Political Philosophy
A.Y. 2019/2020
Learning objectives
As part of the degree in Political Science, the course will be primarily concerned - in terms of content - with questions of freedom, justice and political authority. More specifically, questions of political authority are concerned with why and to what extent a political authority has legitimate power over individuals. The purpose of the course is to help students understand and acquire a general comprehension of the following questions: do governments derive their authority from "the consent of the governed"? If so, what does that consent look like? Can the state do anything it wants to us, or are there limits? If there are limits, where do those limits come from?
Moreover, the course aims to highlight how political philosophy is relevant, especially in times of political crisis, where it becomes imperative to find and implement some new shared criteria of judgment. Then the course calls for critical clarification of and reflection on the most fundamental terms of our political life, and suggests new criteria for an evaluation of political institutions. What is distinctive about political philosophy is its prescriptive or evaluative concern, in short, its concern with how political societies should be, how policies and institutions can be justified, how we and our political leaders ought to behave in our public lives.
Moreover, the course aims to highlight how political philosophy is relevant, especially in times of political crisis, where it becomes imperative to find and implement some new shared criteria of judgment. Then the course calls for critical clarification of and reflection on the most fundamental terms of our political life, and suggests new criteria for an evaluation of political institutions. What is distinctive about political philosophy is its prescriptive or evaluative concern, in short, its concern with how political societies should be, how policies and institutions can be justified, how we and our political leaders ought to behave in our public lives.
Expected learning outcomes
The course aims at:
- Helping students to improve their ability to read philosophic texts carefully, write and speak clearly, and think analytically; the readings for this course consist entirely of primary sources, and we will spend most of our class periods with the text close at hand, going over it line-by-line in many cases.
- Allowing students to gain a critical understanding of some of the most important issues and theories in Political Philosophy; students will learn the skills of conceptual analysis and philosophic argumentation. Much time will be spent in this course getting clear about distinctions between closely related concepts (justice, fairness, desert, needs, etc.).
- Enhancing students' knowledge of central terms of political theory and sharpen their conceptual skills to identify, compare and evaluate philosophical arguments.
- Developing students critical thinking skills needed to compare, evaluate and analyze philosophical arguments within the field of political theory.
- Gaining a more complete and refined understanding of students' theoretical commitments in the political realm (or - in the absence of such commitments -, to help generate them).
- Helping students to see the connections between philosophical contributions to political thought and the actual political arrangements of our time.
- Helping students to improve their ability to read philosophic texts carefully, write and speak clearly, and think analytically; the readings for this course consist entirely of primary sources, and we will spend most of our class periods with the text close at hand, going over it line-by-line in many cases.
- Allowing students to gain a critical understanding of some of the most important issues and theories in Political Philosophy; students will learn the skills of conceptual analysis and philosophic argumentation. Much time will be spent in this course getting clear about distinctions between closely related concepts (justice, fairness, desert, needs, etc.).
- Enhancing students' knowledge of central terms of political theory and sharpen their conceptual skills to identify, compare and evaluate philosophical arguments.
- Developing students critical thinking skills needed to compare, evaluate and analyze philosophical arguments within the field of political theory.
- Gaining a more complete and refined understanding of students' theoretical commitments in the political realm (or - in the absence of such commitments -, to help generate them).
- Helping students to see the connections between philosophical contributions to political thought and the actual political arrangements of our time.
Lesson period: First trimester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
First trimester
Course syllabus
Political Philosophy investigates whether, on what grounds, and to what extent political authority can be justified. It is first and foremost, then, a normative discipline - that is, one concerned less with questions about how political life is or was, and more with how it should be. The primary aim of this course is to help students think more deeply about important theoretical concepts and political problems. This year the course will focus on examination of a question basic and central to political philosophy: the civil disobedience. The question of civil disobedience in liberal democracies has been much discussed in recent times: do citizens have an obligation to obey unjust laws? Which strategies of dissent and law breaking are successful? Does disruptive protest damage democratic community or can it be democratizing? Is violent resistance ever justified? What is the justification for an authority of state? What is a just society? What constitutes a good citizen? What is the relationship between order, authority and freedom? When, if ever, are citizens in a democracy justified in breaking the law to protest or resist what they believe to be bad, unjust, or illegitimate laws or policies? When, if ever, are public officials in a democracy justified in undermining or refusing to enforce such laws or policies? The course will study important examples of principled disobedience in democracies, and explore normative arguments for and against various strategies of unlawful dissent through the close reading of texts in political philosophy. The course will explore these issues through the careful study of classic and contemporary texts in the field, and will take the form of a broad inquiry of some of its most fundamental topics. Thus what philosophical problems does each argument address? What political problems does each argument address? How do different authors justify their theories? What do we think of their theories?
Prerequisites for admission
There is no need for any preliminary knowledge to adequately address the content provided by the course.
Teaching methods
Frontal lessons will alternate with classroom presentation and discussion lessons, with the aim to achieve the following objectives:
- analysis of philosophical texts;
-techniques of conceptual analysis and philosophical argument;
-understanding and discussing the key issues listed in the course description.
