Metaphysics
Code: 100303 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2500246 Philosophy | OB | 3 | 2 |
Contact
- Name:
- Mercè Rius
- Email:
- Merce.Rius@uab.cat
Use of Languages
- Principal working language:
- catalan (cat)
- Some groups entirely in English:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Catalan:
- Yes
- Some groups entirely in Spanish:
- No
Prerequisites
No prerequisite.
Objectives and Contextualisation
It would be:
1) Acquire a certain conceptual ease regarding the most remarkable milestones of Metaphysics throughout the history of philosophy.
2) Learn to compare and distinguish, as much as possible, idealism, spiritualism and materialism.
3) Address the classic problem of the foundation (the doctrine of being) and that of transcendence (the limits of representation).
4) Reflect on the opposition between ontology and metaphysics in the digital age.
Competences
- Analysing and summarising the main arguments of fundamental texts of philosophy in its various disciplines.
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Placing the most representative philosophical ideas and arguments of a period in their historical background and relating the most important authors of each period of any philosophical discipline.
- Recognising and interpreting topics and problems of philosophy in its various disciplines.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
- Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
- Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
- Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
- Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
- Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
- Thinking in a critical and independent manner on the basis of the specific topics, debates and problems of philosophy, both historically and conceptually.
Learning Outcomes
- Accurately using the specific lexicon of the history of philosophy.
- Applying philosophical rigour in a written text following the international quality standards.
- Autonomously searching, selecting and processing information both from structured sources (databases, bibliographies, specialized magazines) and from across the network.
- Communicating in the studied language in oral and written form, properly using vocabulary and grammar.
- Discriminating the features that define the writer's place in the context of a problem and reorganising them in a consistent diagram.
- Distinguishing and outlining the fundamental content of a philosophical text.
- Distinguishing the topics of philosophical relevance in current debates.
- Engaging in debates about philosophical issues respecting the other participants' opinions.
- Establishing relationships between science, philosophy, art, religion, politics, etc.
- Explaining aspects of the history of science by using the discipline's specific terminology.
- Explaining the specific notions of the History of Philosophy.
- Expressing both orally and in written form, the issues and basic problems of the philosophical tradition.
- Identifying the main ideas of a related text and drawing a diagram.
- Indicating and discussing the main characteristics of the distinctive thought of a period and contextualizing them.
- Indicating and summarising the common content of several manifestations of various fields of culture.
- Mastering the relevant languages to the necessary degree in the professional practice.
- Organizing their own time and work resources: designing plans with priorities of objectives, calendars and action commitments.
- Producing an individual work that specifies the work plan and timing of activities.
- Recognising, with a critical eye, philosophical referents of the past and present and assessing its importance.
- Relating elements and factors involved in the development of scientific processes.
- Relating several ideas of the current philosophical debates.
- Relating the various orders of the philosophical ideas of different authors and historical moments.
- Solving problems autonomously.
- Using specialized knowledge acquired in an interdisciplinary context when debating.
- Using suitable terminology when drawing up an academic text.
Content
1. Introduction.
a) In the 21st century, is metaphysics still in force?
b) Scientific knowledge and historicism.
2. Historical milestones of metaphysical knowledge.
a) Aristotle: the doctrine of being as fundamental knowledge.
b) Descartes: cogito ergo sum.
c) Leibniz: monadology.
3. Metaphysics after Kant.
a) The limits of representation: language and reality.
b) Essence and existence: ontologies of the 20th century.
c) Materialism versus idealism.
Methodology
During the face-to-face sessions, the teacher will present the subjects of the program with special emphasis on the main concepts, which will be framed in the appropriate argumentation.
In case of suspension of face-to-face teaching, said activity will be carried out by the computer means that the UAB makes available to us.
The work corresponding to the second test must be supervised by the teacher. Otherwise, it will not be admitted.
Activities
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Master class | 35 | 1.4 | 5, 9, 11, 25, 14, 19, 21, 22, 1 |
| Text reading orientation | 10 | 0.4 | 6, 13, 17, 22 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Tutorials | 20 | 0.8 | 2, 3, 6, 4, 17, 1 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Reading recommended bibliography | 50 | 2 | 5, 6, 13, 22 |
| Study and preparation of works | 27.5 | 1.1 | 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 4, 25, 17, 22, 1 |
Assessment
Assessment criteria
First test:
It will consist of a written exam during the class time slot. The evaluable subject will be theme 2 of the program: “Historical milestones of metaphysical knowledge”.
