About

The set of challenges facing the Humanities today is an opportunity to rethink their future. Over and again the diagnosis of crisis resurfaces, with departments, research centres or programs in the Humanities facing budget cuts, and their utility being questioned. Against that backdrop, their defence often appeals to the intrinsic value of a humanistic education (Ordine) and points to the virtues of critical thinking and democratic citizenship that the Humanities foster (Nussbaum). At the same time, this is a field that undergoes deep transformations, given the appearance of the ‘new Humanities’ (Braidotti et al.), including multi- and interdisciplinary developments (Digital, Environmental or Medical Humanities). And while this is happening, a self-reflexive effort to (re-)define the Humanities and think the role they can have in tackling the urgent societal issues of our time is undergoing.

On the occasion of the celebration of the 75^th birthday of the CIPSH and of the World Philosophy Day, and given the need to keep reflecting on the future of the Humanities, the Conference “Hermeneutical Rationality and the Future of the Humanities”, which will take place on 26-28 November 2024 at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Coimbra, puts forward a twofold objective. On the one hand, it intends to explore the extent to which the hermeneutical paradigm of the Humanities (Schleiermacher, Dilthey, Gadamer, Ricœur, Taylor), which emphasizes the interpretive core of these disciplines and their contribution to human moral development can still provide meaningful answers to these challenges. On the other hand, it aims to intervene, in a reflective and critical manner, in the debates on the value, need and possible shape of the Humanities in the future.

With the support of:

Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of Coimbra and Fourwaves