90064 - History of Philosophy from Renaissance to Enlightenment (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide depth knowledge on modern philosophical culture of the period that goes from fifteenth to the eighteenth century, with particular interest for Renaissance philosophical texts, seventeenth century philosophy and and Enlightenment philosophy. In this perspective, which focuses on modernity and its origins, specific themes will be examined and classical texts questioned, contextualizing their analysis in the framework of long-term traditions, but also underlining moments of crisis and rupture with the past. The aim of the course is to allow students to autonomously face the reading of philosophical texts in a historical perspective; to perceive the relevance of historiographical and methodological questions related to periodization and polarity between continuity and disruption; to know the main lines of modern and contemporary historiography, acquiring, at the same time, the awareness of the problematic nature and complexity of philosophical research.

Course contents

Course Title: Religious dissent and philosophy in modern Europe: Socinian itinerares in Holland and England. Spinoza, Bayle, Locke.

The central theme of the course will be how the religious heterodoxy - in particular the bold metaphysical interpretations that appear in the latter half of the 17th century, taking inspiration from the works of the 'Italian heretic' Fausto Socini - , contributed to the development of modern philosophical thinking, and, at the same time, to the crisis of European identity, while the debate around the philosophy of Descartes assumed the characteristics of a movement towards rational Christian theology. Conceived in an atmosphere of biblical philology and centring on a denial of the divinity of Christ, Socinian doctrine assaults the general attention with some pivotal themes -  the corporeality of all beings, the finitude of God, the power of freedom and the rejection of hierarchy - such as to assume a theoretical independence that goes way beyond what its founder intended. Themes that were to become a constant reference point in the debates of the 'Republic of the letters', taking on pervasive and original forms in the trends and conflicts of post-Cartesian philosophy.

Authors such as Spinoza, Bayle and Locke represent the high point of this phenomenon; hence the proposal to retrace the salient incidents of the phase in which the hermeneutics of the Socinians and the implications of their message of religious tolerance were established as primary elements of modern culture, with a visual perspective of their works and their discussions.

Module 1: Reason, Holy Bible, universal religion: Spinoza and the Socinians. Sources, interlocutors, problems

The first module of the course (30 h) involves reading and discussing a number of texts by Spinoza - the first part of Ethics, the Theological-Political Treatise and passages of his correspondence -, to illustrate the reasons for the critical attention afforded by the philosopher to the Socinian movement, initially in terms of the concept of God, biblical exegesis and Christology. Other areas of detailed study will also be developed, concerning the historical-cultural context within which Spinoza’s thinking was formed and the people with whom he conversed, with a particular focus on the liberal Christian movements.

N.B.: For students who choose the 12 cfu course (6 cfu + 6 cfu) the lessons will continue with the second module.

Readings/Bibliography

1. During the classes will be read the following texts (or any part):

Spinoza, Etica, Prima parte: Di Dio e Appendice alla Prima parte, in Id., Opere, a cura di F. Mignini e O. Proietti, Milano, Mondadori, 2007 [paperback 2015], pp. 787-834;

Spinoza, Principi della filosofia di Cartesio, Appendice: Riflessioni metafisiche, Parte II, in Id., Opere, sopra cit., pp. 363-399;

Spinoza, Trattato teologico-politico, in Id., Opere, sopra cit.: Prefazione, capp. 1-4, 7-15, 20;

Spinoza, Carteggio con Oldenburg e Carteggio con van Blijenbergh, in Id., Opere, sopra cit., pp. 1297-1313 e 1335-1390.

