Indice - Piccola premessa personale; Moralismo- perché; Una moralità costituzionale; Quando morì la moralità pubblica; Tempo di scandali - Un’assise sulla corruzione; Una continuità perversa; Nuova eversione quotidiana; Senza controllo - Verso l’estinzione dello Stato; Povero Parlamento; L’uomo del fare; Il senso delle istituzioni; Un deserto istituzionale; Il diritto alla verità; La scuola pubblica - un 'organo costituzionale'; Esercizi di decostituzionalizzazione; Ancora uno sforzo, moralisti!; Fonti.

La reflexión de Francesco D'Agostino procede a partir de una sintética presentación de la genealogía y de los sucesivos desarrollos del concepto de "persona" en la cultura occidental, deteniéndose específicamente sobre su reciente identificación positivistá con la categoría de "sujeto de derecho" - y sobre su consiguiente manipulabilidad pragmática y normativa. Tal paradigma ha entrado en crisis, como testimonian las irresolubles problemáticas surgidas en torno a la disciplina legal del bias, y en particular a la dificultad, que se deriva directamente, (...) de contener normativamente toda tentación de un superpoder biopolítico: ni el intento empirista de rehabilitar el concepto de base de la capacidad de autodeterminación, aparece verdaderamente serio y persuasivo. Más prometedora resulta en cambio la propuesta de regresar a una fundamentación del derecho en la persona y en su concreta corporeidad: yendo más allá de las propuestas de Stefano Rodota, puestas fecundamente en confrontación con el personalismo de Elio Sgreccia, D'Agostino sugiere tomar en serio la idea de "biografía" para redescubrir en el fondo un integrado, por ser relacional, concepto de persona humana. En este empeño teorético aparece rico de consecuencias el paso de la consideración prioritaria de los cuerpos a aquella de la "carne", mucho más densa desde el punto de vista filosófico y teológico: tanto por vía de su referencia intrínseca a la vulnerabilidad, como por su estructural apertura, alternativa a la cerrazón individualista del cuerpo en sí mismo, a la relación con el otro por sí mismo y sobre todo con el Dios encarnado. (shrink)

Kant repeatedly stresses that moral philosophy shall find completion in the shape of a system. The present chapter focuses on three main aspects that characterise his view of the need of a system of ethics, suggesting that Kant's view should be construed in contrast with the current assumptions on the role of a system in moral philosophy. First, I argue that, in Kant’s view, the system of ethics does not pursue the coherentist project of systematising moral beliefs. Systematicity in ethics (...) is, for him, about unfolding the obligations that are justified by the fundamental principle, according to a Pufendorfian paradigm widespread in the eighteenth century. Second, I show that, in contrast not only to current assumptions, but also to the Pufendorfian paradigm, Kant’s systematic treatment of ethics is neither a logically consistent arrangement of demands, nor a complete collection of ethical duties, but a system of ends that yields an open-ended system of duty types. Third, I suggest that in Kant’s view a systematic treatment of ethics is supposed to provide orientation to moral thinking through a broader perspective from which perplexing cases should be considered by emphasizing the holistic character of ethical demands and clarifying their connections. (shrink)

Recently, it has been argued that the use of Big Data transforms the sciences, making data-driven research possible and studying causality redundant. In this paper, I focus on the claim on causal knowledge by examining the Big Data project EXPOsOMICS, whose research is funded by the European Commission and considered capable of improving our understanding of the relation between exposure and disease. While EXPOsOMICS may seem the perfect exemplification of the data-driven view, I show how causal knowledge is necessary for (...) the project, both as a source for handling complexity and as an output for meeting the project’s goals. Consequently, I argue that data-driven claims about causality are fundamentally flawed and causal knowledge should be considered a necessary aspect of Big Data science. In addition, I present the consequences of this result on other data-driven claims, concerning the role of theoretical considerations. I argue that the importance of causal knowledge and other kinds of theoretical engagement in EXPOsOMICS undermine theory-free accounts and suggest alternative ways of framing science based on Big Data. (shrink)

