Felice Mondella Personal Library

The collection consists of around four hundred titles from the personal library of Felice Mondella (1928–2008), who taught Philosophy of Science from 1978 at the University of Milan. Donated in 2013 by Dr Anna Checchi, the philosopher’s wife, and selected with the scientific support of Professor Laura Boella and Professor Elio Nenci, the texts include studies on the history of science, the philosophy of medicine, and the philosophy of biology.

Biography of Felice Mondella

Born in Milan on 21 December 1928, after completing his classical studies, he enrolled in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Milan, graduating in 1954 (thesis title: Notes on the methodology of biological sciences). He practised as a general practitioner in Milan for seven years. As his thesis already hinted, he developed a growing interest in fostering a fruitful dialogue between the medical and biological sciences and philosophical thought. He resumed his university studies, graduating in Philosophy in 1966 (thesis title: Historical-critical reflections on certain relationships between thermodynamics and biology). He then left his medical practice to pursue an academic career at the Chair of Philosophy of Science, then held by Ludovico Geymonat.

In 1971, he qualified as a lecturer in the History of Modern and Contemporary Philosophy. From 1972 to 1978, he taught the History of Philosophy and the History of Scientific Thought at the Universities of Cagliari and Pisa. In 1978, he returned to the University of Milan as a lecturer, and later as Associate Professor of Philosophy of Science. In 1984, he was one of the founders of the journal Sanità Scienza Storia, and in 2001 of Janus. Medicina: cultura, culture.

He continued his work for as long as his health, which had deteriorated from 1990 onwards, allowed him to, facing his illness with courage and determination.

Bibliography by Felice Mondella

• F. Mondella, Sviluppi scientifici e filosofici della biologia dal Settecento all'Ottocento, Milano, Garzanti, 1969
• F. Mondella, Principi e problemi della termodinamica, in L. Geymonat (a cura di), Storia del pensiero filosofico e scientificio, vol. V, Milano, Garzanti, 1971, pp.186-227
• F. Mondella, Biologia e filosofia, in L. Geymonat (a cura di), Storia del pensiero filosofico e scientifico, vol. VI, Milano, Garzanti, 1972, pp.795-886
• F. Mondella, Studi sulla reazione idealistica alla scienza, Cagliari, Università degli Studi di Cagliari, 1974
• F. Mondella, La biologia alla fine dell'Ottocento, in L. Geymonat (a cura di), Storia del pensiero filosofico e scientifico, vol. V, Milano, Garzanti, 1975, pp. 648-710
• F. Mondella, La teoria dell'evoluzione e l'opera di Charles Darwin, Milano, Garzanti, 1975
• F. Mondella, Il concetto di istinto da Darwin a Lorenz. Le origini dell'etologia, Milano, Unicopli, 1984
• F. Mondella, Il rapporto corpo-mente: evoluzione di un problema scientifico e filosofico, Milano, Centro Alia papers, 1986
• F. Mondella, Biologia e filosofia, Milano, Garzanti, 1988
• F. Mondella, Lo spazio del corpo, lo spazio della mente, Milano, Episteme, 1995
• M. Beretta F. Mondella e M.T. Monti, Per una storia critica della scienza, Bologna, Cisalpino, 1996

The thought of Felice Mondella

The common denominator underlying Mondella’s research and teaching activities is undoubtedly the need to foster interaction between the sciences—particularly medical and biological sciences—and philosophy, a need that opens the way to a pluralistic, non-reductionist approach to human reality. In fact, Mondella has made significant contributions to the development of the debate on the philosophy of science, particularly regarding the critique of medicine, bioethics, healthcare, and the doctor-patient relationship.

Continuing along this line, the scholar, drawing on the thought of Gregory Bateson, argues in the essay "Magic and Scientific Reason", included in "The Space of the Body, the Space of the Mind" (1995), for the preservation of a certain “irrational” or “magical” component, which can provide an organic and holistic vision of the natural order.

For a more in-depth overview of Mondella’s thought, see the article by F. Vidoni, In memoriam Felice Mondella, in Nuncius 23 (2008), no. 2, pp. 373–379."