The Faculty of Arts and MECANO MSCA Doctoral Network  invite applications for a

Doctoral Researcher

to a fixed-term employment for 3 years, with the possibility of a one-year extension contract.

We invite applications for a dynamic and versatile PhD position titled “Ancient Sources on Matter in Late Medieval Commentaries on Aristotle”. In the mid-13th century, just after Aristotle’s works on natural philosophy were translated, various conceptions of matter were at play. The ancient commentaries of these works negotiated the epistemic authority of two canonical authors, Plato and Aristotle, in their mutual relation and in relation to interpreters from various philosophical traditions. Medieval views on matter were subject to shifts in the canon, with new authorities being added (the Arabic commentators; scholastic commentators), and shifts in the canonical value of the different authorities (a stronger position of Aristotle to the detriment of Plato). Further canonical shifts are linked to the incorporation of information from source texts in other genres (manuals, compendia, doxography, polemical treatises) into the commentary genre. Although there is a growing literature on medieval theories of matter, there is a need to analyse the presence of ancient sources and their use by late medieval thinkers. The specific objectives of this PhD  project are therefore (1) to map and classify the presence of ancient authorities – Presocratics, Plato, Stoics,  Platonists, Peripatetics, Augustine – and the shifting canons in late medieval commentaries (13th–15th c.) on Aristotle’s Metaphysics and Physics, and their relationship to theories of matter; and (2) to map shifts in the canon in the transmission to different languages and different cultural and ideological contexts by  classifying types of citations and quotations and linguistic and genre-related markers.

Host institution: University of Helsinki (Finland)

PhD programme: PhD in Philosophy

Main supervisor: prof. Filipe Pereira da Silva (Helsinki University, Department of Philosophy, History and Art Studies)

Second supervisor: prof. Jan Opsomer (KU Leuven, Institute of Philosophy)

Mobility rule: has not resided in Finland for more than 12 months in the 36 months preceding appointment

Tasks of the PhD candidate (specific to project & university/doctoral programme):

• Completion of a PhD thesis within four years (1,0 fte).

• Participation in the general training programme of the doctoral network (kick-off, monthly online research meetings, annual workshops and schools, and final conference)

• Participation in the doctoral seminar of the hosting institution

Planned secondments: (1) CSC (3 months): establishing and communicating the DH needs of the field of medieval philosophy; collaborating with DARIAH FI infrastructure on concept development for DH tools; use CSC infrastructure for a corpus analysis of philosophical commentaries; (2) KU Leuven (4 months): working on the ancient philosophical sources referred to in the commentaries; engaging with the KU Leuven team working on medieval hylomorphism.

SELECTION CRITERIA

• MA in Philosophy or in Classics (Latin), held by time of appointment (if the degree is not yet obtained at the time of application, a statement by the applicant’s supervisor should confirm that it will be obtained by time of appointment)

• If MA in Philosophy, excellent skills in Latin

• Interest in Ancient and Mediaeval philosophical texts

• Knowledge of mediaeval Latin paleography

• Good verifiable competence in English

• Ability to work in groups and to carry out interdisciplinary research

• Knowledge of Ancient Greek is considered an asset

• Interest in computational and data analysis for the Humanities is considered an asset but not a requirement

Degree requirement for doctoral researcher position: The appointee must apply, and obtain, the right to pursue a doctoral degree at the University of Helsinki within the probationary period of 6 months: https://www.helsinki.fi/en/admissions-and-education/apply-doctoral-programmes/how-apply-doctoral-education

Applicants must not hold a doctoral degree in any other field or have failed a corresponding doctoral examination at another higher education institution.

The University of Helsinki is committed to promoting equality and preventing discrimination in all its operations. We welcome applicants from a variety of gender identities, linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

WHAT WE OFFER

The University of Helsinki offers the appointee a first-class research and teaching environment as well as the preconditions necessary for international cooperation (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/why-university-helsinki).

The position is full-time for 3 years with a possible extension contract for fourth year. The employment contract will include a probationary period of six months.

