Political Philosophy

The main objective of the course is to promote students' understanding of key concepts in political philosophy, such as equality, liberty, justice and legitimacy. More precisely, the course aims at providing students with insights about the different accounts of similar concepts and about how to examine them and to comparatively assess their implications. The course also intends to show how the tools provided by political philosophy can contribute to the analysis of political dynamics and how similar tools can be employed to tackle controversial public questions

Knowledge and understanding
Students are expected to acquire in-depth knowledge concerning key concepts in political philosophy and a clear understanding about how similar concepts are interpreted by different philosophical theories. Moreover, students are expected to acquire competences apt to comparatively assess different philosophical approaches and to critically discuss their merits and limits, taking into account both their theoretical consistency and their practical import.
Applying knowledge and understanding:
Students are expected be able to apply their acquired knowledge and competences to problems central in current public debates. The course indeed offers insights about the relationship between theoretical approaches and models, on the one hand, and practical questions, on the other, by framing the philosophical theories under examination with respect to issues that animate the ongoing public discussion.
Making judgment
Student's are expected to acquire an increased propensity for autonomous judgment and strengthened critical skills. Indeed, the course provides a rich set of criteria that can be employed to assess institutions, public decisions, political behaviours or actions. The course also offers methodological insights fruitful to develop and convincingly vindicate the evaluation of political practices and arrangements.