30413 - Philosophy Laboratory (1) (G.M)

Learning outcomes

The student learns to read and critically analyze philosophical texts and to write a philosophical essay.

Course contents

The Philosophy Workshop has three main purposes: education to philosophical writing and editorial conventions; introduction to the use of bibliographic resources; introduction to how to read a philosophical classic and how to produce a short philosophical essay about it.

The success of workshops ideally requires regular attendance of all students at all meetings. In order to be admitted to the final exam and achieve a pass, students will need to have attended at least 12 out of 15 classes (24 hours out of 30).

Students can choose from several proposals of Philosophy Workshops. Programmes and teachers’ names are available on the website of the First Cycle Degree/Bachelor in Philosophy (corsi.unibo.it/1cycle/Philosophy). Up to 40 students may attend each laboratory. Classes will be given in Italian or in English, as indicated by each teacher on their laboratory web pages.

To enrol in the I or II semester Workshops, students must apply directly to the chosen teacher, by e-mail (please indicate as subject: Philosophy Workshop). Applications will be open from 1 to 15 September 2022. Each teacher will accept up to 40 requests. Excess requests and those submitted after 15 September will be redistributed based on the availability of vacancies.

Attendance — both face-to-face and online, if streaming is activated — will be verified by signature on sign-in sheets or by log-in online. In the light of several unpleasant episodes of signature falsification in recent years, in the event that it is proved that even a single signature has not been made by the corresponding student, that student will be excluded from the final exam and will have to wait until the next year to attend the Workshop again. The same standards will hold for students submitting written exams which are totally or partially copied from published sources or digital texts.

Only in the event of certified inability to attend the Workshop are students allowed to arrange an alternative programme with the relevant teacher of the module in question. Such cases include:

- working students who cannot obtain specific permission to attend the Workshop. Such students must inform the teacher at the beginning of the module and prove by a declaration of their employers their inability to attend.

- Erasmus and Overseas students. Such students must promptly provide documentary evidence to the teacher showing their inability to attend on grounds of residence abroad.

For attending students, assessment will consist in the submission and discussion of a short essay on the philosophical text discussed in the Workshop attended. The essay will be evaluated both for form and for content. During the laboratory, teachers will provide instructions on how to write the final essay, and all students are requested to download and study the manual of philosophical writing, which can be found at corsi.unibo.it/laurea/Filosofia/laboratorio-di-filosofia-norme-per-la-redazione-del-saggio-finale (in Italian).

Philosophy Laboratory (1) (G.M) will focus on the problem of style in Simmel (1908).

Readings/Bibliography

Simmel, G., Il problema dello stile (1908), in B. Carnevali, A. Pinotti (a cura di), Stile moderno. Saggi di estetica sociale, Einaudi, Torino 2020, pp. 107-117 (or in any other edition).

Other references will be provided during the laboratory.

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures; exercises; discussion; guided presentations by students (single or groups).

The language of this activity is Italian. Exchange students who are not fluent in Italian can contact me for further explanations in English, but I won't be able to offer extensive individual tutoring.

Please refer to the Italian section for a detailed schedule of classes.

The Laboratory is divided into the following three sections:

- illustration of the rules of philosophical writing and argumentative analysis (recognize and assess arguments, identify fallacies, etc.).

- introduction to the main issues discussed by Simmel in Il problema dello stile [The Problem of Style].

- student presentations.

Assessment methods

Students will be assessed through:

- class exercises and individual presentations (individually or in coordinated groups).

- a final written paper (min. 12,000 characters, max. 15,000 characters, references excluded) to be submitted by e-mail at least 15 days before the exam date. The paper must address one of the topics discussed in class and it must be linguistically and stylistically correct.

Office hours

See the website of Gioia Laura Iannilli