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International Conference on Filangieri &
Franklin: From the U.S. Constitution to the Fundamental European
Charter Castello Giusso o Vico Equense, Italy • June 15, 2004 The great lines of legal democratic order, which politicians, scholars, and philosophers are still contemplating and discussing today, live in vibrant, open societies thanks to three revolutions: the English, the French and the American. These wrenching shifts in thought, beliefs, and societies were preceded and accompanied by long and intense phases of critical review of traditional ideas and customs. The Revolutionary era reached its peak in Continental Europe in the period in which Gaetano Filangieri wrote his La scienza della legislazione, 1880-1885 (Science of Legislation). The friendship that grew between the Neapolitan philosopher and Benjamin Franklin, and the wish of the first to follow the statesman and secular moralist by emigrating to the New World, were signs of a profound belief in reason. The horizons and values that today characterize western civilization were already clear to the two brilliant men of the Enlightenment. Indeed, they have ennobled our civilization. As Denis Diderot wrote in 1782, their example "served to enlighten those who govern men in the legitimate use of their authority." Benjamin Franlin and Gaetano Filangieri: two scientist, two statesmen, two masters of thought, two fathers of modernity, two men who marked an era, two witnesses of life and civilization. Living so far from each other, both contextually and geographically, they might never have met. Indeed, they might have seemed, historically, twin heroes from Plutarch’s Parallel Lives. But this did not happen. In fact, through an extraordinary miracle, their paths did cross. They shared a correspondence that serves as a bridge uniting Italy and the United States, Vico Equense and Philadelphia. This conference considers archival material relating to two men who, for centuries, have figured in our collective heritage and who, at this moment of notable concern surrounding the establishment of the Charter of the European Union, have gained a new and compelling significance. It is a conference in which we, the descendents, thinking upon the documents of which we are the custodians, can explore – through science and knowledge and from a new vantage point – the roots of what we were and what we shall be.
9:30 AM Exhibition of the correspondence between Franklin and Filangieri. Remarks by Prof. Angerio Filangieri di Candida and Prof. Nadia Barrella. PROGRAM Moderated by Carlo Franco of the Corriere del Mezzogiorno 10:30 AM Welcoming remarks by: Vittorio Novelli –President Emeritus of the Supreme Court of Castello Giusso Giuseppe Dilengite – Mayor of Vico Equense Opening remarks by: The Hon. Patricia S. Harrison - Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S.A. First session: Moderated by Prof. Franco Paolo Casavola – President Emeritus of the Constitutional Court Presentation: Raffaele Ajello – Professor Emeritus, Università di Napoli "Federico II" - From Patriarchal Rights to Developments in Social Justice: Locke, Rousseau, Filangieri Presentation: Vincenzo Ferrone – Professor of Modern History, Università di Torino - The Critical Edition of Filangieri’s Science of Legislation: Problems and Solutions of an Intellectual Work Coffee Break 11:30 AM Second session: Moderated by Prof. Senator Fulvio Tessitore Presentation: Raffaele Raimondi –Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal - Filangieri and Franklin: The United States Constitution Presentation: Prof. Eugenio Lo Sardo – Supervisor, Ministry of Cultural Affairs - Filangieri and the New World Remarks: Maurizio De Tilla – President of ADEPP Prof. Adriano Giannola – President of the Istituto Banco di Napoli Fondazione Lunch 1:00 PM 4:30 PM Visit to the Tomb of Filangieri in the ex Cathedral of Vico Equense – Prof. Salvatore Ferraro 5:30 PM Moderated by Marco Demarco – Editor-in-Chief, Corriere del Mezzogiorno Opening remarks by: Francesco Favara – Attorney General, the Supreme Court of Appeal First session: Moderated by Prof. Francesco De Sanctis – Rector, Istituto Internazionale Suor Orsola Benincasa, Napoli Remarks: Prof. Michele Scudiero – Dean of the Law School, Università di Napoli "Federico II" Presentation: Kurt Seelmann – Professor, University of Basel - Legitimation and Attenuation of Punishment in Gaetano Filangieri Remarks: Prof. Alfonso Villani – Università del Molise Presentation: Prof. Gerardo Ruggiero – Biographer of Filangieri - Filangieri’s Public: From the Provinces of Italy to the Capitals of Europe Second session: Moderated by Prof. Mario Agrimi – Università di Napoli "Orientale" Remarks: Lawrence Auriana – President of the Columbus Citizens Foundation, New York Presentation: Claude Anne Lopez – Yale University - The Correspondence Between Filangieri and Franklin Presentation: Michael A. Ledeen – American Enterprise Institute - Franklin, Filangieri & de Tocqueville: Europe and the American Constitution Presentation: Eugene L. Nardelli – Supreme Court of the State of New York - Filangieri and the American Legal System – An Overview Concluding remarks: Gerardo Marotta – President of the Istituto Italiano per gli Studi Filosofici Napoli |