The chapter shows how Kant’s ethical thought as reflected in the lectures, responds to Baumgarten’s works on moral philosophy. I argue that Kant chose Baumgarten’s textbooks for his classes for genuinely philosophical reasons. The thorough discussion of Baumgarten’s views provided Kant with important clues for developing an original position, even if mostly in opposition to Baumgarten. I illustrate this complex role of Baumgarten with a few significant examples, that also highlight some original aspects of Baumgarten’s position in comparison to Wolff’s: (...) (1) Kant follows Baumgarten’s in focusing on obligation as the crucial issue in moral philosophy, but Kant regards Baumgarten’s account as not satisfying. (2) Baumgarten’s sharply theistic foundation of morality is rejected by Kant. (3) Kant rejects also several significant aspects of Baumgarten’s division of ethical duties, thereby revealing profound differences in their conceptions of morality. (shrink)

Both in historical debates and in recent discussions, the Guise of the Good Thesis represents a genuine dogma of rationalism in moral philosophy. Many influential commentators have maintained that Kant belongs in that camp, even that he “explicitly endorses” the Thesis. Attributing the Thesis to Kant, however, faces scarce textual support and amounts to a dubious understanding of the relationship of Kant’s moral philosophy to previous rationalist views. I suggest that, in Kant’s view, the Thesis only applies to the determination (...) of the will through the moral law. The principle that prior rationalists regarded as descriptive acquires in Kant’s terms a normative status. (shrink)

In § 37 of his "Elements of First Practical Philosophy", Baumgarten provides important qualifications to the controversial notion of ‘objective morality’, which had long been at the centre of the dispute between realists like Wolff and his adversaries. The chapter shall examine how he construes his view of morality in §§ 36-38 with a specific focus on the central § 37. I shall analyse that section, first considering how Baumgarten understands the key notion of ‘objective morality’ and how he argues (...) for it, focusing both on its relational character and its connection with God’s will. Then I will examine the last, and arguably most surprising of the implications that he draws per negativum from the main claim, namely that affirming objective morality does not amount to rule out what Baumgarten calls ‘subjective morality’. Finally, I will briefly consider how Baumgarten’s distinctive way to take side in the Wolffian camp in that dispute reflects, through the close dialogue with the "Elements" in Kant’s private notes and lectures, on the development of Kant’s own views in practical philosophy. (shrink)

Kant's Notion of "Transcendental Truth". [English] The aim of this work is to elucidate the notion of “transcendental truth” and to show its role in the Kantian system. I will argue that this notion is in line with the traditional definition of truth, i.e., that it consists in the correspondence between knowledge and object. I will also argue that criteria of transcendental truth are provided by transcendental logic, and that it is this notion of truth what makes it possible to (...) establish the truth of a priori knowledge and delimitate the field of empirical truth. [Español] El objetivo de este trabajo es dilucidar la noción de “verdad trascendental” y mostrar su lugar en el sistema kantiano. Se defenderá que la verdad trascendental consiste, en línea con la definición tradicional de verdad, en un sentido de correspondencia entre conocimiento y objeto, que la lógica trascendental establece criterios de verdad trascendental, y que es esta noción de verdad la que permite establecer la verdad del conocimiento a priori y delimitar el territorio de la verdad empírica. (shrink)

The contrast between Kant’s moral philosophy and Feder’s is not less crucial than the controversy caused by the Göttingen review of the first Critique. One of main targets of Kant’s moral philosophy was Feder’s view, which can be regarded as Kant's main competitor in the contemporary debate. I thus argue that the background provided by the conflict with Feder shows significant distinctive traits of Kant's view, with regard to three fundamental issues. First, I examine how the project of a pure (...) moral philosophy opposes Feder’s empirical investigation into the will, which is in fact one of the targets of Kant's criticism against universal practical philosophy. Second, a central element of Kant’s anti-eudaemonism, the contrast between happiness and self-contentment, is a rejection of the strongly moralized view of happiness that underlies Feder’s eudaemonism. Finally, I examine Tittel's objection that Kant had provided "only a new formula" of morality and Kant's response, which display a fundamental contrast between Kant’s understanding of the aims of moral theory with Feder’s common-sense conception. (shrink)

This paper aims to show the significance of respect in revealing the normative structure of Kant’s ethics to the agent as a finite rational being. I argue that understanding the moral law as a fact of reason is insufficient for fully recognizing its absolute value and the normative consequences it entails. Indeed, the finiteness of the human agent requires the experience of the feeling of respect, which not only has a motivational role but also an epistemic one. I thus start (...) by clarifying the nature of feeling for Kant in a way that highlights its complex structure. Then, I show how respect – as a particular kind of feeling – gives the agent a deeper understanding of her relationship with the moral law, thereby allowing the unveiling of Kant’s normative theory. (shrink)

