00345 - Aesthetics (F-N)

Learning outcomes

After completing the course, students acquire basic knowledge of the origins of aesthetics, its development, and its current orientations. They also understand its connections with other disciplines: the theoretical ones (such as poetics, hermeneutics, and rhetorics) and those related to the arts. The students' use of the correct terminology and their ability to apply the main conceptual and methodological instruments allow them to critically understand the fundamental notions of aesthetics and engage with the study of a "classic" of the discipline.

Course contents

Aesthetics and the Transformations of Art

 

The aim of the course is to introduce the principal themes that have shaped aesthetics as a distinctly modern field of inquiry, while examining the transformations it has undergone in response to the profound changes that have affected the arts throughout the twentieth century.

The course is divided into two modules.

 

Module 1: Aesthetics and the Philosophical Inquiry into Art

The first part of the course will introduce the major themes and authors of modern aesthetics, examining the reasons that led to the emergence and consolidation of aesthetics as a philosophical discipline concerned with beauty and art. Alongside an analysis of the origins of aesthetics in the eighteenth century, the course will trace the development of aesthetic thought through its major figures up to the early twentieth century. This introductory section will conclude with a discussion of texts that engaged with the artistic revolutions of the twentieth century, beginning with the writings of Walter Benjamin.

 

Module 2: Perspectives in Twentieth-Century Aesthetics

The second part of the course will explore some of the major problems and theoretical perspectives that shaped twentieth-century aesthetics. This will be accomplished through a close reading of texts by José Ortega y Gasset, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and Hans-Goerg Gadamer whose work is deeply rooted in the philosophical traditions of twentieth-century Europe. The course will conclude with an overview of the principal themes in analytic philosophy of art.

Readings/Bibliography

Module 1

• E. Caramelli, C. Gentili, Storia dell’estetica, Le Monnier, Milano, 2025, pp. 76–143 (ossia i capitoli 3 e 4).
• P. D’Angelo, E. Franzini, G. Scaramuzza (a cura di), Estetica, Cortina, Milano, 2002, pp. 157-293 (namely, both the introductory sections and the anthology selections on Kant, Fr. Schlegel, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Baudelaire, Croce, and Benjamin).

Module 2

• J. Ortega y Gasset, La disumanizzazione dell’arte, Morcelliana, Brescia, 2026.
• M. Merleau-Ponty, Conversazioni, SE, Milano, 2020.
• H.-G. Gadamer, L’attualità del bello. L’arte come gioco, simbolo e festa, in Id., L’attualità del bello, Marietti, Bologna, 2021, pp. 3-57. 
• N. Warburton, La questione dell’arte, Einaudi, Torino, 2004.

For the 12 cfu exam, the texts indicated for both modules are mandatory.

For both the 6 cfu and 12 cfu exams, non-attending students will also be required to read:

• E. Cassirer, I problemi istitutivi dell’estetica moderna, Meltemi, Milano, 2024.

Teaching methods

Traditional lectures, workshops, and classroom presentations by students.

Assessment methods

6 cfu. Students (Module I) will be evaluated on the basis of an oral exam.

 

12 cfu. Students (Module I + Module II) will be evaluated on the basis of a two steps evaluation:

a) a written part which consists of a multiple-choice test (21 questions concerning the readings listed in the bibliography related to the first module; correct answer = 1,5 point; wrong answer= 0). Unless special cases are certificated (cf. students with disabilities and SLD), the examination will take 45 minutes. A pass mark (15/30 = 10 correct answers at least) on the multiple-choice test is required in order to access the oral interview.

b) an oral part, aiming to test the achievement of the fundamental learning outcomes, such as: thorough knowledge of the mandatory readings and ability to contextualize them in their historical period; full understanding of the core concepts and interpreting skills; ability to express ideas and concepts clearly and cogently; ability to build connections between authors and topics of the prescription. The oral exam will mainly focus on all the texts indicated as mandatory in the program in addition to those already covered in the written test; yet questions requiring links to the latter may still be asked.

Depending on the performance of the oral interview, the final mark may confirm or lower/grade up by max. 3 points the mark obtained in the written test.

The final grade is therefore an overall assessment: excellent (30L); top mark (30); good (27-29); fairly good (24-26); sufficient (22-23); almost sufficient (18-21).

 

It is not possible to switch from group A-E to group F-N or O-Z, nor vice versa. The only exception is for international students/students.

 

Students with disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) are entitled to special adjustments according to their condition, subject to assessment by the University Service for Students with Disabilities and SLD. Please do not contact teachers or Department staff, but make an appointment with the Service. The Service will then determine what adjustments are specifically appropriate, and get in touch with the teacher. For more information, please visit the page:
https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students

It is recommended that students contact the University office in advance. Any proposed adjustments must be submitted at least 15 days in advance for the instructor’s approval, who will evaluate their appropriateness in relation to the learning objectives of the course.

 

Exam sessions 

Exam sessions are scheduled during the calendar year in the following months: January, March, May, June, September, November.

Teaching tools

Power point slides concerning course's texts and topics will be used.

Office hours

See the website of Giovanni Matteucci