Philosophy of History B [ LFILO2291 ]

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Basic instruction in the history of philosophy.

The course will attempt to lay out the origin of the concept of a " philosophy of history " by distinguishing it from epistemological questions about the foundations of historical science.
The course will present a historical overview of the evolution of the concept of a philosophy of history.

Next, the course will present some observations on differing interpretations of the concept in order to point out the conflicts that set these interpretations against each other.
On this basis, a more specific debate shall be studied in order to provide an example of the general presentation.

Upon successful completion of the course, the student should :
- Be able to identify the major schools of thought in the philosophy of history ;
- Know the fundamental concepts associated with those schools of thought ;
- Be able to explain briefly the conflicts of interpretation that have resulted within contemporary thought.

The student will be required to present a written work of ten pages taking bearing from the reading of the proposed commentary in the reading file. Having sent this work by mail, the student will in return receive a question on the sent work which he or she has to prepare in readiness for the oral examination.

Presentation of the question during the oral exam takes the duration of fifteen minutes.

The written work can be done in French, English, Spanish, or German, in agreement with the Professor.

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A New Philosophy of history: Giorgio Agamben.

This course proposes to analyse Giorgio Agamben's book Homo Sacer II, 2 in order to reconstruct a philosophy of history that recomposes itself through a critique of the Christianity and Carl Schmitt's political theology. We will be allowed to measure the renewal of this perspective through its comparison to Benjamin and Foucault's theses

Agamben G., Homo sacer. I, Le pouvoir souverain et la vie nue, traduit par Marilène Raiola, Paris, Le Seuil, 1997.

Agamben G., Le règne et la gloire, Seuil, 2008,

Agamben G ., Le temps qui reste, Un commentaire de l'Epître aux Romains, Payot & Rivages, Paris, 2000.

De La Durantaye L., Giorgio Agamben: A Critical Introduction, Stanford University Press, 2009.

Maesschalck M., «  Un sujet pour l'éthique ? Le pouvoir sur la vie nue de Agamben à Levinas », in Revue d'éthique et de théologie morale, n° 271, Cerf, Paris, 2012, pp. 11-25.

Pinheiro Gomez R.,  « Agamben lecteur de Foucault », in Nouvelle critique sociale, Europe-Amérique Latine, Aller-Retour, M. Maesschalck, A. Loute (éds), Polimetrica, Monza/Italy, 2011, pp. 117-153.

Popa D., « Giorgio Agamben. Les conditions de la communauté », in Nouvelle critique sociale, Europe-Amérique Latine, Aller-Retour, M. Maesschalck, A. Loute (éds), Polimetrica, Monza/Italy, 2011, pp. 91-115.

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