I suggest that looking at how Kant’s arguments relate to the stand of the discussion on the relationship between right and ethics in his times contributes to a better understanding of his own position in this matter. I contrast the terms of the pre-Kantian debate with Kant’s take on the matter, in order to point out how Kant gains a new perspective concerning the rela- tionship between ethics and right. While the most prominent pre-Kantian view construed right and ethics as (...) either resulting from the application of a general principle to di erent domains or reciprocally independent, Kant’s own account centres on the difference between outer and inner freedom. I argue that Kant thereby only differentiates two relations of freedom to different hindrances, without implying any separation. This distinction allows him to construe right and ethics as sharing the same normative force of moral obligation. Therefore I suggest that Kant’s view understands the relationship between right and ethics neither as dependence nor as independence, but highlights the normative continuity throughout morals. (shrink)

Digital technologies hold promise to modernize healthcare. Such opportunity should be leveraged also to address the needs of rapidly ageing populations. Against this backdrop, this paper examines the use of wearable devices for promoting healthy ageing. Previous work has assessed the prospects of digital technologies for health promotion and disease prevention in older adults. However, to our knowledge, ours is one of the first attempts to specifically address the use of wearables for healthy ageing, and to offer ethical insights for (...) assessing the prospects of leveraging wearable devices in this context. We provide an analysis of the considerable opportunities associated with the use of wearables for healthy ageing, with a focus on the five domains of intrinsic capacity: locomotion, sensory functions, psychological aspects, cognition, and vitality. We then highlight current limitations and ethical challenges of such approach to healthy ageing, including issues related to access, inclusion, privacy, surveillance, autonomy, and regulation. We conclude by discussing the implications of our analysis in light of current debates on the ethics of digital health, and suggest measures to address the identified challenges. (shrink)

Abstract The aim of this paper is to attain a philosophical evaluation of the ideas of the French author Maurice Bucaille. Bucaille formulated an influential discourse regarding the divinity of the Qur’an, which he tried to demonstrate through a comparison of some of its verses with what he defined as scientific data. With his works, which encompass a criticism of the Bible and a defense of creationism, Bucaille furthered the idea that Islam is in harmony with natural sciences, and ensured (...) himself long-lasting fame in the Muslim world. Such ideas have found numerous followers and the description of the “scientific miracles” of the Qur’an has turned into a popular genre. Several attempts have been made to criticize Bucaille about specific positions he holds. The thesis I develop here is that, even if Bucaille's work cannot be easily dismissed, a severe methodological shortcoming emerges through the analysis of the logic behind his claims regarding miraculous and supernatural events. Current attempts at defending the harmony between Islam and science should therefore credit Bucaille, but at the same time, be aware of the risk of inheriting his methodological flaws. In the first section, I briefly recall the works of Bucaille and his contribution to the debate on the harmony between Islam and science. In the second section, I reconstruct Bucaille's view of science and his analysis of the sacred scriptures. In the third section, I investigate how Bucaille characterizes the concept of supernatural. In the fourth section, I put forth a general evaluation of his reasoning. (shrink)

In several places of his work, Kant distinguishes between two senses of self-consciousness: a pure one and an empirical one. The aim of this work is to analyze these two senses of consciousness and show that, for Kant, self-consciousness does not occur unrestrictedly: a relation with something other than consciousness is needed for it to become conscious of itself. I carry out these objectives throughout six sections. In the first one I lay out the Kantian principle of pure apperception. In (...) the second one, I present the limits of pure apperception through Kant’s critique of rational psychology. Then, in the third section, I set the basis to understand the relationship that Kant establishes between the I think and the I exist. In the fourth one I show that pure apperception, despite being pure, is not possible without the opportunity of perception. Next, in the fifth one, I introduce the notion of empirical apperception, establish its relationship with pure apperception, and elucidate its meaning. Finally, in the last section, I explain the way in which empirical self-consciousness is determined, in relation to the knowledge of objects of the external sense. (shrink)

In this paper I provide a semantic analysis of non-specific uses of indexical expressions, such as "you" in typical utterances of "you just can't tell". My treatment employs independently motivated conceptual tools, such as the treatment of generics within Discourse Representation Theory, and the distinction between context of utterance and context of interpretation.