- analysis of philosophical texts;
-techniques of conceptual analysis and philosophical argument;
-understanding and discussing the key issues listed in the course description.
Teaching Resources
"The Allegory of the Cave", Plato (Republic, VII);
"Four Roles of Political Philosophy", J. Rawls (Justice as Fairness. A Restatement, chap. I);
"Walking out of the Cave", M. Walzer (Spheres of Justice, Preface);
"The Practice of Social Criticism", M. Walzer (The Company of the Critics, Preface);
Apology of Socrates, Plato ;
Crito, Plato
Martin Luther King, Jr., "A Letter from the Birmingham Jail," in Why We Can't Wait (1963), pp. 77-100;
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (1999 [1971]), pp. 319-343 (§§ 55-59);
Peter Singer: "Disobedience as a Plea for Reconsideration";
Joseph Raz, "Authority and Justification," Philosophy & Public Affairs 14:1 (1985), pp. 3-29;
Ronald Dworkin, "Civil Disobedience and Nuclear Protest," in A Matter of Principle (1985), pp. 104-116, 404;
John Morreal: "The Justifiability of Violent Civil Disobedience", Canadian Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Mar., 1976), pp. 35-47;
A. John Simmons: "Justification and Legitimacy", Ethics, Vol. 109, No. 4 (July 1999), pp. 739-771;
"Four Roles of Political Philosophy", J. Rawls (Justice as Fairness. A Restatement, chap. I);
"Walking out of the Cave", M. Walzer (Spheres of Justice, Preface);
"The Practice of Social Criticism", M. Walzer (The Company of the Critics, Preface);
Apology of Socrates, Plato ;
Crito, Plato
Martin Luther King, Jr., "A Letter from the Birmingham Jail," in Why We Can't Wait (1963), pp. 77-100;
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (1999 [1971]), pp. 319-343 (§§ 55-59);
Peter Singer: "Disobedience as a Plea for Reconsideration";
Joseph Raz, "Authority and Justification," Philosophy & Public Affairs 14:1 (1985), pp. 3-29;
Ronald Dworkin, "Civil Disobedience and Nuclear Protest," in A Matter of Principle (1985), pp. 104-116, 404;
John Morreal: "The Justifiability of Violent Civil Disobedience", Canadian Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Mar., 1976), pp. 35-47;
A. John Simmons: "Justification and Legitimacy", Ethics, Vol. 109, No. 4 (July 1999), pp. 739-771;
Assessment methods and Criteria
ATTENDANCE: attendance is compulsory and it will be taken at the beginning of each class. It is the responsibility of student to be sure that his/her attendance has been recorded. More than three unexcused absences may cause a grade of fail. In the case of illness or an emergency situation, official documentation must be provided to grant an excused absence.
PARTICIPATION: all assigned readings should be read prior to coming to class. Each student is expected to contribute to the discussion, and thus each student is expected to be prepared to ask questions and discuss the assigned readings on each day, and whether or not the student is presenting that day.
PRESENTATION: students will also be responsible for doing presentations of the readings at least one time during the course. Presentations should briefly summarize methodological positions and philosophical arguments of the readings. Nevertheless, the main part of presentation will be critical discussion of the viewpoints raised by the readings.
FINAL QUESTION PAPER: the final test may address any of the issues specified on this class schedule, and consist of true/false, multiple choice and short questions. This test is due on the last day of the class and must be your own work. Plagiarism is grounds for failure of the course. Plagiarism includes the use of someone else's ideas or words without giving the appropriate reference or credit.
GRADING: Student performance will be evaluated as follows:
Final Question Paper 40%
Presentation 35%
Class Participation 25%
[Prerequisiti e modalità d'esame per non frequentanti, con riferimento ai descrittori 1 e 2]:
Course requirements for non attendant students:
Exam
1. a written test (10 questions);
2. an oral examination, provided the written test is passed.
PARTICIPATION: all assigned readings should be read prior to coming to class. Each student is expected to contribute to the discussion, and thus each student is expected to be prepared to ask questions and discuss the assigned readings on each day, and whether or not the student is presenting that day.
PRESENTATION: students will also be responsible for doing presentations of the readings at least one time during the course. Presentations should briefly summarize methodological positions and philosophical arguments of the readings. Nevertheless, the main part of presentation will be critical discussion of the viewpoints raised by the readings.
FINAL QUESTION PAPER: the final test may address any of the issues specified on this class schedule, and consist of true/false, multiple choice and short questions. This test is due on the last day of the class and must be your own work. Plagiarism is grounds for failure of the course. Plagiarism includes the use of someone else's ideas or words without giving the appropriate reference or credit.
GRADING: Student performance will be evaluated as follows:
Final Question Paper 40%
Presentation 35%
Class Participation 25%
[Prerequisiti e modalità d'esame per non frequentanti, con riferimento ai descrittori 1 e 2]:
Course requirements for non attendant students:
Exam
1. a written test (10 questions);
2. an oral examination, provided the written test is passed.
SPS/01 - POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY - University credits: 6
Lessons: 40 hours
Professor:
Magni Beatrice
Shifts:
-
Professor:
Magni BeatriceProfessor(s)