73082 - History of Medieval Philosophy (2) (LM)

Learning outcomes

The course will lead to a thorough knowledge of the philosophical medieval reflections with special focus on the epistemological aspects and the interweaving of the sources into the vernacular, Latin, greek, Arab and Jewish. We want to draw the lines of an intellectual history, marked by  the real historical dimension; a dimension which also opens to concepts, issues and ideas.  In this way, students will learn to extricate themselves critically between notions, categories and classifications historiography, which, if he was recruited strictly, would lead to errors, ideological prejudices and to a historical determinism as to block any freedom of interpretation. The lessons will give particular relevance to the texts, the study of semantic variations of the theological and philosophical the lexicon and the rigorous scrutiny of the historiographic interpretations and history of concepts and ideas.

 

Course contents

Petrarch's relationship with Scholastics.

The course will begin by analyzing the De sui ipsius et multorum ignorantia, commenting the precise meaning of Petrarch's anti-averroism, which influenced the Italian religious discussion outside universities until the beginning of the Sixteenth century. During the course, we will highlight the ideological importance of the recovery of classics and of their writing style for the birth of humanism, without leaving out the impulse given by Petrarch and Boccaccio to the study of Greek.

Readings/Bibliography

FRANCESCO PETRARCA, Della mia ignoranza e di quella di molti altri, a cura di Enrico Fenzi, Milano 1999 (read carefully also Fenzi's preface).

ERNEST HATCH WILKINS, Vita del Petrarca, Milano 1964 and following editions.

Teaching methods

lectures; during class the teacher reads, translates and comments on relevant textual passages and thematic nodes.

Assessment methods

Oral examination: Students are recommended to bring the texts when examining.
Students who have attended lectures may agree on exams (whether written or oral) devoted to specific topics.

Assessment criteria and thresholds of evaluation:

30 cum laude - Excellent as to knowledge, philosophical lexicon and critical expression.

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

27-29 – Good: thorough and satisfactory knowledge; essentially correct expression.

24-26 - Fairly good: knowledge broadly acquired, and not always correctely expressed.

21-23 – Sufficient: superficial and partial knowledge; exposure and articulation are incomplete and often not sufficiently appropriate

18-21 - Almost sufficient: superficial and decontextualized knowledge. The exposure of the contents shows important gaps.

Exam failed - Students are requested to show up at a subsequent exam session if basic skills and knowledge are not sufficiently acquired and not placed in the historical-philosophical context.

Teaching tools

texts; during the course the teacher will provide handouts and translations students.

Students who have not attended the course will find educational materials available at the secretariat of the students, via Zamboni 38, second floor.

Office hours

See the website of Franco Bacchelli