Biography of Alberto Caracciolo

Philosophy, religion, poetry

January 22, 1918
October 4, 1990
Born on January 22, 1918 in San Pietro di Morubio (VR), where his father, Ferdinand was doctor, just three years lost his mother, but he was in the father a doting Guide, an example of rectitude and generosity. He completed his high school in Verona and attended the University in Pavia, as a pupil of Collegio Ghislieri. There he met the future martyr of the resistance, Teresio Olivelli with whom he collaborated, writing for the notebooks of "rebel", and which put forth, on behalf of the Rector and friends of Ghislieri, a significant biography.
Alberto Caracciolo began as early as 1940 the teaching career of Italian and Latin in high school: he was first in Pavia, then in Lodi and Brescia. In 1951, he obtained a doctorate in aesthetics, was called to the University of Genoa, where they ran his long and distinguished academic career: Professor of aesthetics, initially won the first Chair in Italy in the philosophy of religion, to move finally to the Chair of Theoretical.
These three perspectives and these three research fields correspond to three fundamental moments of the development of its rich scientific reflection. In the field of aesthetics has dealt mainly with the thought of cross, Kant and Heidegger, by making its own independent perspective, whose basic theme is the idea of truth in the domain of poetry; in the field of philosophy of religion has entered with originality in the line of religious liberalism; in light of this guideline of thought proposed a vision of religion as constitutive structure of consciousness; more properly theoretical field, conversing in particular with Leopards, Kant, Jaspers and Heidegger, have redesigned the human existence in the horizon of nihilism, and offered to the latter an original interpretation. Also important to his work as a promoter of culture as evidenced by: the seminars devoted to "music and philosophy" (in collaboration with the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa), and "language Problems" (in collaboration with the Teatro Stabile of Genoa); the three conferences on "the experience of God's absence in modern culture", "beautiful soul", "the problem of hateful moi and unnecessary suffering" (sponsored by the Fritz-Thyssen-Stiftung); the many upcoming conferences in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut in Genoa and with the Institute of philosophy at the University.
His thinking and his work occupy a singular position in the panorama of Italian philosophy in the second half of the twentieth century; singular as his personality end and Dodge, humanly warm and open, but very strong in defence of freedom of thought and autonomy of the teaching, alien from each yielding to seduction of fashion and ISMS, faithful to a severe life conception. He worked until I caught him at night, sudden death on October 4, 1990, not long after he made his last note: "From October 4, 90 readings and notes for a research project on the topic of equality". Works: Teresio Olivelli. Biography of a martyr, London 1947 (new ed. 1975); Benedetto Croce's aesthetics as it unfolded and within its limits, Torino 1948 (later: aesthetics and religion of Benedetto Croce, Arona 1958, Genoa .1988); Writings on aesthetics, Brescia 1949; Ethics and transcendence, Brescia 1950; Art and thought in their metaphysical instances.
The problems of "critique of judgment", Milano 1953 (new ed. Kantian studies, Napoli, 1995); The person and the time, Arona 1955; Philosophical essays, Genoa 1955; Jaspersiani Studios, Milan 1958; Religion as structure and as an autonomous way of conscience, Milano 1965 (new ed. Genoa 2000); Art and language, Milano 1970; Religion and ethics, Naples 1971 (new ed. Genova 1999); Karl Löwith, Napoli 1974 (new ed. Brescia 1997); Contemporary thought and nihilism, Naples 1976; Nihilism and ethics, Genoa 1983.2002 (new ed.); Heideggerian studies, Genova 1989; Anything religious and imperative of the eternal, Genoa 1990. Posthumous works: politics and autobiography, London 1993; Leopards and nihilism, Milan 1994; Virtue and the course of the world. 1975-76 academic year tuition, Alexandria 2002. It is in progress, at the Morcelliana, the publication of the complete works in 5 vols., of which so far appeared first.
Translations from German: e. Troeltsch, the absoluteness of Christianity and the history of religions, Napoli 1968; and together with Maria Perotti Caracciolo: a. Lang, introduction to the philosophy of religion, London 1959-1969; M. Heidegger, on their way to the language, Milan 1973-1979-1990; W.f. Otto, Theophania. The spirit of ancient Greek religion, Genoa, 1983. In ' 72 participated in the radio program "the philosophers", presenting a brief summary of his thought (see pp. 497-502 in: AA. VV., philosophy from 45 to date. By Valerio Verra. ERI, Edizioni RAI, Radiotelevisione Italiana .1976).
Article contributed by the team of collaborators.