Program of the Libori Summer School 2025

Across five days, participants will encounter a rich program of lectures, student sessions, and keynotes, offering both historical insight and contemporary perspectives on Du Châtelet’s philosophy.

Program Details:

• Day 1: The Mandeville Commentary

  • Moderator: Ana Rodrigues (Introduction to the Mandeville Commentary)

  • Contributors: Sophie Unger (Does Morality Begin in Relation to Ourselves?), Luca Esfehanian (Humans and Animals in Comparison)

  • Keynotes: Ana Rodrigues, Judith Zinsser

  Day 2: The Essay on Liberty

  • Moderator: Ruth Edith Hagengruber (Introduction to the Essay on Liberty)

  • Contributors: Ana Barbosa (The Double Liberation of Émilie du Châtelet), Elina Rohleder (Divine Foreknowledge and Human Liberty), Buddhini Dharmawardhana (Free Will – A Perfunctory Examination)

  • Keynotes: Eszter Kovács (Malebranche’s Influence), Julia Jorati (Du Châtelet’s Theory of Freedom and its Origins)

  Day 3: The Essay on Colours

  • Moderators: Pedro Pricladnitzky & Bryce Gessell (Introduction to the Essay on Colours)

  • Contributors: Baiju P Anthony (Liberty Reconsidered: A Feminist Perspective), Chong Sinn Si (Free Will and Determinism in Enlightenment Thought), Aleksander Cvetkovic (On the Formation of Colours)

  • Keynotes: Bryce Gessell (Historical Background and Newtonian Influence), Fritz Nagel (Acceptance and Rejection of Newton’s Theory)

  • Special Event: Conference Dinner (19:00)

  Day 4: The Essay on Grammar

  • Moderators: Pedro Pricladnitzky & Katarina Peixoto (Introduction to the Essay on Grammar)

  • Contributors: Alicia Crespo (Liberty in the 18th Century), Sarah Bonfim (Du Châtelet and Wollstonecraft), Zichuan Xie (Philosophical Foundations of Grammar)

  • Keynote: Katarina Peixoto (On Grammar)

  • Additional Contribution: Viridiana Platas Benitez (Language and Knowledge in “Grammaire raisonnée”)

  Day 5: The Treatise on Metaphysics

  • Moderator: Ruth Edith Hagengruber (Introduction to the Treatise on Metaphysics)

  • Contributors: John R. Alonzo (Analysis of the Treatise), Filippo Iorillo (Final Causes and the Prejudice of Philosophy)

  • Closing: Final remarks and conclusion of the Summer School

We look forward to welcoming all participants for an enriching week of study, dialogue, and collaboration in Paderborn!