Vincent Carraud, Philosopher and historian of French philosophy, Full Professor of History of Modern Philosophy, University of Paris IV-Sorbonne, Paris; Costantino Esposito, Full Professor of History of Philosophy, University of Bari Aldo Moro. Moderated by Alessandra Stoppa, Director of Tracce.

The search for meaning, the question of why we exist in the world, constitutes the original nature of our self. And it is a dynamic that is not easily reduced to a subjective idea or a mental image: it is the most objective “fact” of our being, a real given within us. In fact, we must faithfully follow it to realize our lives. This is the first “friendship” with being that reveals itself in our existence: we are made to find satisfaction for our questions and desires. But thanks to this, we can understand the friendship that binds us to the heart of every other human being. “Let us work, therefore, to think well: this is the principle of morality,” as written by Blaise Pascal, the great philosopher whose 400th birth anniversary is celebrated this year and who has Vincent Carraud as one of his most important contemporary interpreters.