Nel presente paper, propongo un argomento kantiano per giustificare la necessità della coltivazione dell’empatia e il ruolo moralmente rilevante che essa può svolgere per l’agente una volta coltivata. Infatti, riferendosi al testo kantiano, è possibile mostrare che l’empatia è un sentimento insito nella natura umana e che orienta l’agente nel processo di deliberazione morale. Nonostante ciò, essa non può determinare direttamente la volontà dell’agente, ma deve essere vagliata criticamente dalla ragion pratica. Quest’ultima però non si limita a vagliare il sentimento; (...) essa può, e deve, coltivare l’empatia. L’empatia coltivata dalla ragion pratica svolge due ruoli moralmente rilevanti per la moralità dell’azione e la costituzione di un carattere morale: un ruolo motivazionale e uno epistemico. Infine, mostro come la concezione del processo di critica e coltivazione del sentimento proposta da Kant possa arricchire il dibattito non solo sulla necessità della regolazione delle emozioni, ma anche sulle tecniche di regolazione impiegabili. (shrink)

Since the 1980s, Vattimo’s “Weak Thought” has been an emendation of his previous revolutionary and dialectical reading of Nietzsche. Marxist terrorism in Europe exposed the indissoluble link between dialectics and violence, and consequently Vattimo’s revision was a rejection of any reconstructive effort for a new political and social order. But in the age of Silvio Berlusconi, Vattimo rediscovered the joy of political commitment. Ecce Comu was a call to pursue “a project of human emancipation” founded “on the search for equality.” (...) More recently, Of Reality and Hermeneutic Communism are a rejection of neoliberal philosophies and constitute a jump back to the 1970s. Vattimo aims once again to change the world and reality, a reality that other philosophies (Ferraris’s New Realism) simply contemplate as a pure fact. Vattimo defends the “revolutionary” meaning of hermeneutics against realism’s conservative tendencies and develops a project close to Gramsci’s “philosophy of praxis.”. (shrink)

The volume contains 10 chapters on 5 main issues of philosophical ethics: Relative/Absolute, Natural/Normative, Value/Values, Reason/Passions, Commands/Counsels. Each issue is examined in two chapters, the first one dealing with ancient (or medieval) philosophical positions, and the second one dealing with modern or contemporary debates.

Gegenstand der vorliegenden Arbeit ist die Pr fung der Frage, ob und inwieweit die Mitgliedstaaten der Europ ischen Gemeinschaft Kulturg ter im Privateigentum als nationales Kulturgut einstufen und ihre Verbringung ins Ausland verbieten d rfen, wenn die Eigent mer solcher Kulturg ter ihr Recht auf Freiz gigkeit aus ben. Kernpunkt dieser Studie ist, das Spannungsverh ltnis zwischen dem nationalen Kulturg terschutz und der europarechtlichen Freiz gigkeit der Unionsb rger aufzuzeigen.

This article adopts a transmedial perspective in order to investigate narrative similarities and differences between print and online travel writing. Texts, which are contemporary and Western-authored, are written either in English, French and Italian and they all focus on China as the travel destination. Drawing upon Gérard Genette and Mieke Bal's studies on the narrative discourse, it is contended that travel books and travel blogs, despite sharing basic generic features, present substantial differences. In the former, readers are presented with a (...) coherent and self-exhaustive narrative. This means that the representation of both China and the traveller results as a progressive discovery. On the other hand, travel blogs provide fragmented and objectified accounts rich in touristic tips. As a consequence, the narrative loses its internal development and takes on an informative value in which the portrayal of China and the traveller recede to the background. (shrink)

When does more data help and when does it not in the sciences? In the past decade, this question has become central because of the phenomenon of Big Data. While these discussions started as a result of somewhat naive ideas that have been closely analyzed and mostly rejected in the philosophy of data, the question about the epistemic difference that more or less data makes still matters, especially in light of the impressive performance of data science and machine learning tools, (...) which seem to improve their outcomes when they are trained on large volumes of data. In several areas of the sciences, having more data is also connected to methodological and epistemic benefits and more generally something that research should strive toward. More data is often equated to better science: this elicits crucial questions about the epistemic value of the quantity of data. In this chapter, we discuss this problem in light of current discussions in the life and health sciences and the philosophy of data. (shrink)

Page's “localist” code, a population code with occasional, maximally firing elements, does not seem to us usefully or testably different from sparse population coding. Some of the evidence adduced by Page for his proposal is not actually evidence for it, and coding by maximal firing is challenged by lower firing observed in neuronal responses to natural stimuli.