2. In addition to in-depth knowledge of the texts referred to in paragraph 1, all studens must read one of the following essays:

A. Bettini, Il Cristo di Spinoza, Milano, Ghibli, 2005;

M. Biagioni, Viaggiatori dell'utopia. La Riforma radicale del Cinquecento e le origini del mondo moderno, Roma, Carocci, 2020;

R. Bordoli, Ragione e Scrittura tra Descartes e Spinoza. Saggio sulla Philosophia S. Scripturae interpres di Lodewijk Meyer e sulla sua ricezione, Milano, F. Angeli, 1997;

R. Bordoli, Etica, arte, scienza tra Descartes e Spinoza. Lodewijk Meyer (1629-1681) e l'associazione Nil volentibus arduum, Milano, F. Angeli, 2001;

Cristo nella filosofia dell'età moderna, a cura di A. Del Prete e S. Ricci, Firenze, Le Lettere, 2014;

Fausto Sozzini e la filosofia in Europa, Atti del Convegno (Siena, 25-27 novembre 2004), a cura di M. Priarolo e E. Scribano, Siena, Accademia degli Intronati, 2005;

L. Kolakowski, Chrétiens sans Eglise. La conscience religieuse et le lien confessionel au XVIIe siècle, Paris, Gallimard, 1969;

V. Marchetti, I simulacri delle parole e il lavoro dell’eresia. Ricerca sulle origini del socinianesimo, Bologna, Cisec, 1999;

A. Matheron, Le Christ et le salut des ignorants chez Spinoza, Paris, Aubier-Montaigne, 1971;

K.O. Meinsma, Spinoza et son cercle, Préface de H. Gouhier, Paris, Vrin, 1984;

S. Nadler, Baruch Spinoza e l'Olanda del Seicento, Torino, Einaudi, 2009;

M.E. Scribano, Da Descartes a Spinoza. Percorsi della teologia razionale nel Seicento, Milano, F. Angeli, 1988.

N.B.: The course program is the same, as for attending and not attending students. Anyway, students who cannot attend classes or who don't know Italian may contact the teacher (in office hours, and not by e-mail) to decide upon any additional or alternative readings.

Teaching methods

The course consists of 15 lessons.

Since it is a course/seminar, attending students will be encouraged to conduct brief individual works of critical analysis on topics or authors relating to the course contents.

These works will have value to the examination.

The course will be held in the second semester and will start on February 1st, 2021.

Timetable

- Monday, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Room B, Via Centotrecento;

- Thursday, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Room E, Via Zamboni 34;

- Friday, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Room E, Via Zamboni 34.

Office hours: during the first semester of classes (September-December 2020) Prof. Scapparone will receive students online, through the Teams platform, on Thursday, h. 16-18 p.m.

Assessment methods

Final oral examination.

Students who have attended the course will be able, if they wish, to integrate the examination with short essays or presentations on topics agreed with the teacher.

In accordance with the class, a written text on a specific part of the program could be organized. Detailed procedures about this text shall be laid down at the beginning of the course.

Assessment criteria

The goal of the exam is to measure the achievement of the following learning objectives:

- Analysis and interpretation of Spinoza's philosophical texts;

- Knowledge of secondary literature works listed in the bibliography, combined with the ability to learn how to reference them in autonomous and critical forms;

- Knowledge of the history of modern philosophy.

The student's ability to learn how to operate with confidence and autonomy within the sources and the secondary literature and the possession of a language and forms of expression appropriate to the discipline will be assessed in a particular manner.

Assessment thresholds

30 with distinction: Excellent results for the solidity of skills, wealth of critical articulation, expressive properties and maturity.

30: Excellent result: complete and well-articulated knowledge of themes addressed in lessons, with critical ideas, and illustrated with adequate expressive features.

29-27: Good result: complete knowledge and adequately contestualized, fundamentally correct presentation.

26-24: Moderate result: knowledge is present in the essential areas, though not thorough and not always articulated correctly.

23-21: Sufficient result: superficial or purely mnemonic understanding of the subject, confused articulation of the presentation, with often inappropriate expression.

20-18: Barely sufficient result: knowledge of the subject, articulation during discussions and methods of expression demonstrate considerable gaps in understanding.

< 18: Insufficient result, exam failed. The student is invited to attend a subsequent exam session where the essential skills have not been acquired, lacking the ability to orient themselves within the subjects of the course and of the same discipline and where the methods of expression demonstrate considerable gaps in understanding.

Teaching tools

Slides and photocopies (limited to hard to find texts);

Advanced seminars;

Any individualized works.

Office hours

See the website of Elisabetta Scapparone