Ateneo - UPO

Italian Figures of Early Modernity

Galilei Galileo
• Sidereus Nuncius :
[https://bibdig.museogalileo.it/tecanew/opera?bid=354793&seq=7]
• Istoria e dimostrazioni intorno alle macchie solari :
[https://bibdig.museogalileo.it/tecanew/opera?bid=354798&seq=7]
• Lettere copernicane (lettera a Benedetto Castelli, Lettera a Piero Dini, Lettera a Cristina di Lorena)
https://bibdig.museogalileo.it/tecanew/opera?bid=354798&seq=7

Tommaso Cornelio
• Discorso dell’eclissi (1652)
[https://books.google.fr/books?id=NywRMQAACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&hl=fr&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false]

Giambattista Vico
• Princìpi di una scienza nuova intorno alla natura comune delle nazioni (1744), a cura di Andrea Battistini, Milano, Mondadori, 2023.

Antonio Genovesi
• Discorso sopra il vero fine delle lettere e delle scienze, in Antonio Genovesi, Scritti, a cura di Franco Venturi, Torino, Einaudi, 1977 / Illuministi italiani. Riformatori napoletani, vol. I-II, Milano-Napoli, Riccardo Ricciardi Editore, 1997 [1962].

« Il Caffè »
• « Il Caffè » (1764-1766), a cura di G. Francioni e S. Romagnoli, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 1993 (Seconda edizione riveduta, 1998).

• Amoroso Leonardo, Introduzione alla Scienza nuova di Vico, Pisa, ETS, 2011
• Battistini Andrea, Galileo, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2011.
• Ferrone Vincenzo, Una scienza per l’uomo. Illuminismo e Rivoluzione scientifica nell’Europa del Settecento, Torino, UTET, 2007.

The goal will be both to understand the argumentative logic of the proposed texts and to be able to place these texts in their intellectual and historical context.

The final test consists of an oral examination, structured as follows:
1) Verification of knowledge acquired during the course (questions like: "What is Galileo's objective in the Copernican letters ?").
2) Verification of the ability to reconstruct, on the basis of the knowledge acquired, the philosophical arguments discussed in the proposed texts (questions like: “What is the overall project of Vico's New Science?” / “Why is it a new science?”)
3) Testing the ability to effectively communicate notions and arguments.
The test consists of at least three questions The score is given in thirtieths and evaluation is done according to the following parameters:
1) Knowledge and understanding of the main topics of the module: 18 points out of 30 (sufficiency)
2) Ability to analyze the theories and arguments studied: 6 points out of 30
3) Ability to clearly and accurately illustrate the knowledge acquired during the module: 6 points out of 30.

The course aims to study some of the main figures of Italian early modernity through some significant examples.
Particular attention will be paid to methodological and historiographical issues.