Starting from the Other: Topics of Moral Reflection in Contemporary French Philosophy (PhD)

In the second half of the XX Century, some currents of French philosophy placed the theme of alterity at the core of their reflection. In particular, this theme played a relevant role in the definition of an ethics that, rather than beginning from the self, takes the Other (Autrui) as its starting point. The course will trace the principal moments of this strand of French thought, focusing initially on Emmanuel Lévinas, who devoted many of his works to the question of the priority of the Other from an ethical and ontological perspective. It will then focus on thinkers such as Jacques Derrida and Paul Ricoeur, who also developed the question of alterity within the field of ethics. Finally, the course will address some in contemporary moral philosophy that, even beyond the boundaries of French philosophy – as in the case of Judith Butler – have discussed some themes of an ethics of the priority of the Other, in particular the issues of responsibility and vulnerability, bringing them to the forefront of current ethical and political debate.