The course will focus on a theoretical investigation of the main ethical and political implications of all the arguments that will be addressed. The objective is to acquire technical language and enhancing reading, comprehension and commentating abilities of philosophical material. The student will acquire the knowledge useful to deal with fundamental conceptual conundrums.

In the Elements of Natural and Political Law, Hobbes outlines the first formulation of his philosophical system, reserving a careful and refined look at the analysis of passions and the dynamics of recognition and relationship with otherness. In this context particular attention is paid by the English author to the themes of "honour" and "glory", passions which, in their excesses, often become "vainglory", "pride" and, sometimes, "madness". During the lectures we will examine the main features of his anthropology (which also evokes the figure of Don Quixote as an example of "vainglory" and "knightly madness"), highlighting the implications for the constitution of the political body and its maintenance in the form, for Hobbes, of modern absolutism.

Knowledge and understanding:

The graduates must be able to:

comprehend and illustrate elementary and intermediate philosophical material; deal with classical problems from history and theory of philosophy, ethics and politics; use bibliographical and informational instruments that are relevant to the subject; know the problems of the subject with critical regard.

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

It is expected an active collaboration with both the permanent seminar "Spinoza e il pensiero filosofico moderno" and the course in History of Philosophy. 

Teaching

Lectures and seminars.

Attendance

It is required a regular attendance to the course (equal to AT LEAST 2/3 of the lectures). If the student does not attend to the course, he must refer, for the course material, to the "NO attendance" section.

Course books

A.     Philosophical material

Th. Hobbes, Elementi di legge naturale e politica, tr.it. Sansoni, Firenze, 2004. 

The English version of the Elements of flaw  natural and politic can be consulted at the Central University Library in The English Works of Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury, edited by Sir William Molesworth, Scientia Verlag, Aalen, 1962, vol.I.

B.     Critical materials

·  F. Cerrato, Un secolo di passioni e politica. Hobbes, Descartes, Spinoza, DeriveApprodi, Roma 2012.

  A paper  to choose from the following: 

- D. Bostrenghi, Hobbes, Cervantes e le passioni di gloria, in C. Santinelli et alii  (a cura di), Filosofia e letteratura in età moderna e contemporanea, Le Lettere (Firenze), forthcoming. 

- A. Pacchi, Hobbes and the passions, “Topoi”, VI (1987), pp. 111-119.

- R. SANTI, Metus revealed. Hobbes on Fear, “Agathos”. An International Review of the Humanities and Social Sciences, II, 2 (2011), pp. 67-80.

- F. Toto, Hobbes e il riconoscimento. Antropologia, morale e politica, “Consecutio rerum”,  I, 1, pp. 9-31.

Further references will be provided during the course. 

Assessment

It is required a regular attendance to the course (equal to AT LEAST 2/3 of the lectures). If the student does not attend to the course, he must refer, for the course material, to the "NO attendance" section.

The evaluation criteria for the examination will be the following:

-  Relevance and effectiveness of the responses with reference to the contents of the course’s program;

-  Complexity of the responses;

-  Adequacy of the technical language of the discipline.

The final evaluation will be expressed in thirtieths according to the following scale: 30 and praise = excellent; 30 = very good / excellent; 27-29 = good; 24-26 = discrete; 21-23 = sufficient; 18-21 = just enough. The exam is not passed when the essential knowledge is not acquired, the understanding and re-elaboration of the learned contents is poor and the disciplinary lexicon is not proper. 

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.

Attendance

It is required that the student makes contact with the lecturer AT LEAST two months in advance.

Course books

All the material reported at point (A) and (B) in the section "course material" plus (C): 

A. Pacchi, Introduzione a Hobbes, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 1971. 

Assessment

Oral exam on all the material at point (A), (B) and (C). Optional essay which has to be agreed upon with the lecturer in advance.

The evaluation criteria for the examination will be the following:

-  Relevance and effectiveness of the responses with reference to the contents of the course’s program;

-  Complexity of the responses;

-  Adequacy of the technical language of the discipline.

The final evaluation will be expressed in thirtieths according to the following scale: 30 and praise = excellent; 30 = very good / excellent; 27-29 = good; 24-26 = discrete; 21-23 = sufficient; 18-21 = just enough. The exam is not passed when the essential knowledge is not acquired, the understanding and re-elaboration of the learned contents is poor and the disciplinary lexicon is not proper. 

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.