Dante and Arabic Philosophy

16 Feb 2023

pittadmin

Announced by the University of Pittsburgh:

Dante and Arabic Philosophy - A Columbia University and UC Berkeley Joint Seminar organized by Pier Mattia Tommasino (Columbia, Italian) and Akash Kumar (UC Berkeley, Italian Studies)

Session 1: L’Ordine dell’Universo nella “Commedia”

Presenter: Sebastiano Italia (University of Catania)

Respondent: Susanna Barsella (Fordham University)

Via Zoom and in Italian

In Paradiso 2, Dante argues that the dark spots on the moon are the result of the metaphysical and intrinsic essence of this celestial body and not a lack of physical matter. The poet begins to demonstrate his hypothesis using universal principles. His argument of the vivifying virtue of the cosmos radiating from heaven to earth, which illustrates the idea of the One emanating into the Many, has an undeniable Neoplatonic origin. Following the example of Avicenna, transmitted through Albert the Great, Dante attempts to reconcile the contradictions between Christian creationism and Emanationism. In doing so, he gives to human reason the task to restore the order of the cosmos, the harmony, and the beauty of the universe.

Co-sponsored by the Italian Mediterranean Colloquium (CU), the European Institute (CU), the Department of Italian (CU), the Center for the Study of Muslim Societies (CU), and the Department of Italian Studies (UCB)

Event Date: 
Thursday, February 16, 2023 - 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Institution(s): 
Sponsored By: 
Columbia University and UC Berkeley
Contact: 
europeaninstitute@columbia.edu
Location: 
Virtual