Human will
New challenges for an ancient idea
International workshop
Will is arguably one of the key features constituting human beings. Witness, for instance, freedom, a notion that lays at the foundation of Western civilization, and is enshrined within the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights: freedom is, in a sense, the most fundamental among fundamental rights, yet it would be impossible to conceive without the existence of will (indeed, the two are almost always closely associated: “free will”). This already shows why will, despite being seen as an essentially philosophical notion, has tremendous outcomes on our lives. As a specialist of 19th -century German philosophy, prof. Anthony K. Jensen has recently published a comprehensive study on will [1](https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781003593362/philosophy-anthony-jensen), showing how great authors such as Goethe, von Hartmann, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche viewed it from a wider perspective embracing not only philosophical speculation, but also science. To them, will was the root of dynamic growth in the natural world, the main drive behind artistic creativity, the lever of history, and, of course, the wellspring from which moral values are drawn. In other words, will was a unifying concept, capable to bridge philosophy, science, art and social sciences.
Jensen’s book is just the first step of a wider examination. Not only the immensely rich history of will possesses many other interesting chapters, it also nowadays faces tremendous scrutiny from frontier scientific and technological fields of research such as neuroscience and AI, which both challenge its notion as well as its very plausibility. Indeed, advancements in neuroscience and AI have allowed a more effective reductivism to flourish: if will is reduced to the physiology of the brain, or if machines may also be autonomous, then will – and, consequently, humankind – is not the unique phenomenon it claims to be. This poses unique ethical, cultural and social questions, which can be addressed only through a deeply interdisciplinary engagement and multi-focal approach. What do sciences really mean when they theorise their reductionist approaches? And are philosophical views really so clean-cut? Only a dialogue between disciplines may help us possibly find a way out, and the accounts on will in 10th-century German philosophy are a wonderful example of a perspective aiming at bridging humanities and science.
Where and when:
9 April 2026
Aula E ex Palazzo di Economia – Via dell’Artigliere
Morning session: The history of an idea (Ancients vs Moderns)
9-9.45: Linda Napolitano (Verona, Italy): The Ancients: Will in Greek culture and philosophy
9.45-10.15: discussion
10.15-11: Anthony K. Jensen (Providence, USA): The Moderns: Will in 19th century German philosophy
11-11.30: discussion
11.30-11.45: coffee break
11.45-12.30: Francesco Cattaneo (Bologna, Italy) & Marcello Barison (Bolzano/Bozen, Italy): Will as Transfiguration
12.30-13: discussion
13-15: lunch
Afternoon session: New challenges for an ancient idea
15-15.45: Sofia Bonicalzi (Roma Tre, Italy): Will in the light of neuroscience
15.45-16.15: discussion
16.15-16.30: coffee break
16.30-17.15: Carlo Chiurco (Verona, Italy): From will to autonomy to automatism
17.15-17.45: discussion
17.45-18.30: Paolo Stellino (Nova Universidade, Lisboa): Will revolting against itself: philosophy and suicide
18.30-19: discussion
19-19.15: conclusions