Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Studies of Area III: Philosophy
Other languages of instruction: English, Spanish,
Teaching staff
Students can contact the teachers at any time to comment on all the aspects they deem appropriate. You can also arrange a personal interview by sending an email to: jcorco@uic.es , amumbru@uic.es
Introduction
Area Studies III (PHILOSOPHICAL TEXTS)
Pre-course requirements
There are no previous requirements.
Objectives
Section I:
- Establish a direct contact with original philosophical texts.
- Carry out the practice of philosophical dialogue, under the modality of reading seminar.
Section II:
- Present a reflection on the concepts of metaphor, simile, symbol and allegory.
- Understand the role they play in the field of philosophical reflection.
- Know the main metaphors used in philosophical thinking throughout the history of thought.
- See the relationship between these basic metaphors and the thought the philosophers treated.
- Be able to watch and philosophically understand films.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- E02 - Ability to use methods and techniques specific to human sciences.
- E04 - Ability to recognise and interpret cultural manifestations.
- E07 - To acquire knowledge on the different issues and problems of current cultural debate and be aware of their constant change.
- E24 - Ability to present the results of research project in accordance with the standards of each subject area.
- E26 - Ability to read and write texts in one's own language and other languages, as well as transcribe, summarise and categorise pertinent information.
- G03 - To search for and/or administer economic resources within the framework of an institution or company, or a cultural programmes, project or service.
- G08 - Ability to carry out research.
Learning outcomes of the subject
Section I:
- The ability to comprehensively read philosophical texts and establish conceptual comparisons between fragments of very different times and authors will have been acquired.
- The student will have practiced the art of philosophical dialogue with consistent language and argumentative style, and will be able to present a problematic in its complexity, with the required detail.
Section II:
Once the subject has been passed, students should be able to:
- Know the structure and operation of metaphors and symbols
- Recognize the role of metaphorical and symbolic language in philosophical reflection
- Know the main metaphors of the history of philosophy and its relationship with the various authors of it
- Be able to watch and philosophically understand films
Syllabus
Section I:
The first Section of the subject consists in a monografic seminar about Karl R. Popper's thought.
Section II:
- Introduction to the concepts of metaphor, symbol and analogy
- The cave, the light and the dark: Plato
- The ship, the captain and the sailors: Plato
- Philosophical interpretation of The Matrix
- The book of nature: Galileo and the new science
- The building, the wax and the clock: Descartes and the matematization of nature
- The sailor in the ship: Descartes and self-conscience
- Philosophical interpretation of Ghost in the Shell
- The wolf, the contract and the mechanism: Locke, Hobbes and the theory of the State
- Philosophical interpretation of V for Vendetta
- The court of reason and the island of truth: Kant and transcendental philosophy
- The veil of Maya or the world as a representation: Schopenhauer
- The camel, the lion and the child: Nietzsche’s eternal return and Übermensch
- Philosophical interpretation of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Final considerations
Teaching and learning activities
In person
Section I:
The methodology employed requires the continuous reading and active participation by the students in the sessions, which are organized as reading group or reading seminars.
Section II:
The subject is called Philosophical Texts and it is presented as a seminar. The students will be required to read and prepare pre-programmed texts in each unit. Depending on the length of the text, a joint reading will be made and the contents will be discussed as a preliminary step to the presentation of the author's thinking. The session will conclude with a reasoned discussion of the exposed arguments. We will also use several films in order to expose some of the main philosophical concepts.
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The subject is divided into two reading seminars that will be assessed separately and will have to be passed independenty to be able to pass the subject.
- Evaluation systems and criteria Section I:
Assistance and active participation in the sessions.
- Evaluation systems and criteria Section II:
Assistance and active participation in the sessions: 30%
Activities related to the films (can be done in pairs): The Matrix, Ghost in the Shell, V for Vendetta and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind: 40%
Final exam: 30%
Bibliography and resources
Section I:
- Karl R. Popper, En busca de un mundo mejor, Paidós, Barcelona 1994.
