Silvia Benso Headshot

Silvia Benso

Professor

Department of Philosophy
College of Liberal Arts
Director, Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program

Office Location

Silvia Benso

Professor

Department of Philosophy
College of Liberal Arts
Director, Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program

Education

Laurea, University of Torino (Italy); MA, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University

Bio

Silvia Benso has been Professor of Philosophy at RIT since Winter 2008. After completing her undergraduate work in philosophy at the University of Torino, Italy, and studying in Germany for almost two years, she graduated with a Ph.D. in philosophy from Penn State University, USA. Among her areas of interest and specialization are ancient philosophy, contemporary European philosophy, the history of philosophy, and feminist theories. Besides having published articles on Nietzsche, Heidegger, Levinas, and ancient philosophy (especially Plato), she is the author of Thinking After Auschwitz: Philosophical Ethics and Jewish Theodicy (in Italian); The Face of Things: A Different Side of Ethics; Viva Voce: Conversations with Italian Philosophers, and the co-author of the volume Environmental Thinking: Between Philosophy and Ecology (in Italian). She has also co-edited the volumes Contemporary Italian Philosophy: Between Ethics, Politics and Religion; Levinas and the Ancients; Between Nihilism and Politics: The Hermeneutics of Gianni Vattimo; Thinking the Inexhaustible: Art, Interpretation, and Freedom in the Philosophy of Luigi Pareyson; Open Borders: Encounters between Italian Philosophy and Continental Thought; Contemporary Italian Women Philosophers: Stretching the Art of Thinking; and Rethinking Life: Italian Philosophy in Precarious Times. She is the general co-editor for the series Contemporary Italian Philosophy published by SUNY Press and the co-director for SIP—Society for Italian Philosophy

