Students will be confronted with texts from different authors and periods that revolve around the same topos, that of the relationship between scepticism and the history of philosophy. Through the analysis of a broad anthology of works, they will measure themselves against recurring arguments for and against the exercise of indiscriminate doubt and suspension of judgement, becoming aware of the crucial stages underlying the process of defining the landscape of philosophical historiography through a dialectical and comparative methodology.

The history of the effects of scepticism on philosophical thought in different epochs will be examined through the words of its main interpreters and opponents. The problem of knowledge was, in a sense, created by scepticism or the sceptical attitude in general. We will begin with Plato's Theaetetetus, which can be considered the oldest text devoted to the problem, and Pyrrhon's famous tropes, and then move on to Cicero, Augustine and the recovery of their ideas, to modern rejections, up to Hegel and others who have echoed, imitated, or revisited ancient scepticism. Much space will also be devoted to the front against scepticism, which is engaged in a constant effort to overcome its provocations, which have led to cultural crises, crises of authority and methods. When science as knowledge is placed at the center of culture itself, and science is constituted as a paradigm for philosophy itself, knowledge becomes the essential foundation of philosophical themes and questions, even if, historically, as a consequence of the progressive detachment of the particular sciences from the philosophical matrix, it becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish which philosophy is still science and which is still knowledge. In this sense, scepticism constitutes the court in which philosophical reason appears as both defendant and judge of itself. The duty of doubt is a sceptical imperative that strikes at all the claims of reason to halt definite certainties in the face of changing times, affirming the human inadequacy to access real knowledge of the world. Indeed, by denying the existence of absolute truths, scepticism has played the valuable role of sentinel against any form of absolute power and intolerance.

None.

• Knowledge and the ability to comprehend:
  • Among the expectations of the course is the need to assimilate the basic knowledge of the discipline and to understand a philosophical text in its logical structure, especially regarding sceptical offence against an epistemological order.
• Application of knowledge and the ability to understand:
  • Expectations for the course include the ability of students to bring to bear the preliminary knowledge that constitutes the appropriate disciplinary and conceptual predisposition for understanding philosophical textual sources and critical literature, especially with respect to the sceptical paraphernalia to be employed in the face of the truth claims of any systemic doctrine.
• Autonomy of judgments:
  • Expectations for the course include the development of an appropriate autonomy of judgement, especially where the critical and textbook literature exercises oversimplifications of authors and works that rather require legitimate in-depth study; an aspect that applies a fortiori to disputes that involve scepticism.
• Communicative skills: 
  • Among the expectations of the course is the ability to articulate clearly and rigorously the conceptual structure of the works and authors treated; after all, scepticism at the sophistic level has always been characterised by the practical use of elaborate argumentation strategies and the exercise of doubt.
• Learning skills:
  • Among the expectations of the course is the necessary acquisition of those conceptual tools that are indispensable for orientation in the vast panorama of the history of philosophy, with particular reference to the history of scepticism, ancient and modern.

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

Seminar activities will be planned and indicated in the course of the lectures.

A written formative assessment test will be held en route, which may give rise to explanations and discussions with the sole purpose of helping students to assess their level of preparation and the effectiveness of the study method adopted.

Teaching

Teaching will be structured in two weekly sessions of 2 hours each.

The sessions, depending on the topics covered, will be based on frontal lectures (with the hope of participatory interaction) and various laboratory moments where students will have the opportunity to practise and measure themselves against the lecturer and others.

Innovative teaching methods

During the course, an attempt will be made to combine lectures with the use of different teaching approaches such as debates and flipped classrooms. At the end of the course, students may also agree with the professor to write a personal paper. The different forms of participation in the proposed activities can contribute to the overall assessment.

Attendance

The course requires regular attendance of at least two-thirds of the lessons. Alternatively, please refer to the additional information for non-attending students.

Course books

Primary literature:

• Sesto Empirico, Schizzi pirroniani, a cura di Antonio Russo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2009, 201 pp. [ISBN 978-88-420-3259-5].
• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Rapporto dello scetticismo con la filosofia: esposizione delle sue diverse modificazioni e confronto di quello più recente con l'antico, a cura di Renato Pettoello ed Enrico Colombo, Morcelliana, Brescia 2018, 113 pp. [ISBN 978-88-265-0036-2].

Secondary literature:

• Gianni Paganini, Il dubbio dei moderni: una storia dello scetticismo, Carocci, Roma 2022, 254 pp. [ISBN 978-88-290-1635-8].

