By Erin DeGregorio '16
Siena College was honored to have Adriana Cavarero as the key guest speaker for the 2015-2016 Symposium on Living Philosophers. Hailing from Italy, Cavarero was the first international philosopher to be featured in the Symposium.
Cavarero’s lecture titled “Horrorist Violence from the Holocaust to our Present” stressed various global events that included violent, dehumanizing acts against random, defenseless victims in the 20th and 21st centuries, such as the Holocaust and the viral hostage videos. Cavarero emphasized the paralysis of emotions, speech, and body that take place over the victims, which constitutehorrorism in her opinion. She focused on connecting the present to the past, whether it be MacBeth to Auschwitz or the French Revolution to current day hostage videos
“In my opinion, the practice of managing the inexplicable… presents itself today the unavoidable but extremely challenging task,” said Cavarero. “Horror is normalized by a technology…that weakens our ability to feel shame. Not because we pretend not to see but because the type of visibility of horror clouds our eyes.”
Currently Cavarero teaches political philosophy at the University of Verona in Italy, and has been recognized for her feminism, political philosophy, and her work on literature like Plato, Shakespeare and Arendt. Despite her philosophical background and repertoire, her work is interdisciplinary. This allowed for the students of various majors in attendance to relate to the many topics she explored.
“She has a cohesive and substantial body of work that can be taught all year long,” said Laurie Naranch, Ph.D., and Fanny Söderbäck, Ph.D. “[Cavarero] is so influential and has been active since the 1970s with diverse projects and research. Her work with ethics and humanity resonates with Siena’s mission and commitment to diversity and social justice, and our ethos of and attention to inter-human relations.”
Siena offers a highly competitive and unique opportunity for students to directly work and collaborate with a living contemporary philosopher for the entire academic year. Select students conduct yearlong independent research with faculty mentors and present their final papers to the featured philosopher for commentary. The seminar encourages students to explore difficult philosophical positions and arguments, to think critically about these issues, to express and defend their own positions with clarity and reason, and to connect ideas creatively.
“[Cavarero’s] work can connect and speak to modern times and to the past,” said political science and French major Ryan Kelleher ’18. “I’m excited to have the opportunity to work with her, and see the different views between Europe and the United States regarding human race and dignity.”
Cavarero will return to campus in the spring semester, where students will have another opportunity to engage with her. A public lecture will take place on April 14 at 5 p.m. in the Maloney Great Room, and there will be a student panel with Cavarero on April 15 in the Boland Room.
The Philosophy Department, the Political Science Department, the Office of Development and External Affairs, and Academic Affairs at Siena College sponsor the Symposium. This year’s Symposium is co-taught and co-directed by Fanny Söderbäck, Ph.D., and Laurie Naranch, Ph.D.
