Dedicare un fascicolo di “Doctor Virtualis” a Pensiero critico e Medioevo significa per noi da un lato riflettere sul portato teorico e storiografico della tradizione a cui facciamo sovente riferimento, che intende accogliere e vivificare dall’interno l’insegnamento di Mario Dal Pra, e dall’altro confrontarci con ciò che il pensiero critico ha rappresentato in senso più generale per la riflessione europea Come si potrà vedere dalle pagine introduttive e dal fascicolo stesso, la considerazione di entrambi i livelli, quello “locale” e quello europeo, ci ha condotto a ripensare la categoria di pensiero critico interrogandoci sull’opportunità del suo uso in relazione a una età che precede alla sua effettiva formulazione. Dedicating an issue of "Doctor Virtualis" to Critical Thought and the Middle Ages means for us, on the one hand, to reflect on the theoretical and historiographical bearing of the tradition to which we often refer, which intends to welcome and enliven the teaching of Mario Dal Pra from within, and on the other hand, to confront what critical thought has represented in a more general sense for European reflection As can be seen from the introductory pages and from the issue itself, the consideration of both levels, the 'local' and the European, has led us to rethink the category of critical thought, questioning the appropriateness of its use in relation to an age before its actual formulation.

Dedicating an issue of "Doctor Virtualis" to Critical Thought and the Middle Ages means for us, on the one hand, to reflect on the theoretical and historiographical bearing of the tradition to which we often refer, which intends to welcome and enliven the teaching of Mario Dal Pra from within, and on the other hand, to confront what critical thought has represented in a more general sense for European reflection As can be seen from the introductory pages and from the issue itself, the consideration of both levels, the 'local' and the European, has led us to rethink the category of critical thought, questioning the appropriateness of its use in relation to an age before its actual formulation.