GIAMBATISTA VICO –
The Father of Modern History .

I. Giambatista Vico – 1632-1704 -

"In the past, all arts and disciplines were interconnected and rested in the lap of philosophy; subsequently, they were sundered apart. Those responsible for this separation can be compared to a tyrannical rule who, having seized mastery of a great, populous, and opulent city, should, in order top secure his own safety, destroy the city and scatter its inhabitants into a number of widely strewn villages."

• Vico offers an evolutionary view of history:
• The age of gods, the age of heroes, the age of man. This foresees Darwin and Karl Marx.
• A culture runs its course, then degenerates – until it recovers is primal spontaneity. No social contract – just slow evolution.