98923 - Philosophy of Emotions (2) (LM)

Learning outcomes

This course examines central issues in current emotion research through the work of philosophers, psychologists, and cognitive and affective scientists. It is expected that students will become familiar with debates and theories about emotion and affectivity and will develop an ability to analyse and critically assess them.

Course contents

This course examines central issues in current emotion research. We will zoom in on the following topics: the expression of emotions, mixed feelings, emotions in decision making, and emotions for fictional characters.

Readings/Bibliography

Scarantino A. (2017). How to do things with emotional expressions: The theory of affective pragmatics, Psychological Inquiry, 28(2-3), 165-185.

Crivelli C. & Fridlund A. J. (2019). Inside-out: From basic emotions theory to the behavioral ecology view. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 43(2), 161-194.

Scarantino A., Hareli S. & Hess U. (2022). Emotional expressions as appeals to recipients. Emotion, 22(8), 1856–1868.

 

Russell J.A. (2003). Core affect and the psychological construction of emotion, Psychological Review, 145-72.

Charland L.C. (2005). Emotion Experience and the Indeterminacy of Valence. In L. F. Barrett, P. M. Niedenthal & P. Winkielman (eds.), Emotion and consciousness (231–254). The Guilford Press.

Colombetti G. (2005). Appraising Valence, Journal of Consciousness Studies, 12(8–10), 103–26.

Sizer L. (2013). The Two Facets of Pleasure, Philosophical Topics, 41(1), 215-36.

Russell J.A. (2017). Mixed Emotions Viewed from the Psychological Constructionist Perspective, Emotion Review, 9(2), 111–17.

 

Bechara A. & Damasio A.R. (2005). The Somatic Marker Hypothesis: A Neural Theory of Economic Decision, Games and Economic Behavior, 52, 336–72.

Colombetti G. (2008). The Somatic Marker Hypotheses, and What the Iowa Gambling Task Does and Does Not Show, The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 59(1), 51–71.

 

Caracciolo M. (2013). ‘Narrative Space and Readers’ Responses to Stories: A Phenomenological Account, Style, 47(4), 425–44.

Kukkonen K. (2014). Presence and Prediction: The Embodied Reader’s Cascades of Cognition. Style, 48(3), 367–84.

Kuzmičova A. (2014). Literary Narrative and Mental Imagery: A View From Embodied Cognition, Style, 48(3), 275–93.

Campeggiani P. (2020). Nec Cogitare Sed Facere: The Paradox of Fiction at the Tribunal of Ancient Poetics, Theoria, 86(6), 709–26.

 

NB All readings are mandatory.

 

It is required that non-attending students also read Campeggiani, P. (2023), Theories of Emotion: Expressing, Feeling, Acting, London, Bloomsbury.

Teaching methods

This course is designed to be delivered over a period of 5 weeks with three two-hour classes per week.

Assessment methods

Attending students are required to attend no less than 12 classes. Grades will be distributed as follows: active participation during classes (20%), final viva voce examination (80%).

Non-attending students will be evaluated on the basis of a viva voce examination.

The viva voce examination will commence with a ten-minute presentation by the student on a topic of their choice from within the course prescription. It will also include questions by the instructor on any other part of the prescription.

 

Students with disabilities and Specific Learning Difficulties (SLD)

Students with disabilities or Specific Learning Difficulties have the right to special adjustments according to their condition, following an assessment by the Service for Students with Disabilities and SLD. Please do not contact the instructor but get in touch with the Service directly to schedule an appointment. It will be the responsibility of the Service to determine the appropriate adjustments. For more information, visit the page:

https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students

Teaching tools

Further readings will be provided via Virtuale.

Office hours

See the website of Pia Campeggiani