Second test:
A short work on the subject's theme and with the materials used or recommended in class. More detailed instructions will be given at the beginning of the course.
Third test:
It will consist of a written exam during the class time slot. The evaluable subject will be theme 3 of the program: "Metaphysics after Kant".
The final grade is calculated as follows:
The first test and the third test, each one of them, 35% of the final grade.
The second test, 30% of the final grade.
The course will be considered passed if the average of the three tests is equal to or greater than 5.
The course will be considered non-evaluable if the student is absent from more than one of the three tests; or just one, but without having communicated the presumed reasons to the teacher, as well as the intention of submitting to the reassessment exam (always sub conditione, within the normative limits). Such communication must be immediate: within a period of seven (calendar) days from the date on which the test to which the student did not attend was held.
Test dates
During the first week of class of the subject, information regarding the evaluation dates will be published in Moodle.
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.
Conditions for final reassessment:
In order to access the final recovery, the assessment of the three tests must have been carried out. In the event that, due to any incident (see Organizational Rules), the student has not done one of the three tests, they can only do it at the end of course if they already have the assessment of the other two and the average mark is not less than 3.5. The second test will not enter the final reassessment.
The recovery of the tests will be joint and will be done on the day and time set by Academic Management.
Evidence review:
The revision date of each test will be indicated in due course through Moodle. The personalized review will take place in the teacher's office. Or by email in the case of suspension of face-to-face teaching.
Organizational rules:
If the student (1) does not deliver the test prepared at home at the established place, date and time, (2) if he does not appear at one of the tests carried out in the classroom or (3) arrives late, that is, when the questions have been distributed and the corresponding instructions have been given, in which case, you will have lost the call, and you can only recover it as part of the final reassessment if you satisfy the conditions indicated in the previous section (Conditions for final reassessment). An exception will be made if you allege good cause with the relevant documentation: (a) enabling another day for the test if it has not been presented, or (b) allowing it to be carried out even if it has been late.
Whoever leaves the exam room will not be able to enter again (except for amajor cause).
Regarding the test prepared at home, the student must deliver it - personally - on the stipulated day and in class time. Any incident in this regard, including the possibility of being delivered by another person if the student cannot, for just cause, must notify the teacher in advance; if this is not possible, the student should contact, at the latest, in the next session of the subject.
Regarding the possibility of sending works by email, it will only be effective if the teacher so provides at the time. Otherwise, they will be dismissed. Likewise, those that the student has put in the mailbox of the Secretariat will be rejected, unless the professor's agreement has been previously obtained. Of course, in the event that tests or exams cannot be taken onsite, this rule would be invalidated.
In the event that tests or exams cannot be taken onsite, they will be adapted to an online format made available through the UAB’s virtual tools (original weighting will be maintained). Homework, activities and class participation will be carried out through forums, wikis and/or discussion on Teams, etc. Lecturers will ensure that students are able to access these virtual tools, or will offer them feasible alternatives.
Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First test: exam | 35% of the final grade | 2.5 | 0.1 | 2, 15, 24, 7, 6, 16, 9, 10, 11, 12, 4, 25, 14, 8, 19, 21, 22, 20, 23, 1 |
| Second test: brief research work | 30% of the final grade | 2.5 | 0.1 | 2, 15, 3, 24, 5, 7, 6, 16, 18, 9, 10, 12, 4, 25, 13, 17, 8, 19, 21, 22, 20, 23, 1 |
| Third test: exam | 35% of final grade | 2.5 | 0.1 | 2, 15, 24, 7, 6, 16, 9, 10, 11, 12, 4, 25, 14, 8, 19, 21, 22, 20, 23, 1 |
Bibliography
Basic bibliography*
Introduction
Dilthey, Wilhelm, Teoría de las concepciones del mundo, Alianza Ed., Madrid.
– , Hermenèutica, Filosofia, Cosmovisió, Edicions 62. Textos Filosòfics (T.F.), Barcelona.
