28107 - Philosophy and Theory of Arts (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

Students are expected to acquire methodological and critical knowledge about the relationship between philosophy and the ideas, theories and essential categories characterizing the reflection about art. From a historiographical point of view they are expected also to become familiar with two main themes, such as the relationship between philosophical aesthetics and modernity and the possibility to define the conditions under that we can speak of an aesthetic thinking (related to the status of art in general and of the particular arts) also in the ancient philosophy.

Course contents

The concept of form and its role in the philosophy of Martin Heidegger

The course aims at discussing philosophically the concept of form and its relation with beauty and art. The first lessons will deal will the history of the concept, in order to become aware of the main stages it went through (for example, the philosophies of Platon, Plotin, Kant, Schiller and Nietzsche). Then the specific understanding of the concept of form – and particularly of the form of the divine – in Martin Heidegger will be discussed. In order to do so, some of Heidegger's texts of the Thirties and Fourties will be taken into consideration.

Readings/Bibliography

C. Gentili,Storia filosofica del concetto di forma, in G. Borio, C. Gentili (a cura di), Storia dei concetti musicali. Espressione, forma, opera, Carocci, Roma 2007, pp. 141-152.

W. Tatarkiewicz, Storia di sei Idee, presentazione e cura di K. Jaworska, tr. it. di O. Burba e K. Jaworska, consulenza scientifica e postfazione di L. Russo, Aethetica, Palermo 2011, cap. VII (“La Forma: storia di un termine e cinque concetti”), pp. 225-250.

M. Heidegger,L’origine dell’opera d’arte, in Id., Sentieri interrotti, presentazione e traduzione di P. Chiodi, La Nuova Italia, Scandicci (Firenze) 1996, pp. 3-69.

M. Heidegger, Parmenide, a cura di F. Volpi, trad. di G. Gurisatti, Adelphi, Milano 1999.

Teaching methods

The course will consist of frontal lessons; sources will be commented and discussed and the problems and their historical context synthetically reconstructed. Teacher-led discussions will be encouraged.

Assessment methods

It's mandatory to bring all the texts for the final proof.

The final proof will take place in the form of an oral examination. During the examination the teacher will assess whether the student has achieved or not some basic educational goals: knowledge of the texts and capacity to contextualize authors and works; comprehension of the fundamental concepts and capacity to provide a correct interpretation of them; clarity in the explanation of concepts and accuracy in the use of philosophical terminology; capacity to establish connections between the various authors and themes from both a historical and a strictly speaking conceptual point of view. During the oral examination the teacher will assess if the student possesses the abovementioned knowledge and skills in a (more or less) complete, precise and adequate way, or vice-versa in a (more or less) incomplete, vague and superficial way. The final grade will correspondently vary from excellent (30 and honors) to very good (30) to good (27-29) to fairly good (24-26) to more than enough (21-23) to merely enough (18-21) to unsatisfactory (<18).

Teaching tools

All the aforementioned texts (in the specified editions) are an essential tool in order to actively participate in the classes. It is recommended to get hold of the texts before classe because specific parts will be read and commented.

Some other texts will be distributed through the channels offered by the Unibo portal.

Office hours

See the website of Francesco Cattaneo