Learning objectives
The learning objectives of the course are as follows:
Knowledge and comprehension skills (Dublin Descriptor I)
- acquisition of specific knowledge about the authors and texts on the programme
- ability to read and understand the reference texts, analysing their main conceptual junctures
Ability to apply knowledge and understanding (Dublin Descriptor II)
- application of argumentative structures identified in the texts to concrete examples
- reconstruction of the genesis and development of the concepts analysed
Making judgments, communication and learning skills (Dublin Descriptors III, IV, V)
- critically analysing passages from the texts in the programme, grasping their conceptual and lexical specificities
- review the historical and philosophical contexts of the texts and authors examined during the course
- choose a topic and independently prepare an exposition to be discussed in class on the texts in the syllabus or on collateral texts agreed with the teacher, highlighting analysis and argumentation skills
Prerequisites
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Course unit content
The Timaeus: Plato's Cosmology and its Reception
The aim of the course is to analyse and comment on Plato's Timaeus, one of the most complex and influential dialogues in the Western philosophical tradition. Through a thorough examination of the text, the course will highlight the main conceptual elements of the dialogue (the world soul, the Demiurge, the geometric structure of the cosmos, and the conception of time), in which Plato, while reflecting predominantly on cosmology, revisits the central themes of his metaphysics (primarily, the difficult problem of the relationship between the sensible and the intelligible). Special attention will also be given to the analysis of the philosophical language used by Plato, its sources, and its transformations.
On a further level, the course will explore and consider some particularly significant moments in the rich reception of the Timaeus (from Calcidius to Proclus, from the School of Chartres to Marsilio Ficino, and up to Schelling), retracing the exegetical strategies and the different theoretical value attributed, in each case, to Plato’s work.
Full programme
Bibliography
- Platone, Timeo, a cura di F. Fronterotta, Milano, Rizzoli, 2003.
Non-attending students do not have to study additional texts, but are asked to contact the teacher in order to choose a topic for the paper (10-12 pages)
Teaching methods
Teacher’s lectures, focused on the analysis of the texts in the programme and significant moments in their reception, will be followed by student seminars, with ample time for discussion and debate.
The course will be held “blended”: there will be the possibility to frequent the meetings in person in the classroom, or to connect in real time via internet (in a platform that allows to participate to the discussion in class).
Assessment methods and criteria
Students are required to prepare a 25-30 minutes presentation on a topic agreed with the lecturer, concerning the text in the programme, other Platonic dialogues or significant texts in the history of the reception of the Timaeus.
Non-attending students will be required, in lieu of the presentation, to prepare a short paper (10-12 pages) on a topic agreed upon with the lecturer.
The final examination will start from the the topics addressed in the presentation and will then involve the two dialogues.
The classroom presentation will be graded up to 20/30 and the final examination up to 10/30.
Grading-criteria:
30 e lode: excellent, profound knowledge, excellent expressive capacities, complete comprehension of the relevant concepts and arguments
30: very good, complete and adequate knowledge, good discursive capacities with respect to the topic of the course.
27-29: good, an acceptable degree of knowledge, acceptable discursive capacities with respect to the topic of the course.
24-26: mediocre level of knowledge, though incomplete and not not always correct.
21-23: basic, though superficial knowledge. Inadequate discursive competences with respect to the topic of the course.
18-21: sufficient
Below 18: insufficient. Very imcomplete knowledge, presentation unclear, incomplete comprehension of the basic concepts and arguments.
Other information
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2030 agenda goals for sustainable development
