods and criteria
The knowledge and the ability to understand and apply the acquired knowledge will be verified through a written exam and throug a final oral exam.
The written exam will consist in about 6 open questions, which will focus on the different topics addressed in the course, among which students will have to answer to at least 3. The duration of the written exam will be of about 3 hours. If the pandemic situation will not allow the written exam to be carried out in presence, a different method of verification will be agreed together with the students.
The oral exam, which will last about 30 minutes, will consist of a discussion and possible deepening of the answers given in the written exam.
The written and oral exams aim to verify: 1) historical and philosophical knowledge, both as regards to primary sources and secondary literature; 2) the student's ability to evaluate and compare, interpret and criticize texts; 3) the ability to understand, contextualize and analyze a philosophical text.
Other information
There are two or three sessions per exam session, as will be specified in the calendar.
2030 agenda goals for sustainable development
- - -