Luigi Stefanini: ermeneutica filosofica e teoria della persona

In this paper I underline that the Italian philosopher Luigi Stefanini (1891-1956) theorized an hermeneutic perspective ante litteram. Starting form the study of the French philosopher Maurice Blondel, Stefanini proposed an hermeneutic of human condition based on the will of infinity which is in interiore homine: he emphasized the transcendence that it is present in the human being. In the second part of this essay, I analyze the ontology of the person - proposed by Stefanini - in relation to his philosophy of language: he stated that “ontology is a glottology”, i.e. that each linguistic act could be understood as a direct manifestation of personal being. So, he identified in the personal being the inexhaustible source of linguistic and aesthetic creativity. In the last part of the paper are examined the fundamental ethical-political implications of the "hermeneutic personalism" elaborated by Stefanini: according to the Italian philosopher, democratic life is ethically realized as "social personalism." In the political order the human person must always be the fundamental reference value of the institutions. Stefanini's reflections on democracy, although developed in the 1950s, show elements of surprising relevance and constitute an original application of his theoretical philosophy.