- Karl R. Popper, Búsqueda sin término: una autobiografía intelectual, Tecnos, Madrid 1997.
- Karl R. Popper, La responsabilidad de vivir, Paidós, Barcelona 2012.
- J. Shearmur and G. Stokes (eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Popper, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2016.
Section II:
PRIMARY BIBLIOGRAPHY
ARISTÓTELES, Poética, trad. Antonio López Eire, Istmo, Madrid, 2002.
- Retórica, trad. Antonio Tovar, Centro de Estudios Constitucionales, Madrid, 1990.
DESCARTES, R., Regles per a la direcció de l’enginy, trad. Salvi Turró, ed. 62, Barcelona.
- Discurso del método, trad. de Manuel G. Morente, Gredos, Madrid, 2011.
- Meditaciones metafísicas, trad. Manuel García Morente, Espasa Calpe (Austral), Madrid, 1986.
GADAMER, H-G., La actualidad de lo bello. El arte como juego, símbolo y fiesta, Paidós, Barcelona, 1999.
GALILEI, GALILEO, El ensayador, trad. de J. M. Revuelta, Aguilar, Buenos Aires, 1981.
HEGEL, G.W.F., Principios de la filosofía del derecho, trad. de Juan Luís Vermal, Ed. Sudamericana, Buenos Aires, 2012.
HOBBES, Th., Leviatán, trad. Carlos Mellizo, Gredos, Madrid, 2002.
KANT, I., Crítica de la razón pura, trad. Pedro Ribas, Alfaguara, Madrid, 1998.
KANT, I., Crítica de la facultad de juzgar, trad. R. R. Aramayo, Antonio Machado Libros, Madrid, 2003.
NIETZSCHE, F., La gaya ciencia, trad. A. S. Pascual, Alianza ed., Madrid, 1999.
- “Sobre verdad y mentira en sentido extramoral” (edició digital)
PLATÓN, República, trad. Conrado Eggers, Gredos, Madrid, 1986.
SCHOPENHAUER, A., El mundo como voluntad y representación, trad. de R. R. Aramayo, Círculo de lectores/FCE, Barcelona/Madrid, 2003.
SECONDARY BIBLIOGRAPHY
BLACK, M., “La metafóra” (1954), en Luis María Valdés Villanueva (ed.), La búsqueda del significado, Tecnos, Madrid, 2000, pp. 545-563.
BLUMENBERG, H., “Aproximación a una teoría de la inconceptualidad”, en Naufragio con espectador, trad. de Jorge Viril, Visor, Madrid, 1995, pp. 97-117.
DAVIDSON, D., “Lo que significan las metáforas” (1978), Luis Maria Valdés Villanueva (ed.), La búsqueda del significado, Tecnos, Madrid, 2000, pp. 564-582.
DERRIDA, J., “La mitología blanca. La metáfora en el texto filosófico”, en Márgenes de la filosofía, Cátedra, Madrid, 1989.
FRANK, M., Dios en el exilio. Lecciones sobre Nueva mitología, trad. Helena Cortés y Arturo Leite, ed. Serbal, 1994.
KONERSMANN, R. (ed.), Wörterbuch der philosophischen Metaphern, WBG, Darmstadt, 2014.
LAKOFF, G. & JOHNSON, M., Metáforas de la vida cotidiana, Cátedra, Madrid, 1980.
RICOEUR, P., La metáfora viva, trad. de Agustín Neira, ed. Cristiandad, Madrid, 1980.
REDONDO, P. & SALGADO, S., La isla de la verdad y otras metáforas en filosofía, El Desvelo Ediciones, Santander, 2017.
SEARLE, J., “Metáfora” (1979), en Luis María Valdés Villanueva (ed.), La búsqueda del significado, Tecnos, Madrid, 2000, pp. 583-617.
TODOROV, T., Théories du symbole, ed. Seuil, Paris, 1977.
TURRÓ, S., “La reescriptura del llibre de la naturalesa” en Filosofia i Modernitat, Edicions de la Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, 2016.