Heimsoeth, Heinz, Los seis grandes temas de la metafísica occidental, Alianza Ed.
Husserl, Edmund, La crisis de las ciencias europeas y la fenomenología transcendental, Ed. Crítica, Barcelona.
Riu, Federico, Ontología del siglo XX, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas, 1966.
Historical milestones of metaphysical knowledge
(Ferrer Gràcia, Joan, editor) De Tales a Demòcrit. El pensament presocràtic. Fragments i testimonis, Edicions de la ela geminada, Girona, 2011.
Platón, Diálogos V (Parménides; Sofista; et alt.), Gredos, Madrid.
Aristòtil, Física, Edicions de la ela Geminada, 2017.
Aristóteles, Metafísica [trilingual edition: Greek, Latin, Spanish], Gredos.
Descartes, René, Discurs del mètode, T.F.
– , Méditations métaphysiques. Objections et réponses, Flammarion, Paris.
– , Meditacions metafísiques, Edicions de 1984, Barcelona.
– , Tractat de les passions. Cartes sobre la moral, T.F.
Leibniz, G.W. [Gottfried Wilhelm], Escritos filosóficos, Antonio Machado Libros, Madrid.
– , Nous assaigs sobre l’enteniment humà, T.F.
– , Discurs de metafísica. Monadologia, Marbot, Barcelona, 2018.
– , Monadología, Pentalfa Ediciones, Oviedo, 1981 [trilingual edition: Latin, French, Spanish].
– , Ensayos de teodicea: sobre la bondad de Dios, la libertad del hombre y el origen del mal, Sígueme, Salamanca, 2013; Biblioteca Nueva, Madrid, 2014;Abada Editores, Madrid, 2015 [bilingual edition: French, Spanish].
– , Escritos en torno a la libertad, el azar y el destino, Tecnos, Madrid.
Metaphysics after Kant
(The limits of representation: language and reality)
Kant, Immanuel, Prolegòmens a tota metafísica futura que vulgui presentar-se com a ciència, T.F.
– , Crítica de la razón pura, Alfaguara, Madrid.
- , Crítica de la raó pràctica, T.F.
Comte, Auguste, Discurssobre l’esperit positiu (precedit de les dues primeres lliçons del curs sobre la filosofia positiva), T.F.
– , Catecismo positivista o exposición resumida de la religión universal, Editora Nacional, Madrid.
Wittgenstein, Ludwig, Tractatus logico-philosophicus, T.F.
– , Conferencia sobre ética, Paidós/ICE-UAB, Barcelona.
(Ontologies of the 20th century)
Heidegger, Martin, Introducción a la metafísica, Gedisa, Barcelona.
– , ¿Qué es metafísica?, Alianza Ed.
– , Kant y el problema de la metafísica, Fondo de Cultura Económica (FCE), México.
– , Carta sobre el humanismo, Alianza Ed.
Sartre, Jean-Paul, L’ésser i el no-res (Selecció), T.F.
– , L’existencialisme és un humanisme, a J.-P. Sartre, Fenomenologia i existencialisme, T.F.
– , “La llibertat cartesiana”, a Ibídem.
(Materialism versusidealism)
Berkeley, George, Tres diàlegs entre Hylas i Philonous, T.F.
Diderot, Denis, Le Neveu de Rameau et autres dialogues philosophiques, Gallimard, Paris.
– , Tres diálogos filosóficos de Diderot: el sueño de D’Alambert, Universidad Autónoma Nacional de México (UNAM).
Nietzsche, Friedrich, La filosofía en la época trágica de los griegos, Valdemar, Madrid.
Blanqui, Louis-Auguste, L’Eternité par les astres, Editions Slatkine, Paris-Genève, 1996.
– , La eternidad por los astros, Ediciones Colihue SRL, Buenos Aires, 2003.
Adorno, Theodor W., Metaphysics. Concept and Problems, Polity Press & Blackwell Publishers Ltd., Cambridge-Oxford.
Horkheimer, Max, Materialismo, metafísica y moral, Tecnos.
Rius, Mercè, Matèria. El grau zero de la filosofia, Publicacions de la Universitat de València (PUV), 2018.
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* This bibliography will be expanded, if necessary, during the course.