Nature and Normativity in Fourteenth- to \;Seventeenth-century Thought
\nA central Aristotelian idea is that moral and political norms are grounded in human nature. Human beings are understood as continuous with the rest of nature. Just as an acorn develops into an oak in accordance with its nature\, so too do human beings develop in accordance with their nature\, namely\, to live virtuous lives within political communities.
\nThis conference investigates how the link between nature and normativity was understood in Late Scholastic and Renaissance thought. To what extent was the Aristotelian framework preserved\, and in what ways was it rethought and challenged?
\nThe event forms part of the research project Nature and Norms (funded by the Swedish Research Council)\, which examines how shifting conceptions of nature in natural philosophy reshaped views of moral and political norms. A central thesis is that new conceptions of nature in mechanistic terms eroded the foundations of traditional natural norms. This raises the broader historical question: did these developments prepare the way for contractualist theories of society\, such as those advanced by Hobbes and Locke?
\nKeynotes:
\nAnnabel Brett FBA
\nProfessor of Political Thought and History
\nUniversity of Cambridge
\nCary J. Nederman
\nProfessor of Political Science
\nTexas A&\;M University
\nPreliminary Schedule:
\nLocation: Gula Villan (Stockholm University Campus) \;
\nDay 1 (May 28th)
\n10:00&ndash\;10:15
Welcome and Introduction
10:15&ndash\;11:00
Christian Rode (Universitä\;t Bonn)
Inequality Already in Paradise? Anthropological Equality and Political Participation
Chair: Alexander Stö\;pfgeshoff (Nord University)
\n11:00&ndash\;11:15
Coffee break
11:15&ndash\;12:00
Erik Å\;kerlund (Newman Institute)
Mair&rsquo\;s Political Philosophy
Chair: Tomas Ekenberg (Newman Institute)
\n12:00&ndash\;12:45
Victor Salas (Sacred Heart Major Seminary)
Untangling the Threads of Nature: Luis de Molina on Political Community and Its Potestates
Chair: Sylvain Roudaut (CNRS &ndash\; SPHERE)
\n12:45&ndash\;13:45
Lunch
13:45&ndash\;14:30
Rudolf Schü\;ß\;ler (University of Bayreuth)
The Road to Vá\;zquez &ndash\; Roots of His Conceptions of Natural Law and Sin
Chair: Miira Tuominen (Stockholm University)
\n14:30&ndash\;14:45
Coffee break
14:45&ndash\;16:15
Cary Nederman (Texas A&\;M) &ndash\; Keynote
Nature\, Equality and Consent &ndash\; Egalitarianism and Liberty in Late Medieval Thought
Chair: Henrik Lagerlund (Stockholm University)
Day 2 (May 29th)
\n10:00&ndash\;10:45
Florian Koenig (Goethe University Frankfurt)
On the Use of the Term &ldquo\;Status&rdquo\; in the School of Salamanca
Chair: Erik Å\;kerlund (Newman Institute)
\n10:45&ndash\;11:00
Coffee break
11:00&ndash\;11:45
Stefan Schweighö\;fer (Goethe University Frankfurt)
From Esse Morale to Ens Morale: Suá\;rez and the Discontinuity between Nature and Norms
Chair: Alexander Stö\;pfgeshoff (Nord University)
\n11:45&ndash\;12:30
Lavinia Peluso (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia)
Thomas Hobbes&rsquo\;s Analysis of Human Equality. The Price for Peace and the Polemic with Aristotle
Chair: Sylvain Roudaut (CNRS &ndash\; SPHERE)
\n12:30&ndash\;13:30
Lunch
13:30&ndash\;14:15
\nThierry Hoquet (Université\; Paris Nanterre)
Jean Boucaux&rsquo\;s Cause cé\;lè\;bre (1738) and the Question of Natural Slaves
Alexander Stö\;pfgeshoff (Nord University)
\n14:15&ndash\;15:00
Michael-Francis Polios (Duquesne University)
Freedom and Servitude: The Construction of Political Norms in Early-Modern Europe
Henrik Lagerlund (Stockholm University)
\n15:00&ndash\;15:15
Coffee break
15:15&ndash\;16:45
Annabel Brett (University of Cambridge) &ndash\; Keynote
TBA
Chair: Erik Å\;kerlund (Newman Institute)
\n16:45-17.00 Concluding Remarks
ORGANIZER: METHOD:PUBLISH END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR