Nordicum-Mediterraneum


*March 2008* Volume 3, Number 1

Wendy C. Hamblet, The Peloponnesian War, the Spanish Requirement and the Clash of Civilizations: An Application of Plato's Theaetetus

This paper applies a unique reading of Plato's Theaetetus to problems of modern political violence. Theateteus' exploration of knowledge in his philosophical "birthings" under Socrates' midwifery reveals the elusiveness of human definitions of such crucial terms as justice. This leads them to the Protagorean dilemma, that when definitions are elusive, anyone and any state can name things "just" as they see them. The danger is then considered in relation to the ostensibly clear and distinct term "civilization" to explore whether we are right in our intuition that this is an unambiguously good thing.
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Gàbor Hamza, Elemér Balogh (1881-1955) The Forgotten Great Scholar of Roman Law and Comparative Law

The oeuvre of Elemér Balogh, who played an essential role in founding the Académie Internationale de Droit Comparé (International Academy of Comparative Law), is almost unknown by generations of lawyers nowadays. In spite of the fact that regarding his scientific motivation and the greater part of his publications Professor Balogh (who had to emigrate from his homeland, Hungary) was a scholar of Roman law, the parts of his scientific career dealing with Roman law and other ancient legal systems are also unknown for many legal scholars. In the following, we will present the most important stages of his life and then his scientific oeuvre dealing with Roman law and comparative law. The mere fact that he was invited to attend the fourteenth centenary celebration of the promulgation of Justinian's Digest - where he delivered a lecture titled La procédure civile sous Justinien - is an evidence of his high reputation as a Romanist.
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Monica Quirico, Giuseppe Garibaldi and Sweden: Between Solidarity and Scandinavism

The events of Italian Risorgimento and the attempts by Swedish Scandinavists (adherents to the intellectual movement seeking to establish one unified Nordic State) to return Sweden to an influential international role crossed each other. Whilst Sweden experienced both a constitutional crisis with Norway and a significant strengthening of the popular demand for democratic reforms, Piedmont was seen by the Scandinavists as a role model vis-à-vis the unification, in a democratic way, of different kingdoms under a crown that, in their plans, ought to be in the Nordic context the Swedish one. The solidarity movement supporting Garibaldi, identified as the symbol of the popular struggle against despotism, anticipated the prolonged and important season of Swedish popular movements, which were to play a crucial role in the history of Swedish Social Democracy.
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Flavio Baroncelli Staðalímyndir og sannleikur Translated by Egill Arnarson
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Mikael M. Karlsson Flavio Baroncelli: A Personal Recollection
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Nicla Vassallo, Il valore della testimonianza - The Value of Testimony

The following text is from my book Teoria della conoscenza published by Laterza some years ago. I have chosen to offer it here, in memory of my friend and colleague Flavio Baroncelli, for three basic reasons. First of all, more than twenty years ago, Flavio offered to be the supervisor of my graduate thesis on an epistemological theme in modern philosophy. I have not forgotten that possibility and have in recent times come to reflect upon both the type of epistemology and the philosophers that were beloved by Flavio. The text which follows these introductory remarks is a testament to this. Secondly, when he knew that I was interested in the epistemology of testimony, Flavio urged me to go on, because of the importance of that topic not only for general epistemology, but also for many other branches of philosophy. Thirdly, on the occasion of the publication of Teoria della conoscenza, Flavio participated on the round table in which it was presented to the public and had something like this to say: "I read the whole book with the same breath, as it was a detective story". In his memory, I cannot but hope to write other "detective stories".
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Nicola Ciprotti Theological Compatibilism and Essential Properties

Alvin Plantinga defends Theological Compatibilism (TC) and Essentialism about property possession (E). TC is the claim that human freedom to act otherwise and God's essential omniscience are compatible, while E is the claim that every individual entity whatsoever has a modal profile consisting in having both essential and accidental properties. I purport to show that, if E is assumed in the argument for TC, then the latter leads to a very puzzling upshot. I also intend to show that, even if TC is suitably fixed in order to avoid that upshot, TC is still unconvincing in that it merges into one the de re and the de dicto rendering of 'human freedom to act otherwise'; I end up by briefly sketching why the two renderings should instead be kept well apart.
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Sara Protasi A Necessary Conflict: Eros and Philia in a Love Relationship

In this paper the author analyzes the interaction between eros (erotic love) and philia (friendly love) in modern romantic relationships. The different ends of eros and philia conflict with each other. Firstly, eros' concern for unity overrides philia's concern for beneficence toward the beloved. Secondly, philia's emphasis on sharing and intimacy reduces the distance and tension on which eros thrives. After criticizing a standard "Socratic" solution of this conflict, the author proposes an alternative one, whereby eros and philia are seen as having different natures: philia is the context within which eros is the main disposition and their mutual conflict is in fact a necessary condition for a romantic relationship to flourish.
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Fabrizio Veneziano "These wasps behave just like those men who...": Irony and Optimism in Baroncelli's writings.

How can you conjugate scepticism and optimism? Irony and solidarity? Flavio Baroncelli spent most of his life, both as a scholar and as a human being, on this hard task, and his writings are there to show the results he achieved. Perhaps owing to the colloquial tone employed, his editorials in the section called "Scostumando" (published over the Nineties in the Italian newspaper Il Secolo XIX) offer an excellent sample of his "sceptical" but "reasonable", "analytic-ironical", "communication-intended" style.
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Tero Mustonen, Eternal Kantele at the End of Time - Reflections on Retraditionalization of Traditional Knowledge In the Face of Rapid Ecological Changes in the Arctic

A position paper presented for the 4th NRF Open Meeting in Oulu, Tornio and Luulaja, Finland - Sweden, October 2006
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By Giorgio Baruchello: Surveying the Greek Chora. The Black Sea Region in a Comparative Perspective. Edited by Pia Guldager Bilde and Vladimir F. Stolba (Aarhus: Aarhus University Press, Black Sea Studies 4, 2006).
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By Giuliano D'Amico: Keith Kahn-Harris, Extreme Metal - Music and Culture on the Edge (Oxford: Berg, 2007).
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By Tim Murphy: The Black Sea in Antiquity: Regional and Interregional Economic Exchanges. Black Sea Studies 6. Edited by Vincent Gabrielsen and John Lund (Aarhus: Aarhus University Press, 2007).
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By Giulia Ferrara: Binasco Matteo, Viaggiatori e missionari nel Seicento: Pacifique de Provins fra Levante, Acadia e Guyana, 1622 -1648, prefazione di Luca Codignola (Novi Ligure: Città del silenzio, 2006).
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Ioannis Michaletos, Greek Commercial Endeavors in the Antiquity - A Brief Account of the Ancient Commerce of Cassiterite Between Greece and Northern Europe
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"Promoting Nordic Studies in Italy. An Interview with Prof Gianna Chiesa Isnardi". By Giorgio Baruchello and Maurizio Tani
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Emily Pearce, Birth and Rebirth: the Past, Present and Future of Albanian Transition

After nearly two decades of crisis and rebuilding Albania continues to struggle up hill to consolidate its long sought after stability. This stability is held in place by a social and political order which continues to be marred by corruption. But if Albania hopes to fulfil its ambitions of eventual European Union and NATO membership sustainable stability, both economic and democratic, will be a key factor. This article examines the history of Albanian transition, the current state of affairs, and finally the role the international community can play in consolidating a stable and democratic future for Albania.
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