Teaching code

4S007344

Credits

6

Coordinatore

Laura Anna Macor

Language

Italian

Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)

M-FIL/06 - HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY

Courses Single

Authorized

Moodle Seminars

The teaching is organized as follows:

Learning objectives

The course aims to foster a fruitful dialogue with the classics of German philosophy, focusing on a topic of crucial interest and enduring relevance. The learning objectives (whose attainment will be carefully checked and tested during the exam) comprise an ability to read and understand texts: students will be exposed to dialogue with some of the protagonists of German philosophical thought in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. They will sharpen their awareness of key terminology and, at the same time, increase their disposition to connect acquired knowledge with personal experience. The anticipated learning objectives are as follows:

Knowledge:
1) Knowledge and understanding of classical German philosophy and its major exponents;
2) Knowledge and understanding of some of the most important texts of classical German philosophy; 3) Knowledge and understanding of the German philosophical lexicon developed between the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries.

Skills:
1) Applying acquired knowledge and understanding to the reading of and commentary on philosophical texts belonging to the classical German tradition, possibly in the original or at least with some reference to it; this should be demonstrated by the possession of an appropriate vocabulary and the ability to identify interpretative problems and suggest possible solutions;
2) Applying acquired knowledge and understanding to the translation of the key words of classical German philosophy, which are often intrinsically polysemous; 3) Making autonomous judgments and engaging in independent reasoning;
4) Developing communication skills in the following areas: participating in guided discussions, explaining ideas and defending these through argument, and possibly delivering short presentations in class;
5) Enacting autonomous learning skills through the development of an appropriate methodology of study and interpretation of texts;
6) Developing the ability to connect study outcomes with personal experience with regard to the specific subject of the course, wherein particular attention will be paid to ability to differentiate between historical circumstances and contexts.

Prerequisites and basic notions

Knowledge of the history of modern and contemporary philosophy at BA level.

Program

COURSE CONTENT: Kant and Schiller on emotions in ethics.
The course aims to reconstruct and compare the stances of Kant and Schiller on the role of emotions in ethical life, and will consist of three parts:
1) Introduction to classical German philosophy e revision of its traditional image: periodization,
alternative historiographical categories, authors, ideas, literary genres;
2) The role of emotions in Kant's ethics: phases, critical turn, key theoretical issues and main interpretations;
3) The role of emotions in Schiller's ethics: education, early writings, critical turn, seeming aporias, main interpretations and (in)direct dialogue with Kant.
Additional earning materials will be published on e-learning as part of the compulsory readings for both attending and non-attending students.

Bibliography

Didactic methods

The course will be delivered in class.
The course will consist of two parts: 24 hours of lectures (=4 CFU) and 24 hours of exercises (=2 CFU). Only lectures will be recorded and made available online.
In the first part of the course, the professor will provide all relevant historical, theoretical and historiographical elements following a traditional explanatory method, open to discussion and students' active participation.
In the second part of the course, the teaching mode will shift to seminars with discussions initially guided by the professor, papers given by students and/or team working. The ways in which professor and students, but most importantly students themselves will interact mutually, will be object of experimentation and will possibly be reassessed in the making, in the light of the attendees’ number, their potential suggestions and specific learning needs. The students’ active and concrete contribution will play a crucial role in the process of co-creating this common learning path. Non-attending students are requested to contact the professor in order to identify alternative and substitutive teaching/learning modes.

Learning assessment procedures

Oral exam for the first part of the course + exercises (or substitutive activity) for the second part of the course.
The oral exam will be the same for both attending and non-attending students: students will have to demonstrate understanding of the topics dealt with and acquisition of a robust methodology for analyzing texts and reflecting on their theoretical implications; in doing this, they will have to demonstrate mastery of the lexicon and theoretical maturity.
The exercises carried out in class will determine the relevant mark for attending students. The form of assessment for non-attending students will be clarified during the meeting aimed at identifying alternative and substitutive teaching/learning modes.

Evaluation criteria

The evaluation criteria are as follows:
1) knowledge of key notions and understanding of the underlying problems;
2) ability to present clearly;
3) ability to analyze texts and use appropriate terminology;
4) autonomy of thought;
5) active participation and evidence of a real improvement (exercises).

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

The final mark will be in 30/30, and will be the weighted mean of the marks obtained in the two parts.

Exam language

Italiano/Italian (incoming students can take the exam in English or German).