PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Delivery method
- Teaching methods
- Contacts/Info
There are no specific prerequisites other than those required for admission to the course (since the course is scheduled in the first year), but attendance of the ‘Introduction to Philosophy’ pre-course (16 hours), which will be held at the beginning of the Philosophy of History course, is strongly recommended. For a first approach to the style of philosophical argumentation, we also recommend viewing the ‘Introduction to Philosophy’ videos available online at this address: https://www.uninsubria.it/la-didattica/orientamento/preparati-allunivers....
The learning assessment will consist of an oral test only, with evaluation in thirtieths. The outcome of the examination will be considered positive when a mark of 18/30 is reached. During the interview, three to five questions will be asked to ascertain the achievement of the training objectives and the expected learning outcomes, with strict reference to the scheduled texts, also by reading and commenting on passages taken from the course bibliography. It is therefore necessary to bring the scheduled texts with you to the examination. The final grade will also take into account the materials developed and presented by the students during the workshop/seminar activities. Assessment will be based on the following criteria: accuracy of answers (60%), linguistic and argumentative mastery (30%), ability to independently formulate a suitably reasoned critical judgement (10%).
The main objective of the course is to introduce the argumentative style and vocabulary of philosophical thought, with a focus on the notion of “history” and the meanings that this word has assumed from the classical to the modern and contemporary world. The course thus aims to illustrate the reasons for the current critical debate regarding the “scientificity” of the historical disciplines. At the end of the course, students should have achieved the following expected learning outcomes - basic skills in the use of philosophical vocabulary and argumentation; - ability to interpret and problematise the notions of “history”, “document”, “progress”, “testimony”, “memory” implicit in the practices of historical knowledge; - ability to contextualise the modern scientific method and its application to historical disciplines; - critical capacity to read the present, aware of the transformations that redefine the meaning of human action and knowledge in different cultural and practical contexts.
The teaching activities will take place on three interconnected levels. 1) GENERAL PART (approx. 20 hours). Some key notions necessary to understand the logical structures and basic vocabulary of philosophical texts will be historically contextualised and examined. On this basis, you will provide an overview of the birth and developments of the notion of “history”, from its Greek origins to the present day. Within this horizon, the assumptions that led to the emergence of the modern concepts of “universal history” and “historical sciences” will be examined. 2) MONOGRAPHIC PART (approx. 36 hours). The central part of the course will be devoted to the twentieth-century and contemporary philosophical debate on the meaning, on the criteria of scientificity of historical knowledge and on the so-called ‘END OF (PHILOSOPHY OF) HISTORY’. 3) LABORATORIES/SEMINARS (12 hours). The concluding part of the course includes activities to deepen some of the topics covered in class. During the workshop/seminar hours, students will present papers in the classroom based on written materials prepared individually or in groups.
The training objectives of the course will be achieved by means of face-to-face lectures (for a total of 56 hours), to which 12 hours of interdisciplinary workshop/seminar activities will be added, encouraging the active participation of students. During the workshop/seminar activities, students will be required to present and discuss written work on the topics covered in the classroom. The papers will be considered an integral part of the learning outcomes to be tested.
Professor Cambria receives students by appointment to be arranged by emailing florinda.cambria@uninsubria.it.