In recent years, after much insistence, in the humanities and social sciences as well as in philosophy, on the sovereign and rational subject capable of socially deploying an equally rational action, philosophical reflection has brought the question of affects and emotions back to the centre. By doing so, it has been attempting, be it explicitly or not, to take seriously the idea elaborated by Spinoza at the dawn of modernity that we are literally 'traversed/constituted by passions'. Against the background of this from this 'affective turn', the course intends to raise questions such as: what are the political consequences of the centrality of affects for subjects and their social living, i.e. for society? What is it that gets lost, when this centrality is denied or removed, as has long been the case in philosophical, political and social reflection? And what are the underlying reasons for such removal? During the course, we will critically discuss the perspectives of a number of contemporary authors who, from different perspectives, have claimed the centrality of the affects and emotions for political thought and action, allowing us to address these questions and to question our political and social present, both national and international, in which affects and passions play a role that is not immediately legible according to the traditional dichotomies inherited from the past.

The first part of the course, of approximately 36 hours, will be delivered by Dr. S. Pippa. The second part, will be held by Prof. V. Morfino, who will run a seminar (approx. 20 hours) entitled: "E. Balibar: from transindividual to egaliberté".