Philosophical Texts

Objectives

The objectives of the curricular unit include:

1. To recognize the major figures of Western Philosophy and their works;

2. To present selected themes of philosophical enquiry adopted throughout the centuries;

3. To develop critical competencies, including reading, understanding and articulation of major philosophical texts, as well as the evaluation of their relevance in face of the challenges of the contemporary world;

4. To practice philosophical hermeneutics, through the in depth study of selected texts and traditions;

5. To perfect communication capabilities – oral and written –, allowing for the justification of perspectives;

6. To establish philosophical dialogue, with the texts and among the students.

Program

This curricular unit will function in articulation with those of Fundamental Themes of Philosophy and Value and Meaning of Philosophy, offering the students an occasion for tutored reading and interpretation of texts that are representative of the major philosophical domains (Logic, Philosophy of Science, Aesthetics, Ethics, Social and Political, Philosophy, Epistemology, Ontology).

The course will privilege direct contact with the major philosophers of the Western tradition – and their texts –, from Ancient Greece to the present. This hermeneutic exercise will allow for the identification and understanding of the concepts that are proper to Philosophy.

In parallel, and in accordance with the specific nature of Philosophy for Children, we will strive to underline the practical dimension of the philosophical endeavor, particularly through the promotion of a public debate that is both critical and enlightened.

Teaching Methodologies

Classes will assume a double nature: theoretical, allowing for the understanding and situation of authors and texts within the Western philosophical tradition, and theoretical-practical, dedicated to the interpretation and evaluation of arguments and the perspective presented in the texts studied. In parallel, we shall seek to motivate students to develop their own thought and perspectives, grounding them in their critical readings.

This methodology seeks to prepare the students for the philosophical hermeneutics of the texts in a phenomenological dynamic.

Bibliography

Serão disponibilizados textos fundamentais dos principais vultos do pensamento filosófico do Ocidente, na sua versão original, em articulação com as disciplinas de Temas Fundamentais da Filosofia e de Valor e Sentido da Filosofia.

 

Throughout the course students will be given fundamental texts of the major figures of Western Philosophy – as originally published –, in articulation with the specific bibliography of the courses of Temas Fundamentais da Filosofia and Valor e Sentido da Filosofia.