HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY

The course aims to compare the historical coordinates that have characterized the development of the Western philosophical rationality and the basic aspects of the thought and philosophy of Eastern cultures. It is therefore concerned to provide first of all a brief historical knowledge of the development of Western philosophy from its origins to Kant. As far as the comparativistic aspect, the course operates in the light of so-called “comparative philosophy” in a twofold sense: by focusing on the clash between civilizations and cultures in the same historical and geographical milieu; and by a comparison of cultures and traditions that only sporadically and in recent times have had continued and systematic contacts. This will be carried out, for the first aspect, through the study of the transition from pagan to Christian culture, when the Hellenistic-Roman culture is disappearing in favor of Christian-medieval world; for the second aspect through the study of the most relevant currents and traditions of Western and Far Eastern thought (India and China), also trying to address, from a theoretical point of view, the significance of a cultural comparison and the limits within which it can be exercised.

The course includes an institutional part ( textbook) and an in-depth part (monograph part).

The institutional part provides a basic knowledge of the history of western philosophy, with particular reference to the authors and currents listed below: Classical Philosophy: Plato, Aristotle; Christian Philosophy: Augustine, Thomas Aquinas; 15th century Philosophy, Humanism and the Renaissance: Platonism in Florence, Cusano, Ficino and Pico della Mirandola; 16th century: Telesio, Bruno, Campanella; Scientific Thought in the 16th and 17th centuries: Copernicus, Brahe, Kepler, Galilei, Newton; The modern philosophy: Bacon, Descartes, Cartesianism and Jansenism, Hobbes, Pascal, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, Vico, Berkeley, Hume, the Enlightenment, Kant, Nietzsche; the contrast between rationalism and empiricism.

For the Eastern philosophy: The traditional schools of Hindu thought; Buddhism; Confucianism; Zen Buddhism; Taoism.

1. M. Mori, Storia della filosofia moderna, Laterza, 2019 (only the first 247 pp.; also available in electronic format) + handouts that will be provided from time to time by the teacher on the different topics of the course and that will be available on the Studium platform.

2. Teacher's handouts (for Indian and Chinese philosophers)

3. M. Bettini, Elogio del politeismo, Il Mulino, Bologna 2014 (pp. 7-126).

4. G. Vidal, Giuliano, Fazi Editore, Rome 2003 (or other edition) - Romanzo.
To supplement and clarify the text of Vidal, Giuliano, it is necessary to study the teacher's handouts, which form an integral part of the course and cannot be omitted in the exams. To further integrate and clarify this text and the topics it deals with, students must study the following articles: 1) A.G. Biuso, "Le persecuzioni contro i pagani"; 2) P. Cipolla, "L'ossimoro dell'imperatore Giuliano: Chiesa pagana e tolleranza intollerante"; 3) C. Crimi, "Gregorio Nazianzeno, lo Ps.-Nonno e gli dèi greci". They are contained in the magazine Vita pensata, n. 18, February 2019, which can be downloaded from the web at the following address: http://www.vitapensata.eu/vitapensata/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Vita-Pensata-n.-18.pdf, or that will be put online on the Studium platform as individual articles.

All of the teacher's handouts and other teaching materials can be found on the Studium platform.