Select Scholarship

Full Length Book
Benso, Silvia and Antonio Calcagno, edts. Open Borders: Encounters between Italian Philosophy and Continental Thought. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2021. Print.
Benso, Silvia and Elvira Roncalli, edts. Contemporary Italian Women Philosophers: Stretching the Art of Thinking. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2021. Print.
Benso, Silvia and Brian Schroeder, eds. Thinking the Inexhaustible: Art, Interpretation, and Freedom in the Philosophy of Luigi Pareyson. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2018. Print.
Benso, Silvia. Viva Voce: Conversations with Italian Philosophers. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2017. Print.
Benso, Silvia. Truth and Interpretation by Luigi Pareyson. Albany, NY: SUNY, 2013. Print.
Book Chapter
Benso, Silvia. "Gianni Vattimo’s Encounter with Gadamer: Hermeneutic Ontology from Dialogue to Conflict." The Gadamerian Mind. Ed. Theodor George and Gert-Jan van der Heiden. New York, NY: Routledge, 2021. 333-346. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Tra Diotima e Maria. Figure della maternità per un’idea di spazio condiviso [Between Diotima and Mary: Figures of Maternity for a Notion of Shared Space]." Ragioni comuni. Culture e religioni in trasformazione. Ed. Alessandra Cislaghi. Turin, Italy: Rosenberg & Sellier, 2021. 36-54. Print.
Benso, Silvia and Elvira Roncalli. "Introduction: Contemporary Italian Women Thinkers: Attending to Thinking, Extending the Art." Contemporary Italian Women Philosophers: Stretching the Art of Thinking. Ed. Silvia Benso and Elvira Roncalli. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2021. 1-16. Print.
Benso, Silvia and Antonio Calcagno. "Open Borders: Introduction." Open Borders: Encounters Between Italian Philosophy and Continental Thought. Ed. Silvia Benso and Antonio Calcagno. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2021. 1-19. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Come corpo materno. Universalità, relazionalità, ospitalità [Like a Maternal Body: Universality, Relationality, Hospitality]." La filosofia attraverso il prisma delle culture. Dialoghi con Maurizio Pagano. Ed. Gianluca Garelli and Graziano Lingua. Pisa, Italy: ETS, 2019. 267-279. Print.
Benso, Silvia and Brian Schroeder. "Introduction: Thinking the Inexhaustible." Thinking the Inexhaustible: Art, Interpretation, and Freedom in the Philosophy of Luigi Pareyson. Ed. Silvia Benso and Brian Schroeder. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2018. 1-9. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Luigi Pareyson: A Master in Italian Hermeneutics." Thinking the Inexhaustible: Art, Interpretation, and Freedom in the Philosophy of Luigi Pareyson. Ed. Silvia Benso and Brian Schroeder. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2018. 11-28. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "The Breathing of the Air: Pre-Socratic Echoes in Levinas." Atmospheres of Breathing. Ed. Lenart Škof and Petri Berndtson. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2018. 83-98. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Lost in Translation: Luigi Pareyson e gli studi pareysoniani in ambito anglosassone [Luigi Pareyson and Pareyson Scholarship in the Anglophone World]." Annuario Filosofico 33 (2017). Milan, Italy: Mursia, 2018. 195-207. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Castelli e giardini, luoghi del filosofare [Castles and Gardens as Sites of Philosophizing]." Trovarsi Accanto. Ed. M. Adinolfi and M. Doní . Rome, Italy: InSchibboleth Edizioni, 2017. 51-66. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Earthly Morality and the Other: From Levinas to Economic Sustainability." Faces of Nature: Levinasian Ethics and Enviromental Philosophy. Pittsburgh, PA: Duquesne University Press, 2012. 11-28. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Parchi e Giardini Urbani Ovvero La Natura Resa Pubblica (A Partire da Hannah Arendt) [Urban Parks and Gardens, Or Nature Made Public (Following Up on Hannah Arendt)]." Filosofia e Spazio Pubblico [Philosophy and Public Space]. Bologna, Italy: II Mulino, 2012. 243-258. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Joy Beyond Boredom: Totality and Infinity as a Work of Wonder." Totality and Infinity at 50. Pittsburgh, PA: Duquesne University Press, 2012. 11-28. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Introduction: Struggling with the Angel:Time, Finitude, and Metaphysical Sentiment." The Possible Present. Ed. Ugo Perone. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2011. IX-XVIII. Print.
Invited Keynote/Presentation
