Aims

By the end of the course students should be able to explain the nature of philosophical thought and to identify its similarities and differences with others views of reality (natural experience, science, religion, law, etc.). They should have acquired the ability to uphold a thesis with relevant arguments, taking criticism and possible objections into account. They should be aware of the fact that, in each epoch, philosophical activity is performed in parallel with major cultural forms which give it its historical peculiarities.Moreover, they should be able to give an account of the main dimensions of human existence and to articulate them. Lastly, they should be introduced to the philosophical dimension of law.

Main themes

An introductory part provides some explanations about the specific features of philosophical discourse: reassessing commonly accepted opinions, rational explanation and critical argumentation, reflection, and aiming for a global discourse on reality as a whole.The peculiarities of philosophical discourse evolve in each epoch specifically with respect to the cultural context. A second part deals with philosophical anthropology, considered from a thematic point of view: being-into-the-world, corporeity, mind, intersubjectivity, language, socio-political aspects and other sides of human existence is presented.A third part introduces students to the philosophy of law by indicating the existence of a specific judicial dimension of human existence and showing the links with other dimensions looked at in the second part.

Lectures by professors are supplemented by reading and explanatory sessions supervised by assistants.

The oral teaching may be completed by other pedagogical methods.

Class notes are provided at the beginning of the course.

Content and teaching methods

The discussion thread of the course is primarily historical. After a methodological introduction and an introduction to the mythical thought, the course introduces Plato, Aristote, Saint Augustin, Thomas d' Aquin, Guillaume d' Occam, Machiavel, Hobbes, the rationalism of Descartes and Spinoza, the empiricism of Locke, Kant and philosophy transcendantale, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud, Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, insisting on anthropological and legal dimensions in the broad sense of the term.

Other credits in programs