'Doctor Virtualis' 20 - Critical Thinking and the Middle Ages



The next issue of DV intends to investigate, in full coherence with the history of the journal and the tradition to which it has always been linked, the relationship between the Middle Ages, understood as an object of enquiry, but also as the subject of significant philosophical paths, and critical thought.

The two elements placed side by side in the title are difficult to define univocally: to the question "what is the Middle Ages", not only from a philosophical point of view, the answers would be multiple and often mutually incompatible, not to mention that many would call for a discussion in advance of the very existence of the Middle Ages and its temporal collocation, also in relation to different cultural traditions. Even for what refers to 'critical thought', the wish for a unitary definition would in all likelihood not be realised, given the multiple declinations that the locution has had in the last century.

Aware of these difficulties, we ask all those who wish to participate in “Doctor Virtualis” 20 to propose contributions that move in this twofold direction:

1) Theoretical: Does critical thinking exist and in what forms in the Middle Ages?

can medieval scepticism be understood as a form of critical thinking?
do the various forms of criticism of political (secular and ecclesiastical) and cultural institutions in the Middle Ages qualify as critical thought?
is it possible to identify forms of critical thought in authors traditionally considered systematic or metaphysical?
can the method of research and teaching structured from the 12th century onwards be considered an element of critical thinking common to the various disciplines?
can the critical meta-exegesis of the scientia iuris, which deconstructs the auctoritates of the ius romanorum to reconfigure a new ordo iuris, be understood as critical thinking?

2) Historical-philosophical: What does it mean to use critical thinking in research and investigation into medieval philosophy and culture?

does the criticism, taught to us by Mario Dal Pra, of the great narratives of medieval thought, which had become established in the first half of the last century, present itself as a form of critical thinking in the historiographical sphere?
Does the overcoming of any unitary perspective and the use of the term medieval philosophies represent an index of critical thought?
is the historical collocation, increasingly attentive to the context in which the various philosophies of the Middle Ages arose and flourished, a form of critical thinking in historiography?

Deadlines

1) Submission of the article proposal as abstract (6000/8000 characters) by 30 September 2024

2) After acceptance of the proposal, articles (35/45 thousand characters) will be due by 30 January 2025 (please follow the editorial rules of the journal available on the website).

3) Expected publication: September 2025



For information and to send proposals, please write jointly to:

amalia.salvestrini@unimi.it - marco.rossini@unibs.it