General Objective: the course is aimed at providing the basic tools for  knowing and understanding themes and problems investigated by Renaissance philosophical thought, knowing how to evaluate the rich complexity and the current validity for contemporary Man (general part); it also aims to guide the student towards an autonomous development of the ability to read, to understand, and to analyze a classic text of the philosophy of the Renaissance – the essays of Michel de Montaigne – capturing contextual articulations and logical-argumentative implications, also in reference to the contemporary philosophical debate (monographic part).

 Specific objectives:

1. to know how to understand the basic vocabulary of the discipline;

2. to acquire full awareness of the historical development of philosophical thought from antiquity to the Renaissance;

3. to acquire knowledge and awareness of the contextual complexity of the different theories taken into account;

4. to understand what associates and what differentiates medieval and Rennaisance thought;

5. to know how to read and understand a Renaissance philosophical text;

6. to know how to historically contextualize the text in question;

7. know how to interpret and analyze the text in question, identifying the underlying theories and arguments used by the author to support them;

8. to know how to compare the text in question with other related texts, identifying similarities and differences in theories and topics;

9. to be able to recognize any incongruity and inconsistency in the argumentative flow and in the ideas expressed by the author;

10. to be able to reason in a transdisciplinary manner, identifying ways of applying the contents learned, even in  didactic-educational contexts, according to age groups.

11. to know how to formulate an autonomous opinion on the theories that emerged from the analysis of the text and whether they have a significance or not in today’s human world.

The course includes a general part, focused on the philosophy of the Renaissance investigated through themes, and through an anthological selection of the main authors, and a monographic part that explores and analyzes a classical philosophical text, the essays of Michel de Montaigne; and specifically:

1. a visual introduction to the themes of the course: the fresco, “The School of Athens” by Raphael;

2. humanism as a rediscovery of the classics and the Renaissance, as their revival, reworking, and reinterpretation in the modern sense;

3. erudition and books: the Library of Federico da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino;

4. reflection on the human condition (Alberti, Pico della Mirandola, Machiavelli, Cardano, Montaigne);

5. the theme of the “Mask” (Alberti, Campanella, Sarpi);

6. free will (Valla, Pomponazzi, Erasmus, Luther);

7. universal philanthropy and salvation (Erasmus, Bruno, Pucci);

8. love and wisdom (Ficino, Bruno);

9. the image (Ficino, Bruno);

10. the city (FIlarete, Campanella);

11. tyranny and conflict (Savonarola, Guicciardini, Machiavelli);

12. the New World (Bruno Campanella, Montaigne);

13. Montaigne and the man between “pleasure” and “curiosity”;

14. man between inner experience and bodily nature: Montaigne and the ancients;

15. man and the animal: an original vision of Montaigne;

16. Montaigne and the power of imagination;

17. man, justice, the law according to Montaigne;

18. Towards a new humanism? The lesson of Renaissance philosophers and possible didactic-educational applications.

None.

1. Knowledge and the ability to comprehend: to have acquired the content foreseen by the program, understanding the fundamental lines and the particular aspects, even in a comparative perspective.

2. Application of knowledge and the ability to understand: know how to apply the concepts, ideas, theories and methodologies learned, even in contexts other than the original one; to be able to also extend across a transdisciplinary level.

3. Autonomy of judgments: reflecting and thinking about the various contents learned, developing a critical, autonomous, and flexible thought; being “open-minded”: open to the complexity of what is real, with an exploratory and investigative attitude; being able to question the theories of others and also one’s own.

4. Communicative skills: to demonstrate that we have acquired a mastery of the basic vocabulary of discipline and to know how to use it within a speech that is internally coherent and logically structured, according to a correct sequence of topics; the argumentative capacity must be in the use of analysis and synthesis, of inductive and deductive processes, as well as in the application of rhetorical techniques, up to the re-modulation of the subject according to the supposed interlocutor.

5. Learning skills: knowing how to use complementary resources available in addition to study texts – the materials entered by the lecturer in the Moodle platform, but also search engines on the web, bibliographic tools, etc. – to create a personal in-depth course.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

1. Michele Ciliberto, Il nuovo Umanesimo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2017.

2. Nicola Panichi, Ecce homo. Studi su Montaigne, Edizioni della Normale, Pisa 2017.

3. Michel de Montaigne, L'esperienza, a cura di Salvatore Obinu, Bompiani, Milano 2015.

Teaching

Traditional lectures; however, students will be engaged as often as possible.

Attendance

It's not compulsory.

Course books

1. Michele Ciliberto, Il nuovo Umanesimo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2017.

2. Nicola Panichi, Ecce homo. Studi su Montaigne, Edizioni della Normale, Pisa 2017.

3. Michel de Montaigne, L'esperienza, a cura di Salvatore Obinu, Bompiani, Milano 2015.

Assessment

Oral exam.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Material published on the e-platform Moodle: blended.uniurb.it

Attendance

It's not compulsory.

Course books

1. Michele Ciliberto, Il nuovo Umanesimo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2017.

2. Nicola Panichi, Ecce homo. Studi su Montaigne, Edizioni della Normale, Pisa 2017.

3. Michel de Montaigne, L'esperienza, a cura di Salvatore Obinu, Bompiani, Milano 2015.

Assessment

Oral exam.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

For the oral exam students are free to choose their preferred language: Italian, English or French.