Benso, Silvia. "A Response to Paul Stern, ‘Dante’s Critique of Aquinas’." Dante Politico at the Crossroad of Arts and Sciences: An International Symposium on Dante’s Political Thought. University of Rochester. Rochester, NY. 17 Apr. 2021. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Concluding Remarks on Dante as Poet and Thinker." Dante: Poesia e Pensiero/Poetry and Thought (On the 700th Anniversary of His Death, 1321). Consulate General of Italy in Houston, the Department of Modern and Classical Languages at the University of Houston, and the Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles. Houston, TX. 20 Oct. 2021. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Subjects, Passions, and Care in Ugo Perone and Elena Pulcini’s Thinking." SIP--Society for Italian Philosophy. Rochester Institute of Technology. Rochester, NY. 7 Nov. 2021. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Resisting Reality: Political Implications of Vattimo’s Hermeneutic Realism." Departmental Colloquium Series. Department of Philosophy, Salzburg Universität. Salzburg, Austria. 29 Jan. 2020. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Vattimo’s Hermeneutic Realism as an Act of Political Resistance." Departmental Colloquium Series. Department of Philosophy, Klagenfurt Universität. Klagenfurt, Austria. 22 Jan. 2020. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Resisting Reality: Vattimo’s Weak Thought and the Dangerousness of Hermeneutics." Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy Annual Meeting. Duquesne University. Pittsburgh, PA. 1 Nov. 2019. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Problematizing Italian Philosophy: A Response to Peter Carravetta’s ‘The Italian Differentia: Can There Be Philosophy without History?’." Columbia University Seminars on Modern Italian Studies. Columbia University’s Italian Academy for Advanced Studies. New York, NY. 3 May 2019. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Heidegger, Technology, and RIT." Heidegger Circle Annual Meeting. Nazareth College. Rochester, NY. 19 May 2019. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Affirmative Biopolitics: Life, Love, and Politics in Lea Melandri." SIP—Society for Italian Philosophy Annual Meeting. Stony Brook University. Stony Brook, NY. 29 Mar. 2019. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "On the Challenges, Futures, and Tasks of Academic Life Today: Publishing." Roundtable discussion, College of Fellows. University of Western Sydney. Sydney, AUS. 27 Nov. 2019. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Lost in Translation: Luigi Pareyson nel mondo anglosassone." Luigi Pareyson: Philosophie und Religiöse Erfahrung. Katholische Akademie. Berlin, Germany. 2 Feb. 2018. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Perplexing Beauty: A Short Commentary on Jonathan Fine’s ‘The Guise of the Beautiful’." Ancient Philosophy Society. Emory University. Emory, GA. 27 Apr. 2018. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Resisting Reality: Vattimo’s Ontology of Actuality as a Political Act." Canadian Society for Italian Studies. University of Ottawa. Ottawa, Canada. 11 May 2018. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "The Death of the Author: On Mario Perniola and Italian Aesthetics." Society for Italian Philosophy at SPEP. Penn State University. State College, PA. 19 Oct. 2018. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Reality, Realism, Resistance: On Vattimo’s Ontology of Actuality." Australasian Society for Continental Philosophy. Western Sydney University. Sydney, Australia. 23 Nov. 2018. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "The Alchemist’s Lab: Considerations on Italian Philosophy." International Conference on “New Italian Thought: Challenges and Responses,”. King’s College at Western University. London, ON. 26 Mar. 2017. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Imagining Nature and Art in Plato’s Phaedrus." Annual Meeting of the Ancient Philosophy Society. Baylor University. Waco, TX. 27 Apr. 2017. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Apple, Pear, and Fig Trees: Pleasure and Joy in Augustine’s Gardens." Annual Meeting of the History of Philosophy Society. Emory University. Atlanta, GA. 19 May 2017. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Cultivating Things with Heidegger." Humanities Colloquium. Malmo University. Malmo, Sweden. 29 May 2017. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Waterworks in Levinas’s Philosophy." Philosophy Colloquium. Vilnius University. Vilnius, Lithuania. 30 May 2017. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Bodies of Water: Levinas’s Hydrodynamic Ethics." Workshop: The Ethics of Things. Centre for Advanced Studies at the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. Oslo, Norway. 2 Jun. 2017. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "The Saying of the Oak Tree: Cultivating Dwelling Places." Spaces of Nature, Natures of Space. Collegium Phaenomenologicum. Cittí  di Castello, Italy. 