A Decades-Long Partnership in Modern Philosophy at the Lecce Center

The long and fruitful collaboration between the historians of philosophy at Sorbonne University and the University of Salento was honored during the meeting between President Jean Chambaz and Rector Fabio Pollice, with Professors Jean-Luc Marion, Giulia Belgioioso, Vincent Carraud and Igor Agostini on May 28 in Lecce.

In the 1980s, the first international colloquium was organized in Lecce by Professor Giulia Belgioioso for the 350th anniversary of the Discourse of the Method and the dialogue between the Sorbonne Center of Cartesian Studies and the Italian historians of philosophy at Lecce has not ceased to show its fruitfulness.

As Professor Marion explained in his speech, this is due to the complementary approaches of the Italian and the French, the former anchored in a naturally philological and erudite culture, the latter being more conceptual and problematic. It is also due to the relevance and strength of the initial philosophical questioning and to the broadening of the field of this questioning to the whole history of philosophy from the Middle Ages to the present day. Finally, it is due to the relations of mutual esteem and cordiality between those who, for several decades, have succeeded one another in bringing it to life.

The Centro di Studi su Descartes and the Centre d'études cartésiennes, are directly linked to the creation of the Centro of Lecce in 2000, and have been developing very rich collaborations.

For example, publications of reference tools for research: an international critical bibliography of Cartesian studies published regularly by the Bulletin cartésien, whose 50th issue came out this year, collections of reprints of original editions of Descartes' works and annotated works, creation of collections of Cartesian studies and collective publications;

• Annual study days or colloquia;

• A European master's program;

• An international doctoral program and joint research seminars;

• Co-supervision of theses (an average of three per year), of which about fifty have been defended to date, with Parisian doctoral students regularly benefiting from the University of Salento's doctoral grant.

Following this meeting in Lecce, to which the Rector Fabio Pollice had invited the President of Sorbonne University, Jean Chambaz expressed Sorbonne University's commitment to holding a reciprocal meeting in Paris in the spring of 2022. This meeting could be an opportunity to make room, alongside the collaboration between philosophers, for other existing collaborations between the two universities, such as in physics and marine sciences and biology, and to reflect on the different forms that scientific activity can take.

Watch a video recording of the event.