It seems that there may not be a simpler activity than taking a walk, easy and affordable, not demanding great physical or intellectual effort, apparently. Being, as it is, a moderate exercise, a walk can both contribute to improve our body fitness and our health. It is an aesthetic but also deeply philosophical activity. Walking was considered popular as a philosophical way of life, a full activity, seeking pleasure, meditation and health at the same time.
In the eighteenth century, popular philosophy turned into a practical philosophy, which would prove entertaining and friendly. This was a project in line with the ideals of the Illustration. One of their representatives was Karl Gottlob Schelle, who in 1802 wrote a book about the art of walking, a book that is the best example of this popular philosophy, contrary to the academic, represented by Kant. Walking is not just travelling, or moving; it is not jogging. All these activities are different because they lack of purpose, goal and / or hustle. Fatigue is not a friend to the body or spirit; it is the enemy of pleasure. During the walk, the "walker" is receptive and open to the impressions, serenely cheerful. The walker is an observer.
The walk brings peace, calm and disregard, which means freedom, and pleasure, (not just mere aesthetic pleasure, because it breaks the connection between physical and intellectual activity). This is the essence of aesthetics, the place for alchemy in aesthetic sensibility. For Schelle the body movement is essential, not only for life but for the good life, and also for a healthy mind and body. The proper functioning of the intellect is based on body movement. This was widely practiced from the past by intellectuals like Cicero or Aristotle's school, popularly known by the name "Peripatos" (from peripatos or 'walking around') or "peripatetic", because philosophers liked walking.
The walk also influences our affections: walking through a garden, as Schelle, is not the same as walking through a city. Walking in the midst of nature free us from mean, petty contingencies; walking in crowded places make us benevolent to human beings and their activities. While we walk, our spirit and sociability are lifted. We can also enrich the conversation if someone accompanies us, but the walk is also the best time to be alone. In the course of the twentieth and twenty-first, walking has become a "lost art" because of the speed of modern life, where haste is our most faithful companion. There are, however, cultural trends as the Slow Movement, which proposes regaining the control of time through a vital "slowing down".
Objectives:
"¢ Inviting our students to develop the habit of walking, in the safety of a practice that only produces benefits.
"¢ Living an aesthetic experience, but also a learning experience (food for thought).
Contents:
"¢ The walk understood as contemplation (aesthetic activity).
"¢ Physiological effects of walking.
"¢ City walks.
"¢ Garden walks.
Activities:
"¢ "Past, present and future of my city" tour (presentations).
"¢ Visit and walk through the historical botanical garden "La Concepción", in Malaga.
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