Universität Wien FIND

180167 SE Francis Bacon, and the Art of Writing Philosophy (2020S)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 18 - Philosophie
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 30 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

Very important notice: the sechule of our meetings in irregular
Session 1 13.03.2020 Welcome, Introduction, Literature, Schedule Recent trends in Bacon Scholarship
Session 2 20.03.2020 Law and politics, Bacon’s life and times: an introduction to the general historical background
Session 3 03.04.2020 Between Early Modern Philoospphy and Literature. Bacon’s Essays and Sapientia veterum
Session 4 24.04.2020The Advancement of Learning: Science, the art of eloquence and some inefficient ways of raising money (15.00-16.30 Ort: Hörsaal 3C )
Session 15.05.2020 Towards a doctrine of idols: Valerius Terminus and the Advancement of learning
Session 6 22.05.2020 De sapientia veterum liber. Myth and Early modern Science
Session 7 29.05.2020 STUDY DAY ALL DAY FROM 9 AM – 7PM presentations by the students (VENUE will be communicated in advance).
Session 8 12.06.2020 Critical assessments: Bacon as a philosopher of Science in Later Perspectives.

Friday 13.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 20.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 27.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 03.04. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 24.04. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 08.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 15.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 22.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 29.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 05.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 12.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 19.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock
Friday 26.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 3B NIG 3.Stock

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The seminar will be held in English. It is designed for advanced students with a firm command of English and for students who can read at least some Latin.
This seminar will provide an exposition of the thought of Francis Bacon, (1561-1626). By means of guided close readings of selected primary texts the seminar offers an advanced introduction to the philosophical achievements of Francis Bacon, and his socio-political and intellectual environment; it will outline pre-modern conceptualizations of new epistemologies that were going in tandem with a re-assessment of the cognitive value of literature, myth and fiction. The focus on the changing intellectual culture of Early Modern England will also encompass the changing conditions of research.
The seminar will be held in English, accompanied by reading material from selected relevant primary sources and secondary literature at the student’s disposal in the library. General introductions to the historical and intellectual backgrounds of the texts under consideration will go along with close readings of selected passages from Bacon’s works. In their oral presentations and seminar papers, students will focus on close readings of Bacons Essays.
Session 1 Welcome, Introduction, Literature, Schedule Recent trends in Bacon Scholarship
Session 2 Law and politics, Bacon’s life and times: an introduction to the general historical background
Session 3 Between Early Modern Philoospphy and Literature. Bacon’s Essays and Sapientia veterum
Session 4 The Advancement of Learning: Science, the art of eloquence and some inefficient ways of raising money (15.00-16.30 Ort: Hörsaal 3C )
Session 5 Towards a doctrine of idols: Valerius Terminus and the Advancement of learning
Session 6 De sapientia veterum liber. Myth and Early modern Science
Session 7 STUDY DAY ALL DAY FROM 9 AM – 7PM presentations by the students (VENUE will be communicated in advance).
Session 8 Critical assessments: Bacon as a philosopher of Science in Later Perspectives.

Assessment and permitted materials

Apart from actively participating in the discussions of selected primary texts, students will be required to give a short talk and to write an essay in English. A detailed structure for the paper will be presented at our first meeting. Please note: in order to obtain a certificate for this seminar it is necessary to give a talk AND to write a paper AND to participate in all our meetings, especially during the study day, which is an all day seminar. (May 29 2020)

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Apart from actively participating in the discussions of selected primary texts, students will be required to give a short talk and to write a ten page essay in English. Students who wish to participate in this course, therefore have to have a firm command both of spoken and written English as well as basic capacities to read Latin. Continuous presence at the seminar is another basic requirement. In their research, students will refer to the primary and secondary literature provided for the seminar as well as to other scholarly literature; in their essays, they will demonstrate their capacity handle the usual methods of scholarly documentation as required in the style sheet issued by the department of philosophy at the University of Vienna. A detailed structure for the paper will be presented at our first meeting.

Examination topics

see list of literature

Reading list

Minimal reading

Perez Zagorin, Francis Bacon, Princeton 1998 (Introduction)

Primary texts

Bacon, The Advancement of Learning (1605)
Bacon, Essays (1525)
Bacon, De sapientia veterum (1609)

I recommend buying the following (cheap but excellent!)

Francis Bacon: The Major Works (Oxford World's Classics) ed. by Brian Vickers. Oxford: oxford university press. (available for 20 Euros, or less order ASAP!)

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:21