In this paper I provide a semantic analysis of non-specific uses of indexical expressions, such as "you" in typical utterances of "you just can't tell". My treatment employs independently motivated conceptual tools, such as the treatment of generics within Discourse Representation Theory, and the distinction between context of utterance and context of interpretation.

1. Phénoménologie et philosophie de la religion La tradition philosophique issue de Husserl, c’est un fait établi, a largement accueilli dans son propre domaine de recherche une famille de questions appartenant à un foyer virtuel que l’on peut désigner sans trop de risques – et malgré l’irréductible imprécision du terme – par le mot « religion » : Dieu, l’absolu, l’infini (avec sa gloire), le sacré, le saint, la mystique, l’incarnation, l’idole, l’icône, et même la religion en tant que telle...

'L'arte è una consacrazione e un luogo protetto, in cui l'esistente dona all'uomo ogni volta in modo nuovo il proprio sino a quel momento recondito splendore, affinché in tale chiarore egli possa vedere più nitidamente e ascoltare in modo più distinto ciò che si destina al suo essere.' Così si esprimeva Martin Heidegger nelle battute iniziali di un suo saggio degli anni Cinquanta, in cui il filosofo tedesco si proponeva di risvegliare l'attenzione dell'uomo occidentale nei confronti della differenza abissale che (...) sussiste tra il sapere scientifico e quello spirito meditativo che sta a fondamento del pensiero, nonché dell'esperienza poetica dell'arte. In anticipo rispetto a ogni calcolo e alla sua capacità di pianificare il reale, ecco schiudersi una dimensione in cui il mondo si fa incontro, inaugurando la possibilità per l'uomo di un soggiorno improntato all'ascolto e al ringraziamento. Entro un simile spazio e tempo di apparizione il pensatore e l'artista sono allora chiamati a dare un nome e una forma a un evento che segna l'istante d'inizio di un cammino con cui ciascuno fa fronte al proprio destino all'interno di un orizzonte di senso a tutti comune. Al fenomeno dell'essere che il pensatore si incarica di mostrare, risponde la "parola" con cui il poeta nomina quell'elemento di integrità che pone l'uomo dinanzi agli dei entro il reciproco richiamarsi di terra e cielo. A loro modo il pensiero e il canto rendono omaggio a ciò che tutto concede, rendendo trasparente il dono primigenio dell'essere e interpretandolo in modo inaudito secondo affinità sempre più segrete. Ora, che cosa si prepara in questa 'seconda' origine che è l'arte?"--Page 4 of cover. (shrink)

Original essays on Hans-Georg Gadamer's hermeneutical aesthetics and philosophy of art, written by some of the most important authors in this field, disclosing the possibility of a renewed understanding of Gadamer's thinking in the context of current aesthetic debates.

Kant’s Critique of Judgment represents one of the most important texts in modern philosophy. However, while its importance for 19th-century philosophy has been widely acknowledged, scholars have often overlooked its far-reaching influence on 20th-century thought. This book aims to account for the various interpretations of Kant’s notion of aesthetic judgment formulated in the last century. The book approaches the subject matter from both a historical and a theoretical point of view and in relation to different cultural contexts, also exploring in (...) an unprecedented way its influence on some very up-to-date philosophical developments and trends. It represents the first choral and comprehensive study on this missing piece in the history of modern and contemporary philosophy, capable of cutting in a unique way across different traditions, movements and geographical areas. All main themes of Kant’s aesthetics are investigated in this book, while at the same time showing how they have been interpreted in very different ways in the 20th century. With contributions by Alessandro Bertinetto, Patrice Canivez, Dario Cecchi, Diarmuid Costello, Nicola Emery, Serena Feloj, Günter Figal, Tom Huhn, Hans-Peter Krüger, Thomas W. Leddy, Stefano Marino, Claudio Paolucci, Anne Sauvagnargues, Dennis J. Schmidt, Arno Schubbach, Scott R. Stroud, Thomas Teufel, and Pietro Terzi. (shrink)