00961 - History of Philosophy (A-L)

Learning outcomes

Students learn to become familiar with trends, issues, important authors of modern philosophy, and to orient themselves in its historical interpretations. They are trained in the critical reading of philosophical texts, and in evaluation of argumentative and rhetorical strategies.

Course contents

Ancient and Modern Skepticism.

The course focuses on the tradition of skeptical thought between antiquity and modernity. It aims to restore the meaning of the common polemic waged against so-called dogmatic knowledge and, here, to highlight the elements of continuity and discontinuity between one era and another. Skepticism as a philosophical position, but also as a lifestyle choice. Sextus Empiricus and David Hume are considered characteristic exponents of this philosophical movement.

Readings/Bibliography

1. Compulsory readings:

Sesto Empirico, Schizzi pirroniani, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2009.

D. Hume, Trattato sulla natura umana, in Opere filosofiche, vol. I, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2024, libro I: Sull'intelletto.

D. Hume, Trattato sulla natura umana, in Opere filosofiche, vol. I, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2024, libro II: Sulle passioni (for students not attending lessons).

 

2. Choice of readings (at least two):

AA.VV., Scetticismo. Una vicenda filosofica, a cura di E. Spnelli e M. De Caro, Carocci, Roma 2007.

G. Bonacina, Filosofia ellenistica e cultura moderna. Epicureismo, stoicismo e scetticismo da Bayle a Hegel, Le Lettere, Firenze 1996.

M. Dal Pra, David Hume. La vita e l'opera, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1984.

M. Dal Pra, Lo scetticismo greco, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1989.

F. Laudisa, Hume, Carocci, Roma 2009.

S. Magrin. Scetticismo e fenomeno in Sesto Empirico, Bibliopolis, Napoli 2003.

G. Paganini, Il dubbio dei moderni. Una storia dello scetticismo, Carocci, Roma 2022.

G. Reale, Il dubbio di Pirrone. Ipotesi sullo scetticismo, Il Prato, Padova 2008.

A. Santucci, Introduzione a Hume, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2005.

E. Spinelli, Questioni scettiche. Letture introduttive al pirronismo antico, Lithos, Roma 2005.

 

3. Institutional Part

Knowledge of the following authors of the history of philosophy between the 16th and 20th centuries will be required for the examination:

Bruno, Machiavelli, Bacone, Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, Montesquieu, Vico, Hume, Voltaire, Diderot, Rousseau, Kant, Fichte, Schelling, Hegel, Marx, Kierkegaard, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Croce, Wittgenstein, Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Lukács, Frankfurt School, Foucault, Arendt.

Students can use the textbook they prefer or that they already own, checking that all the authors included in the list below are covered and, if necessary, integrating it with other textbooks. For those who do not already have such texts we suggest:

M. Mori, Storia della filosofia moderna, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 2005

A. La Vergata, F. Trabattoni, Filosofia cultura cittadinanza, Rizzoli, Milano, 2011

G. Cambiano, M. Mori, Storia e antologia della filosofia, Laterza, Roma, 1993 e seguenti

F. Cioffi et al., Il testo filosofico, Mondadori, Milano 1992 e seguenti

L. Guidetti, G. Matteucci, Le grammatiche del pensiero, Zanichelli, Bologna, 2012

Students who have already taken an exam on a historical-philosophical topic with prof. Francesco Cerrato will not have to take the institutional part of the exam.

Teaching methods

Ex cathedra lessons

Assessment methods

The final oral exam focuses on the programme’s material. The critical evaluation considers the fundamental notions, the level of the analysis and the critical skills. On the basis of these three principal parameters an overall evaluation in thirtieths is expressed.

18-21/30: Sufficient

22-25/30: Average

26-28/30: Good

29-30/30: Very Good

30/30 with praise: Excellent

 

Exam sessions are scheduled for June, July, September, October, and November 2025, and January and February 2026. Even after this date, students who have not yet taken this exam will be able to regularly take it in subsequent sessions starting in May 2026.

Teaching tools

Individual lessons may be recorded and made available to students for listening.

Students with Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) or temporary or permanent disabilities: it is recommended to contact the relevant University office in advance (site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it). The office will be responsible for proposing any necessary adjustments to the interested students. These adjustments must, however, be submitted at least 15 days in advance for approval by the instructor, who will assess their appropriateness in relation to the learning objectives of the course.

 

Office hours

See the website of Giovanni Bonacina