The salary is competitive and complies with the MSC Work Programme: appr. 3550 €/month, including Mobility allowance, after compulsory deductions. A conditional Family allowance of appr. 500 € can be added to the salary.

For the possible fourth year extension contract the salary will be defined based on the demands level table for teaching and research personnel in the salary system of Finnish universities (approximately 3100-3700€/month, depending on the performance).

The University of Helsinki provides its staff with occupational health and sports services as well as professional development opportunities (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/why-university-helsinki/staff-benefits). The appointee is expected to reside in Finland while employed by the University of Helsinki. International staff is supported in relocating to Finland (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/welcome).

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

The application must be submitted through the University of Helsinki electronic recruitment system by clicking on the link below. Employees of the University of Helsinki must submit their applications through the SAP Fiori portal.

Applicants are requested to enclose with their applications the following documents in English. Please add documents 1-4 as a single PDF file titled “lastname_firstname_application” and document 5 as a separate PDF file titled “lastname_firstname_writing_sample”:

1. CV (max. 2 pages, including list of publications)

2. Cover letter (600–800 words), covering:

• Which qualifications make you suitable for the position

• How this PhD position aligns with your scholarly interests and further career plans within or outside academia

• Your motivation to participate in a doctoral network which includes international mobility and an internship period

3. Names and contact details (email address) of two academic referees

• You must have the permission of the academic referee to use their name and contact details. They may be asked to provide a reference letter at a later stage.

4. MA degree certificate (if available) and transcript of records

• If the degree is not yet obtained at the time of application, a statement by the applicant’s supervisor should confirm that it will be obtained by time of appointment

5. Academic writing sample in English (ca. 7000 words)

The deadline for applications is 15th of March 2024. Shortlisted applicants will be invited for an interview.

FURTHER INFORMATION

For any questions and further information, please contact Professor Filipe Pereira da Silva, jose.pereiradasilva@helsinki.fi. Further information about the recruitment process can be obtained from HR Specialist Reeta Korhonen, reeta.korhonen@helsinki.fi.

This PhD position is part of MECANO: Mechanics of Canon Formation and the Transmission of Knowledge from Greco-Roman Antiquity (MSCA Doctoral Network). MECANO aims to advance the understanding of the mechanics of canon formation and knowledge transmission of ancient Greek and Latin texts. It will look at (a) how texts, ideas or authors become canonical by being cited, translated, studied, imitated, excerpted, or compiled by later authors, and (b) how such implicit canons have changed across time and space by being received in different cultural, intellectual and linguistic environments. To study the dynamics of canonicity from a longitudinal perspective, MECANO will combine qualitative approaches to intellectual history and reception studies with applications of digital and computational methods on extensive text corpora.

MSCA Doctoral Networks are research and training programmes with the goal of training highly skilled doctoral candidates, stimulate their creativity, enhance their innovation capacities and boost their employability in the long-term. For MECANO, this means responding to the need for historically conscious and digitally skilled Humanities PhDs and training the PhD candidates to tackle the challenges of modern engagement with the topics of canonicity, diversity, and cultural heritage.

Being part of an MSCA Doctoral Network means taking part in networking activities and spending time abroad. Each PhD candidate will be co-supervised by two academics within the consortium; they will be based at one of the universities of MECANO and visit the university of their co-supervisor for a research stay, as well as have a shorter internship at an associated partner. They will be expected to take full part in the training programme, consisting of summer schools, workshops, a regular online seminar, and other activities.

MECANO is committed to creating an environment in which all talents can develop to their maximum potential, regardless of gender, age, cultural origin, nationality or disability. We particularly encourage candidates from traditionally underrepresented groups to apply.

MECANO is advertising positions for 10 candidates within its framework, who will be based at 5 participating universities. Applications for each position must be submitted separately. It is possible to apply for more than one position, in which case the applicant must send a separate email to info@mecano-dn.eu, stating this and indicating their preference.