84993 - Philosophy and Phenomenology of Experience (1)

Learning outcomes

After completing the course the student is able to identify some of the key moments of philosophical thought and to adopt a synoptic view of them. He is able to place the philosophers in their historical context and to understand their thinking in contemporary philosophical discourse. He knows the problematic nature of the concepts of meaning, reference and truth.

Course contents

Course title:
The Phenomenology of experience in Ludwig Wittgenstein: The Blue and Brown Books

 

«I have studied Wittgenstein much more strongly than Popper. And rightly so, since Wittgenstein is a true philosopher, while Popper is only an ambitious school teacher».

(Paul K. Feyerabend)

 

 
Since the Tractatus, Wittgenstein has dealt with problems involving phenomena and their role within the experience, but it is only from the end of the twenties, after the encounter with Brouwer's intuitionism, that these problems take on a central role in his thought. The texts that we will examine concern two courses held by Wittgenstein in Cambridge: the first in 1933-34 called The Blue Book; the second in 1935-1936 called The Brown Book. These are "preliminary philosophical studies", the development of which will flow into the Philosophical Investigations, which began in 1941 and published only in 1953, two years after Wittgenstein's death. We will analyze the semantic and pragmatic aspects that Wittgenstein highlights regarding our experience of reality.

Distribution of topics in lectures:

 Of the 15 lectures available:

1 will be dedicated to a historical-philosophical introduction;
2 will be dedicated to clarifying the main Wittgenstein's concepts;
12 will be dedicated to commenting and discussing Wittgenstein's text.

Start of lectures and place

• The lectures will begin on Monday, September 21, 2020, in classroom B, via Zamboni 34 (Monday, Tuesday), classroom IV, via Zamboni 38 (Wednesday), from 3 to 5 pm. In the week from 21st to 25th September the lectures will be held exclusively online
  

Readings/Bibliography

Preliminary warning: "ATTENDING" means both those attending face-to-face lectures and those attending online lectures; for "NON ATTENDING" those who do not fall into either of the above two cases.

Obligatory readings for all Students:

• Ludwig Wittgeinstein, The Blue and The Brown Books, Einaudi, Turin 1983. (or other Editions) (The text will be available in the "teaching material"). NOTE: the Brown Book is indicated only as a reading that expands the topics covered in the Blue Book. The exam questions will focus only on the themes and passages of the Blue Book, in reference to which the slides exposed and discussed in class will be made available.
• Explanatory notes provided by the teacher (progressively available in the "teaching material").
• NEW! NOTE: the recorded lectures of the course are available and downloadable at the following link: WITTGENSTEIN LECTURES - BLUE BOOK

Optional readings for attending Students:

 note: this is just an indication. To pass the exam with maximum marks, obligatory readings are sufficient and, above all, the teaching material prepared by the teacher):

• L. Perissinotto, Introduzione a Wittgenstein, il Mulino, Bologna 2018.
• D. Marconi, Guida a Wittgenstein, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2002.
  

Readings for non-attending Students:

• L. Perissinotto, Introduzione a Wittgenstein, il Mulino, Bologna 2018 (obligatory).
• D. Marconi, Guida a Wittgenstein, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2002 (optional).

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures; discussion on the main topics treated in the course. Reading and commentary of texts.

Assessment methods

Oral test with verification of specific historical and philosophical knowledge and of the level of assimilation and processing critical-conceptual content (See "Evaluation board". Each entry of the board has a maximum of 10 points, for a total of 30 + possible laude).

Assessment criteria and thresholds of evaluation:

30 cum laude: Excellent as to knowledge, terminology and critical expression.

30: Excellent, knowledge is complete, well articulated and correctly expressed, although with some slight faults.

27-29: Good, knowledge comprehensive and satisfactory, essentially correct expression .

24-26: Fairly good, knowledge present in significant points, but not complete and not always expressed with correctness.

21-23: Sufficient, knowledge is sometimes superficial, but the guiding general thread is included. Expression and articulation incomplete and often not appropriate

18-21:.Almost sufficient, but knowledge present only on the surface. The guiding principle is not included with continuity. The expression and articulation of the speech show important gaps.

<18: Not sufficient, knowledge absent or very incomplete, lack of guidance in discipline, expression seriously deficient. Exam failed.

 

Teaching tools

Overhead projector connected with PC

Links to further information

http://www.disciplinefilosofiche.it

Office hours

See the website of Luca Guidetti