OVERVIEW

The aim of the course is to outline the philosophy of modern history in its genesis and development, intersecting the themes of theodicy and secularization.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Making students aware of the basic structures of the modern philosophies of history (linear conception and cyclical conception of time, idea of "fullness", Christian eschatology and idea of progress) through the study of specific monographs and especially through the reading of particularly significant classical texts.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The aim of the course is:

a) to introduce the basic cathegories of every modern philosophy of history by the introduction of  some historical monographies

b) to verify by a critical reading  the presence  of these cathegories in some modern philosophical or religious Ccassical works

c) to make the students able to an autonomus reflection on the monographies and  the classics in program.

PREREQUISITES

No prerequisites are required.

TEACHING METHODS

The lessons will be held in person.

Students who have valid certification of physical or learning disabilities on file with the University and who wish to discuss possible accommodations or other circumstances regarding lectures, coursework and exams, should speak both with the instructor and with Elisabetta Colagrossi (elisabetta.colagrossi@unige.it), the Department's disability liaison.
For further information regarding the request for services and adaptations visit the web page: https://unige.it/en/disabilita-dsa/modulistica.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

From Theodicy to the Philosophy of History. Theological Presuppositions and Processes of Secularization

The course aims to trace a genealogy of the philosophy of history by going back to its biblical roots and then to its early modern beginnings, identifiable in its relationship with theodicy, as found in Leibniz, Voltaire, and Lessing, and subsequently brought to completion by the philosophies of German Idealism. The second part will analyze the relations between history, time, and autobiography, drawing on the Augustinian paradigm of the Confessions.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bibliography for students who are taking the 6-CFU course:

• K. Löwith, Significato e fine della storia. I presupposti teologici della filosofia della storia, Il Saggiatore, Milano 2015.
• R. Celada Ballanti, Teodicea della storia e storiografia in G.W. Leibniz, in «Humanitas», 1, 2009 (the article will be provided).
• R. Celada Ballanti, Giobbe nel secolo dei Lumi. Voltaire e la crisi della teodicea, in Id., Religione, Storia, Libertà, Studi di filosofia della religione, Liguori, Napoli 2014 (the article will be provided).

Bibliography for students who are taking the 9-CFU course:

• K. Löwith, Significato e fine della storia. I presupposti teologici della filosofia della storia, Il Saggiatore, Milano 2015.
• R. Celada Ballanti, Teodicea della storia e storiografia in G.W. Leibniz, in «Humanitas», 1, 2009 (the article will be provided).
• R. Celada Ballanti, Giobbe nel secolo dei Lumi. Voltaire e la crisi della teodicea, in Id., Religione, Storia, Libertà, Studi di filosofia della religione, Liguori, Napoli 2014 (the article will be provided).
• R. Celada Ballanti, Giobbe nel secolo dei Lumi. Voltaire e la crisi della teodicea, in Id., Religione, Storia, Libertà, Studi di filosofia della religione, Liguori, Napoli 2014 (the article will be provided).
• Agostino, Le Confessioni (one of the editions available on the market).
• R. Celada Ballanti, Memoria, autobiografia, alterità. Dalla sapienza delle Muse all'infinito nulla dell'uomo contemporaneo, Mimesis, Udine-Milano 2024

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

February, 2027.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral exam.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

During the oral intewiew the student must demostrate

1) a complete  knowledge  of  all the texst in the recommended reading/biliography

2) an adequate understanding of the same texts

3) the capability to  compare one-another the content of theese texts

4) the capability to elaborate some personal convinction  about the the content of the course

FURTHER INFORMATION

The attendance is recommented.