Philosophy and Literature
Code: 100280 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Philosophy | OT | 3 |
| Philosophy | OT | 4 |
Contact
- Name:
- Stefania Fantauzzi
- Email:
- stefania.fantauzzi@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
The fundamental prerequisite is to be able to read in English, since some of the COMPULSORY READINGS OF THE COURSE are in this language,
because they are recent texts of which there is still no translation. In any case, they are brief articles in academic English, clear and easy to read, and we will work them in class.
Objectives and Contextualisation
The main objective of the course is to offer an introduction to the study of the relationship between literature and philosophy. Since its origins, philosophy has raised a series of complex questions about literature, such as why we need to tell stories or compose poems, how literature can transmit philosophical ideas or even have a function as a moral educator, what relationship exists between literature and knowledge, literature and truth, and the role of interpretation. All these questions, and others, have generated discussions that are today being reconsidered from innovative approaches. The course will focus on current debates on the philosophy of literature.
Competences
- Philosophy
- Analysing and summarising the main arguments of fundamental texts of philosophy in its various disciplines.
- Identifying the main philosophical attitudes in the field of aesthetics and critically applying them in the art world.
- Recognising and interpreting topics and problems of philosophy in its various disciplines.
- 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 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.
Learning Outcomes
- Analysing and summarising information.
- Autonomously searching, selecting and processing information both from structured sources (databases, bibliographies, specialized magazines) and from across the network.
- Carrying out a planning for the development of a subject-related work.
- Developing self-learning strategies.
- Discriminating the features that define the writer's place in the context of a problem and reorganising them in a consistent diagram.
- Establishing relationships between science, philosophy, art, religion, politics, etc.
- Identifying the regulatory, stylistic or argumentative errors of a text.
- Recognising, with a critical eye, aesthetic referents of the past and present and assessing its importance.
- Recognising, with a critical eye, philosophical referents of the past and present and assessing its importance.
Content
The course is organized into three blocks.
1) Companions for Thought. The Role of Literature in Philosophy
The Example of Hannah Arendt
The Human Condition
Men in Darkness: Prologue and Text on Dinsen
The Hidden Tradition: Kafka
2) Philosophy and Ethics in Tragedy
Martha Nussbaum, The Fragility of Good
Euripides; Medea
Christa Wolf: Medea
3) Thinking with Literature
An example: reading La Illa dels immortals, by Robért Lafont. Lleonard Muntaner, 2022. Two-class seminar
Our examples: students must choose a reading that has to do with the subject matter
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Sessions teòriques i sessions de seminari | 45 | 1.8 | 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Activitats col.laboratives a classe | 27.5 | 1.1 | 1, 2, 4, 3 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Estudi autònom de les lectures obligatòries i preparació de les sessions de seminari que es realitzaran a l'aula; consulta de la bibliografia secundària; recerca d'informació complementària; elaboració d'un treball sobre un tema de l'assignatura | 70 | 2.8 | 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 |
The methodology of the course combines:
SESSIONS IN THE CLASSROOM
-Lecture sessions: where the fundamental questions are addressed and basic knowledge is offered to prepare the readings.
-Seminar sessions: where the readings that the students have previously and autonomously prepared are analyzed and discussed.
These two types of sessions are alternated during the course.
It is essential that the students attend class on a regular basis and actively participate in the discussion about the readings.
SESSIONS AT THE OFFICE
-Tutorials: those students who have doubts about the contents and the readings of the course, or who want to profundize in particular aspects, can go to the lecturer's office during the hours of attention.
-Tutorials for the preparation of the video: the video on a topic of the course, which is one of the three tests in which the evaluation consists, must pass, at least, through a tutorial session.
DURING ALL THE COURSE
-Campus virtual: the course will use the campus virtual to post schemata of the lecture sessions, the compulsory readings and complementary materials. Also to inform about issues related to the course.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| comentari sobre els textos Medea de Wolf i Illes dels inmortals. | 30% | 2.5 | 0.1 | 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 |
| Anàlisi filosòfica d'un compte | 30% | 2.5 | 0.1 | 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 3, 7, 8, 9 |
| Attendance and participation | 10% | 0 | 0 | 1, 3 |
| Presentació de les propostes personals dels estudiants: escrit i oral | 30% | 2.5 | 0.1 | 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 3, 7, 8, 9 |
The assessment consists of three tests.
The first is the philosophical analysis of an account (in class)
The second consists of a commentary on the texts Medea by Wolf and Islands of the Immortals.
The third consists of the presentation of the students' personal proposals: written and oral
If the students opt for the single assessment, the test will consist of the philosophical analysis of an account, a commentary on the texts Medea and the Island of the Immortals and the production of a video with the personal proposal of a work in which the relationship between philosophy and literature is evident.
It is possible that the Department of Philosophy will establish (as will be done during the first semester) a period dedicated to evaluative tests. The teaching staff will indicate whether such a period exists or what the test dates are at the beginning of each course.
This subject allows the use of AI technologies exclusively for support tasks such as bibliographic or content-based searches, text correction or translations, where applicable.
The student must clearly (i) identify which parts have been generated using AI technology; (ii) specify the tools used; and (iii) include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the
process and final outcome of the activity. Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI in the assessed activity will be considered academic
dishonesty; the corresponding grade may be lowered, or the work may even be awarded a zero. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
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 willbegiven a zero as the final grade for this subject.
Bibliography
Hannah Arendt:
La condició humana
Hombres en tiempos de oscuridad: Prologo e text sobre Dinsen
La tradición oculta: Kafka Paidos, 2004
Isak Dinesen, La carretera de Pisa
Martha Nussbaum, La fragilidad del bien, Machado libros, 2004
Euripidies; Medea
Christa Wolf: Medea
Robért Lafont, La Illa dels immortals, Lleonard Muntaner, 2022.
Software
No one
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.