18 Jul. 2017. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Open Borders: Italian Philosophy Between Nationalism and Globalization." Annual Meeting of the College of Fellows. Western Sydney University. Sydney, Australia. 23 Nov. 2017. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "“Gardening with Martin while Interpreting Greek Poiesis”." Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy. Utah Valley University. Salt Lake City, UT. 21 Oct. 2016. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Il luogo della filosofia: Tra arte tecnica e natura [The Place of Philosophy: Between Art, Technology, and Nature]." Dipartimento di Filosofia e Scienze dell’Educazione. Universití  degli Studi di Torino. Turin, Italy. 10 Oct. 2016. Guest Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "Urban Parks and Gardens as Places of Appearance: The Body as a Common Good After Hannah Arendt." Sitka Institute. Pacific Association for the Continental Tradition. Sitka, AK. 5 Aug. 2016. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Fluid Ethics: Images of Water in Levinas." Levinas Research Seminar. University of Toronto. Toronto, Canada. 20 Jun. 2016. Keynote Speech.
Benso, Silvia. "What if Martin Were a Gardener? Moving Beyond Heidegger by Interpreting Greek Poiesis." History of Philosophy Society. Texas A&M. College Station, TX. 23 Apr. 2016. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Pareyson, Heidegger, and the Ontology of Freedom." Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy. Emory University. Atlanta, GA. 10 Oct. 2015. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "The Eternal Return of the Will in Levinas' Totality and Infinity." Levinas Research Seminar. Stonybrook University-Manhattan Campus. New York, NY. 28 Apr. 2013. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Thresholds of Time: The Present Between Narration and Translation." Theologische Fakultat. Humboldt Universitat. Berlin, Germany. 4 Jul. 2013. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "When Heidegger's Tower Dweller Takes a Walk: On Thinkers, Poets, and Mysterious Guests." Collegium Phenomenologicum. Collegium Phenomenologicum. Citta' di Castello, Italy. 9 Jul. 2013. Lecture.
Benso, Silvia. "The Faces of Responsibility: On Francois Raffoul's The Origins of Responsibility." Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy. University of Oregon. Eugene, OR. 26 Oct. 2013. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Stoic Cosmopolitanism Between Now and Then: Embodied Citizens of the World." Ancient Philosophy Society. Utah Valley University. Sundance Resort, Salt Lake City, UT. 13 Apr. 2011. Keynote Speech.
Benso, Silvia. "Hermeneutic Communism Between Archeology and Eschatology: Is Anything Missing?" Hermeneutic Communism Conference. Stony Brook University. Manhattan Campus, New York, NY. 19 Oct. 2011. Conference Presentation.
Benso, Silvia. "Gianni Vattimo's Politics Between Reformism and Revolution." Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy. Villanova University/Penn State University. Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA. 21 Oct. 2011. Conference Presentation.
Journal Paper
Benso, Silvia and Antonio Calcagno. "Introduction. Italian Philosophy from Abroad." Italian Philosophy from Abroad, special issue of Trópos: Rivista di Ermeneutica e Critica Filosofica 22. 1 (2019): 5-8. Print.
Benso, Silvia. "Affirmative Biopolitics: Love, Life, and Politics in Lea Melandri." Italian Philosophy from Abroad, special issue of Trópos: Rivista di Ermeneutica e Critica Filosofica 22. 1 (2019): 9-20. Print.
Guglielminetti, Enrico, et al. "Thinking of Work." SpazioFilosofico. 1 (2011) Web.
Journal Editor
Benso, Silvia and Antonio Calcagno, ed. Italian Philosophy from Abroad, special issue of Trópos: Rivista di Ermeneutica e Critica Filosofica. Rome: n.p., 2019. Print.
Benso, Silvia, ed. Aesthetics of the Virtual. Albany: SUNY Press, 2012. Print.
Editor (book or journal)
Benso, Silviaand Brian Schroeder, eds. Between Nihilism and Politics: The Hermeneutics of Gianni Vattimo. Albany: SUNY Press, 2010. Print.
Published Article
Benso, Silvia and Brian Schroeder. “Italian Philosophy Between 1980-1995.” The History of Continental Philosophy. Vol. 7: Post-Poststructuralism. Ed. Alan Schrift and Rosi Braidotti. Chesham, UK: Acumen Publishing, 2010. 83-110. Print.
Benso, Silvia.“Emancipation and the Future of the Utopian: On Vattimo’s Philosophy of History.” Between Nihilism and Politics: The Hermeneutics of Gianni Vattimo. Ed. Silvio Benso and Brian Schroeder. Albany: SUNY Press, 2010. 203-219. Print.
Published Review
Benso, Silvia. Rev. ofPlato and Levinas: The AmbiguousOut-side of Ethics, by Tanja Straehler. Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews, October 2010. Web.

