[Online Seminar Series] Being Singular: Historical and Theoretical Perspectives

Directed by:

Gregory Scott Moss (Hong Kong University)

Alessandro De Cesaris (Université de Fribourg, Switzerland)

Introduction

A bizarre paradox runs through the history of philosophy. Since the time of Aristotle, philosophy has been defined as the knowledge of the universal, and what is singular is excluded from the domain of what is knowable. At the same time, however, the history of philosophy has continually been confronted – starting with Aristotle, and even earlier with Plato – with the problem of defining what it means to be singular.

The notion of ‘singularity’ is intertwined with – and distinguished from – other fundamental terms in the philosophical lexicon: the one, the individual, the person, the absolute, but also the contingent, the unrepeatable, the unexpected. It seems to define at the same time what is lowest and irrelevant (a detail, a contingency) and what is supreme and of utmost importance (the absolute, God).

In modern thought, the possibility of clearly distinguishing between the singular and the universal is radically called into question. Philosophical interest in history and art leads one to challenge the idea that philosophy cannot deal with the singular. The birth of Aesthetics and Philosophy of history, as well as the philosophical meditation on the contingent and evenemential aspects of human life, constitute a new stage in the relationship of philosophical thought to the category of the singular.

The aim of this seminar series will be to discuss the notion of the ‘singular’ starting from the history of philosophical thought, but also in relation to the use of this term in the contemporary debate. The research hypothesis is that philosophy still has to come to terms with the notion of the singular, and that thinking deeply about this notion can help us to shed light on some theoretical problems still open today.

Format

The seminar series is co-organised by the University of Freiburg (Chair of Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art) and the University of Hong Kong. The project consists of a series of two-hour online meetings: each meeting will be opened by a 30-minute talk by an internationally recognised scholar. This will be followed by 90 minutes for discussion.

The meetings will take place in English.

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Calendar

10.05.2024

Martin Donougho

University of South Carolina

17.05.2024

Stathis Gourgouris

Columbia University

18.05.2024

Michael Della Rocca

Yale University

28.06.2024

Filippo Casati

Lehigh University

05.07.2024

Saloni de Souza

Henrich-Heine Universität

19.07.2024

Emmanuel Alloa

Université de Fribourg

27.09.2024

Francesco Di Maio

EHESS/Università di Bologna

04.10.2024

Elena Ficara

Universität Paderborn

18.10.2024

Federico Leoni

Università di Verona

25.10.2024

Gaetano Chiurazzi

Università di Torino