Dates
October 1, 2026
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Read, see, think, speak
Towards the logos . Philosophy in Zamora, with Francisco Javier Hernández González
  • For adults interested in nature issues or philosophical interest
  • First and third Thursday of every month, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
  • Number of places > 25
  • Registrations can be made at the library reception desk or via the online form This link will open in a pop-up window.
  • Meeting place: Multipurpose room

Introduction and Objective : With renewed enthusiasm, we look forward to welcoming you back for our fourth year in this phase of the Philosophical Café. We remain committed to sharing our increasingly vital objective: to promote philosophical reflection and social debate in a setting conducive to reading and thought, such as the public library. In the face of the sectarianism (which seems to intensify each year) of "one side" versus "the other" (as Unamuno put it), our aim is to create a space for rational, reasoned dialogue based on knowledge.
In this vein, we will try to do our part, convinced that knowledge and rationality are the most powerful weapons to advance the material and spiritual development of societies, while allowing individuals to achieve a more fully human life.
Throughout the course, a wide variety of topics will be proposed for dialogue, based on texts and/or films, which will serve both as information and as a motivating element for rational discussion.

Media : facilities of the Zamora Public Library, its documentary collection (books, films, etc.), any other additional material.

Recipients : any interested person.
This Filocafé aims to be an attempt to disseminate and promote philosophical reflection, aimed at anyone who is interested in the problems of the world in general and human life in particular.

Format : Each session will last approximately 90 minutes. A few days before each session, participants will receive an invitation to the event via email (which they provided when they subscribed), announcing the date and topic of the session and a brief description of it, as well as any other necessary materials.

Activity Description : This activity aims to promote philosophical reflection and social debate within a suitable setting, such as the Public Library, where reading and viewing take place, fostering critical thinking and bringing that thinking into the common realm of language and social discourse. The activity is structured as follows:

  • Brief presentation of the topic of the session, oral presentation by the speaker/introducer of the topic and reading of text fragments related to the topic to be discussed.
  • Discussion with attendees.

The order of this narrative formula is left to the speaker, who can follow it or replace it with another.

Responsible person : Francisco Javier Hernández González . However, we will have a choral direction together with Carmen Seisdedos and José Luis Mochales . We will also have the collaboration of other people who can take charge of the organization and coordination of some of the topics.

Schedule planned for the first quarter:

We remind you that this is only a forecast for guidance purposes, and that it may change as the quarter progresses.

  • October: day 2, Thursday:

Emily Dickinson and T.S. Eliot: Sacred (Con)Sacred Poetry (Andrea Ingelmo and Ariadna Belmonte)

This colloquium focuses on the analysis of mystical love from a Neoplatonic paradigm in the poetic work of Emily Dickinson. At the same time, it explores Buddhist and Hindu thought through the imagery of T.S. Eliot's * The Waste Land* (1923). The poetry of both authors possesses a mystical dimension, illustrating the interconnection of the self with transcendence.

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), a poet and precursor of Anglo-American modernism, expresses mystical love as a physical and spiritual experience. The Neoplatonic vision of love (Eros) as the driving force that emanates from and returns to the intelligible coincides with the impulse of the poetic self who, through the sacred encounter with the Beloved, grasps a connection with the All. As Dickinson herself says in her poem J1765: "That love is all there is / Is what we know of love."

The Waste Land is one of the major works of T.S. Eliot (1888–1965), one of the founding fathers of 20th-century avant-garde poetry in English. The poem does not have a nihilistic ending, but rather traces the self's desire to embrace transcendence. The allusions to Eastern philosophy reveal, in Eliot's words, "a constellation of cultures" to enrich our own.

  • October: Thursday, the 23rd:

Philosophy? Philosophies? (Carmen Seisdedos Sánchez)

We have often grappled with the difference between philosophy and myth. Then, as in all cases, by "philosophy" we have meant "Western philosophy," that which began in Greece—Ionia—in the 6th century BCE, partly inheriting traditions such as the Homeric, and continuing to this day: European and, sometimes, North American thought. Is this fair? Is it accurate? This will be the topic we address in this session, along with another no less significant one: the search for essential aspects that have defined thought and action in other cultures.

To do this we will use some books: How the World Thinks , by Julian Baggini, Landscapes of Thought , by MC Nussbaum or some contribution from the Global Philosophy project, in which the Spanish thinker Raquel Fernández participates.

It is a broad and controversial topic, with many options for debate and many ramifications.

  • November: Thursday, the 6th:

What the Greeks taught us about democracy that we didn't learn (Francisco Javier Hernández González)

We have always been taught the value of learning from the experience of our elders; this holds true both in our personal lives and in the history of societies. In these times of crisis, it might be helpful to examine the experiences of Greek democracy, as well as the reflections of some of its greatest thinkers. Along these lines, we will explore some of the writings of Thucydides, Aristotle, and Plato.

If we believe in the value of knowledge and rationality, we cannot fall into any kind of dogmatism, and we must always be willing to review our beliefs in the search for fairer societies that make possible the maximum development of human potential.

  • November: Thursday, the 20th:

"Clear and deep like a Swiss lake" Schopenhauer 1788-1860. (José Luis Mochales)

Schopenhauer authored only one work, "The World as Will and Representation," written before the age of 30, to which he added commentaries and nuances, but whose core remained the same. Continuing Kant's thought and opposing Hegel, he introduced Indian thought into Western philosophy. He considered himself a metaphysical thinker: "My thought can be accessed through several doors, but all lead to one central hall, metaphysics."

Thinkers such as Nietzsche, Spengler, Freud, Wittgenstein, Horkheimer acknowledged his influence, as did writers and artists such as Wagner, Thomas Mann, Ibsen, Baroja, Beckett, Borges,...

In this session of Filocafé we will visit some of his texts, trying not to betray his love for alpine lakes.

  • December: day 4, Thursday:

The growth of dementia in the spirit of music (Fernando Martínez Llorca and Jimmy López Encinas: the philosopher musicians)

Nietzsche's story is tragic. His life is marked by personal conflicts and a devastating physical and mental decline.

His work, on the other hand, is tremendously inspiring. The role of the classical world and theater, of religion, philosophy, morality, music, and women all converged in the work of a tormented man. Lou Salomé wrote of him: "In Nietzsche lived in constant discord, together and tyrannizing one another, a musician of great talent, a free-spirited thinker, a religious genius, and a born poet."

We propose to review his life and his relationship with women through some songs.

  • December: Thursday, the 18th:

Edward Berger's film "Conclave" (2024)

To close out the quarter, we will try to give greater prominence to club attendees, who will have more time to make their comments and assessments.

The session will focus on speeches delivered during the film, which may spark an interesting debate on fundamental issues:

- The homily of Cardinal Lawrence, responsible for leading the conclave, at the beginning of this ceremony, highlighting the value of doubt.

- The opposing speeches of the traditionalist cardinal, Tedesco, defending the clash of civilizations against the Muslims; versus that of Cardinal Benítez (who would eventually be elected Pope), committed to the doctrine of Christian love, who argued that violence could never be a solution.

Course topics 2024-2025

Course topics 2023-2024

Course topics 2022-2023


Course topics 2019-2020

Course topics 2018-2019

Address and map location

  • Postal address Biblioteca Pública de Zamora - Plaza Claudio Moyano, s/n. municipality of Zamora . NaN. Zamora