Currently Teaching

PHIL-318
3 Credits
Love is indeed one of the most central concerns in everyone’s life; yet, we spend very little time thinking conceptually about love in its various forms, aspects, implications, nuances, benefits, detriments, and harms. In this course, we will examine views from classical, medieval, modern, and contemporary thinkers on various kinds of love, including some controversial versions of it; we will consider the relation of love in its various forms to desire, emotions, physical intimacy, seduction, sex, sexuality, sexual orientation, and the construction of personal identity; and we will analyze how the various forms of love affect and are affected by gender norms, roles, and images.
PHIL-416
3 Credits
This course is a discussion-oriented, small group exploration of a targeted philosophical topic. The topic varies depending on the current research interests of the instructor. The seminar is an opportunity to do cutting-edge philosophy alongside other students. It is open to both majors and non-majors and may be retaken for credit.
WGST-318
3 Credits
Love is indeed one of the most central concerns in everyone’s life; yet, we spend very little time thinking conceptually about love in its various forms, aspects, implications, nuances, benefits, detriments, and harms. In this course, we will examine views from classical, medieval, modern, and contemporary thinkers on various kinds of love, including some controversial versions of it; we will consider the relation of love in its various forms to desire, emotions, physical intimacy, seduction, sex, sexuality, sexual orientation, and the construction of personal identity; and we will analyze how the various forms of love affect and are affected by gender norms, roles, and images.
WGST-597
1 - 3 Credits
This individualized course is designed to give students an opportunity to gain first-hand experience working independently on a research study that addresses WGSS-related topics and applies methodologies proper to women’s, gender, and sexuality studies to a research area of the student’s interest. The advanced research study is carried out outside the classroom under the supervision of a WGSS faculty sponsor selected by the student. The research study culminates in the production of a substantive written essay (such as a paper, theis, or scholarly report) that explains the critical or theoretical context of the research study, incorporates women’s, gender, and sexuality studies theory and/or practice, and provides an analysis of the content, presuppositions, goals, and outcomes of the research. Prior to enrollment in this course, students must submit a research study proposal to their faculty sponsor, who will forward it to the WGSS Program Director for approval. The research study proposal should specify the topic and goal of the advanced research study project, the methodology to be employed, and the timeframe for its completion (for guidelines for designing and gaining approval for an Advanced Research study, see the guidelines for an Independent Study as provided in College of Liberal Arts Policy I.D). To submit a proposal for Advanced Research in WGSS and receive an official WGST course grade, the student must have completed 3 courses in WGST core or co-listed courses, have a minimum GPA of 2.7 at the time of the application, and complete the work described in the proposal.
WGST-598
1 - 3 Credits
This individualized course allows students to work independently on their own creative project by applying themes and methodologies proper to women’s, gender, and sexuality studies to an area of their own academic interest. The advanced project is carried out outside the classroom under the supervision of a WGSS faculty sponsor selected by the student. The project culminates in the production and public presentation, display or performance of a creative work (such as an artifact, a film, a videogame, installation art, a musical composition, a piece of design, a performance, a poster, an activist initiative, etc.) that incorporates women’s, gender, and sexuality studies theory and/or practice. The final product must be accompanied by a written component that explains the critical or theoretical context for the project and provides an analysis of its content. Prior to enrollment in this course, students must submit a project proposal to their faculty sponsor, who will forward it to the WGSS Program Director for approval. The proposal should specify the topic and goal of the advanced project, the timeframe for its completion, and a venue for public dissemination (for guidelines for designing and gaining approval for an Advanced Project, see the guidelines for an Independent Study as provided in College of Liberal Arts Policy I.D). To submit a proposal for an Advanced Project in WGSS and receive an official WGST course grade, the student must have completed 3 courses in WGST core or co-listed courses, have a minimum GPA of 2.7 at the time of the application, and complete the work described in the proposal.

In the News

  • May 7, 2024

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    Women’s, gender, and sexuality studies program honors first graduating class

    The first class of graduates from RIT’s women’s, gender, and sexuality studies (WGSS) program will be celebrated during commencement this month. The bachelor’s degree program was approved and offered for current students in 2023, and enrollment will be available to incoming first-year students this fall.

  • March 18, 2024

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    As part of RIT’s Women’s History Month celebrations, students from across the university submitted their poster designs to the annual Women’s History Month poster contest. The theme of each contest entry is crafted around a quote from Audre Lorde’s collection of essays, Sister Outsider.