The module offers a selective path through key theoretical issues of early modern thought between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. Early modern philosophy will be framed within the broader context of the development of philosophical thought, encouraging students to apply historical-philosophical knowledge to the analysis of contemporary philosophical debates. By the end of the course, students will be able to interpret and contextualise the core readings, and also to work systematically through the materials. Thanks to selected critical bibliography, and to the application of the appropriate historiographical tools, the module will enable students to read and interpret early modern authors beyond those discussed during the course.
Students should possess adequate knowledge of the main authors and philosophical currents of early modernity, demonstrated by having obtained at least 6 CFU in this area of study. Students who do not meet the requirement are encouraged to get in touch with the lecturer beforehand, in order to discuss additional supporting readings.
The module features lectures and seminars based on textual readings. Students are required to prepare short presentations, which will serve as starting points for discussion, especially regarding the link between early modern and contemporary debates. Students not attending the course (i.e. those who will attend less than two thirds of the lectures) will have to write a short dissertation (2.000 words) on a text to be chosen together with the lecturer. This dissertation replaces attendance and the oral presentation during the module, but not the final oral exams. Teaching methods will be adapted to allow fruitful participation of students with disabilities, e.g. by encouraging the preparation of conceptual maps, which can be used during lectures.
The exam will consist of the presentation in class of a text chosen from a list provided at the beginning of the course and an oral discussion on the course content.
Nature, Ecology, and the Environment
The module is devoted to philosophical reflection on the various understanding of ‘nature’ in early modernity, and on the conceptual relationship between nature and environment, also in relation to issues regarding the use of natural resources and ultimately of ecology. Selected texts from 16th-18th-century authors will be put in dialogue with contemporary discussions on the environment as that which is external to the human being, and for which the human being is responsible. Starting with a historical-philosophical analysis of the key terms used in the selected primary sources, the module seeks to identify different modalities of interaction with the natural world, highlighting the role of humanity. For this reason, the selection of the core readings will be characterised as much as possible by a broad European angle, including authors like Descartes and Campanella, and different philosophical genres (featuring, for instance, extracts from Bacon’s New Atlantis). Discussion of the texts will be guided by a series of questions, aimed at casting light on elements of continuity and of discontinuity between early modern and contemporary debates. Which is the function, and what are the limits of technology in the intervention on the natural environment? How is mind different from nature, and yet in nature? What is the role of violence in nature, and what are the limits of violence in the relationship with other species, especially animals?
Updates and messages concerning the course will be circulated via the e-learning platform, to which students must therefore promptly register. Teaching materials will also be made available on the same platform: it will therefore be necessary to access it regularly.
ERASMUS students are requested to contact the lecturer prior to the start of the course.