Assessment

For students who have attended at least two-thirds of the 36 hours of teaching, it is specified that the assessment of learning will take place by means of an oral interview. Participation in teaching activities and the possible submission of a paper may contribute to success.

The learning objectives will be verified by means of an oral examination of varying duration according to three main assessment criteria:

• the relevance of the answers to the questions;
• the completeness of the answers to the questions;
• the mastery of the technical language.

Each criterion will be assessed on a decimal scale – equal weighting will be given to each; the final mark will be expressed in thirtieths, with a possible declaration of distinction.

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

Individual study of the indicated texts and use (ad adiuvandum) of the material on the Moodle platform.

Attendance

Attendance is not compulsory.

In lieu of lecture hours (36), please contact the lecturer (prior to the scheduled lecture dates) to agree which parts of a History of Philosophy textbook you prefer.

Course books

Primary literature:

• Sesto Empirico, Schizzi pirroniani, a cura di Antonio Russo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2009, 201 pp. [ISBN 978-88-420-3259-5].
• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Rapporto dello scetticismo con la filosofia: esposizione delle sue diverse modificazioni e confronto di quello più recente con l'antico, a cura di Renato Pettoello ed Enrico Colombo, Morcelliana, Brescia 2018, 113 pp. [ISBN 978-88-265-0036-2].

Secondary literature:

• Scetticismo. Una vicenda filosofica, a cura di Mario De Caro ed Emidio Spinelli, Carocci, Roma 2007, 298, pp. [ISBN 978-88-430-4067-4].
• Gianni Paganini, Il dubbio dei moderni: una storia dello scetticismo, Carocci, Roma 2022, 254 pp. [ISBN 978-88-290-1635-8].

Assessment

The learning objectives are checked by means of an oral examination of varying duration, according to three main assessment criteria:

• the relevance of the answers to the questions;
• the completeness of the answers to the questions;
• the mastery of the technical language.

Each criterion will be assessed on a decimal scale – equal weighting will be given to each; the final mark will be expressed in thirtieths, with a possible declaration of distinction.

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.

Among the recommended texts that will be taken into consideration are the following:

• Richard H. Popkin (1960), Storia dello scetticismo, Mondadori, Milano 2008, 309 pp. [ISBN 978-88-6159-237-7].
• Giulio Preti (1974), Scetticismo e conoscenza, introduzione di Francesco Coniglione, CUECM, Catania 1993, 113 pp.
• Gianni Paganini, Scepsi moderna: interpretazioni dello scetticismo da Charron a Hume, Busento, Cosenza 1991, 528 pp.
• Giovanni Bonacina, Filosofia ellenistica e cultura moderna: epicureismo stoicismo e scetticismo da Bayle a Hegel, Le Lettere, Firenze 1996, 358 pp. [ISBN 88-7166-277-6].
• Richard H. Popkin e Avrum Stroll (2002), Il dovere del dubbio: filosofia scettica per tutti, Il Saggiatore, Milano 2004, 316 pp. [ISBN 88-428-1140-8].
• Scetticismo: una vicenda filosofica, a cura di Mario De Caro ed Emidio Spinelli, Carocci, Roma 2007, 298 pp. [ISBN 978-88-430-4067-4].
• Rethinking the history of skepticism: the missing medieval background, edited by Henrik Lagerlund, Brill, Leiden-Boston 2010, 234 pp. [ISBN 978-90-041-7061-2].
• La centralità del dubbio, a cura di Camilla Hermanin e Luisa Simonutti, Leo S. Olschki, Firenze 2011, 2 voll. [ISBN 978-88-222-5968-4].
• Marco Sgattoni, La rinascita dello scetticismo tra eresia e Riforma, QuattroVenti, Urbino 2018, 327 pp. [ISBN 978-88-392-1025-8].
• Cicerone, «Academica»: l'arte del dubbio, introduzione, trad. e commento di Daniele Di Rienzo, Rizzoli, Milano 2022, 267 pp. [ISBN 978-88-17-17609-5].
• Antonio Sgobba, Sei scettico? Una filosofia antica per i tempi moderni, Einaudi, Torino 2023, 174 pp. [ISBN 978-88-06-25554-1].
• Maria Lorenza Chiesara, Sette brevi lezioni sullo scetticismo, Einaudi, Torino 2023, 113 pp. [ISBN 978-88-06-25531-2].