Keys to Vico's Metaphysics

Giambattista Vico, a philosopher of notable complexity, develops a thought that demands constant and careful rereading to fully grasp his most essential and celebrated theses. He employs "reason" in the Italic sense-as a continual process of gathering aimed at understanding, though understanding itself remains, in Kantian terms, merely a regulative ideal. One of the main challenges in approaching his work lies in the Baroque character of his prose, which is often clearer in Latin than in Italian. Texts such as De antiquissima italorum sapientia and De nostri temporis studiorum ratione are more accessible than his mature work, the Scienza Nuova. Understanding his philosophy requires patience and often the support of his interpreters.

This document focuses on De antiquissima italorum sapientia, a work that continues to attract scholarly interest. It takes the form of notes rather than formal lectures, inspired by Horace's idea: "We aim at the heavens in our folly" (Carmina, 1.3)-meaning that, even if vain, humans must attempt to grasp the infinite using their limited, finite concepts, as metaphysical animals. The content was developed within the context of an undergraduate philosophy course at Universidad Veracruzana, which explains the structure and bibliography. Therefore, this is not a systematic treatise on Vico's metaphysics, but a series of interpretative "keys" designed to aid engagement with his philosophical vision.

De antiquissima is essential for understanding Vico's metaphysics, which breaks from scholastic and Cartesian substantialism (centered on the concept of res) by introducing the verum-factum principle-linking truth to the human mind's creative action-and the idea of conatus, presenting reality as a dynamic process. As Lomonaco notes, this metaphysics anticipates the Scienza Nuova, placing history and the human mind at its center.