Learning objectives
Within the context of the outlook offered in this advanced level course, it is required knowledge of contemporary philosophical issues, both in terms of their historical genesis and of their current relevance (descriptor 1).
Conceptual analysis is aimed at clarifying the problems, the arguments offered and the conclusion developed by each author, with special attention given to his interlocutors and to the critical debate of which an author was part or gave rise to (descriptor 2). Skill in critique and autonomous formulation and treatment of problems are also developed (descriptor 3 e 5). The historical context in which each author developed his own views is constantly referred to, in order to show the relations between philosophy and society, philosophy and science, philosophy and culture (descriptor 3). Ability to comprehend the principal lines of argument of a philosophical text, including on the basis of lexical skills, that make it possible to comprehend the relevance of given philosophical terms in given historical contexts.
Ability to orient oneself in the principal issues of the history of philosophy thanks to direct knowledge of the classic authors based on reading of the works. The Italian translation will be checked and corrected through comparison with the critical German edition.
Prerequisites
Knowledge of main tendencies in the history of philosophy; knowledge of a number of philosophical texts, for example one of Plato’s dialogues, one of the books of Metaphysics by Aristotle, the cartesian Discourse on the method, a work or part of a work by Kant.
Course unit content
The course aims both to present and discuss some problems of Husserl's phenomenology, such as intersubjectivity, empathy, and the relations between individual and community. From this point of view, the course aims to analyze the Husserl's work on the interlacement of I and we, of a single man and the community of the persons.
Full programme
E. Husserl, Idee per una fenomenologia e una filosofia fenomenologica, Libro secondo, 1952, a cura di E. Filippini, riv. da V. Costa, Einaudi, Torino 2002, Sezione terza, La costituzione del mondo spirituale, pp. 177-300.
E. Husserl, Meditazioni cartesiane, 1931, trad. it. di F. Costa, Bompiani, Milano 2002, Quarta e Quinta Meditazione.
The following texts can help non-attending students:
V. Costa, Husserl, Carocci, Roma 2009
K. R. Stueber, L'empatia, il Mulino, Bologna 2010.
Bibliography
E. Husserl, Idee per una fenomenologia e una filosofia fenomenologica, Libro secondo, 1952.
E. Husserl, Meditazioni cartesiane, Quarta e Quinta Meditazione, 1931.
Teaching methods
This second degree course alternates classroom lectures with seminar sessions. Through detailed analysis of a philosophical work – the translation of whose key passages are checked against the original text – students will become acquainted with a specific moment in the history of philosophy, the forms of conceptual analysis and argumentation used to take on a series of issues (descriptors 1, 2, 3).
Assessment methods and criteria
Final oral examination.
The oral examination tends to verify the student’s ability to comprehend and correctly present the principal topics and arguments covered during the course, the historical questions covered and the ability to grasp dilemmas and problematic aspects in the philosophical positions discussed (descriptor 5). Assessment criteria and assessment thresholds:
30 cum laude: Excellent, excellent solidity of knowledge, excellent expressive properties, excellent understanding of the concepts
30: Very good. Complete and adequate knowledge, well-articulated and correctly expressed.
27-29: Good, satisfactory knowledge, essentially correct expression.
24-26: Fairly good knowledge, but not complete and not always correct.
22-23: Generally sufficient knowledge but superficial. Expression is often not appropriate and confused.
18-21: Elementary and defective knowledge. The expression and articulation of the speech show important gaps.
Other information
The type of issues covered in this course makes it possible each year to examine key moments in the history of contemporary philosophy with special attention to the fundamental moments in preceding historical periods.
Ability to comprehend the principal lines of argument of a philosophical text, including on the basis of lexical skills that make it possible to comprehend the relevance of given philosophical terms in given historical contexts.
Knowledge of the type of problems and the method of approaching them in philosophy in relation to precise historical and cultural contexts.
