Moral Sentiments in the Mediterranean: Social, Historical and Cultural Perspectives - Msida - 11 February 2019

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The seventh seminar in the ‘Entangled Histories of Emotions in the Mediterranean World’ series, ‘Moral Sentiments in the Mediterranean: Social, Historical and Cultural Perspectives’ is taking place in Msida on Monday (11 February 2019).

Moral Sentiments in the Mediterranean: Social, Historical and Cultural Perspectives

Date: Monday, 11 February 2019

Time: 9:00 - 17:00

Venue: The University of Malta

This workshop will look specifically at the relationship between emotions and moral structures in the Mediterranean region. It starts from the premise that ‘emotions may actually be essential and enduring features of our moral character’ (Oatley 1999: 5). The workshop will integrate two different perspectives. It will look at the the role that emotions have played in the construction of ‘moral reason’ in the Mediterranean. What is the relationship between morality, emotions and rationality in the different societies of the region? When are sentiments valid grounds for moral action? The workshop will also look at specific emotions whose proper object could be identified as ‘moral’ (pride, shame, guilt, compassion and humility, for example). Are there regional similarities in t he ways in which such emotions are understood and the actions they impel? Do the the local semantic inflections of such moral sentiments underscore a different understanding of morality and/or the emotions? Were there significant historical shifts in the ways in which such emotions are articulated within the economic, political and social currents in the region? How are moral sentiments engendered in the Mediterranean? Recognising that such emotions, if not socially constructed are at least socially articulated, contributors to this workshop will look at varieties of moral sentiments in the Mediterranean and its narratives. Contributors can focus on individual emotions (past and present), look at the deployment of emotions or conduct a comparative study of one or more emotions within a society or across different societies across the Mediterranean basin.

Programme can be downloaded here.