PS 205 A & B Values and Vision W. Wesley McDonald
Email Address: mcdonaldw@etown.edu. Phone: 361-1306
Homepage: http://users.etown.edu/m/mcdonaldw/ Office Hours: T-Th 2-3 PM, MWF 3:30-4:30 PM
TEXTBOOK:
Donald G. Tannenbaum and David Schultz, Inventors of
Ideas: An Introduction to Western Political Philosophy
(St. Martin's
Press, 1997)
Michael Curtis, editor, The Great Political Theories,
Vols. 1 and 2 (N.Y.: Avon/Discus Books, 1981)
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
A critical assessment of the ideas and original works of the
most influential Western social and political thinkers beginning starting with
the ancient Greeks. Justice, equality,
war and peace, rights, freedom, order and community are among some of the ideas
to be examined from a variety of critical and historical perspectives. Environmentalism, gay rights, abortion, war
and peace, political correctness, and feminism are some of the topical issues
to be discussed, examined and debated.
COURSE OBJECTIVES FOR VALUES AND CHOICE AU
1. To gain a
general overview of the competing ideas on human nature, justice, rights,
freedom, moral ontology, happiness that shaped the Western political tradition.
2. To challenge
students to demonstrate how every conception of government implies a view of
human nature and destiny and that no adequate understanding of politics and its
goals is possible without a systematic consideration of the essence of the
human condition.
3. To encourage
students to think independently and critically. This objective will be achieved by the use of the Socratic
dialogue and participation in class discussions. Through the question-and-answer process, students will develop
their critical thinking skills by evaluating rationally the strengths and
weaknesses of various competing moral systems and political options.
4. To consider
how problems and issues discussed by political philosophers might be of
significance today.
There will be quiz given on most Fridays
during the first 15 minutes of class.
The format of the quizzes will be:
1. The quiz
will be composed of one essay question taken from the course outline that can
be answered within a paragraph or less.
2. Only 15 minutes
of class time will be allotted to complete the quiz.
3. The quiz will test knowledge of material covered in class and the assigned readings since the previous Friday.
4. The quiz
will be graded and returned.
5. Select two
of the quiz essays to rewrite as a two
typewritten pages or less essay using the Curtis volumes as a primary reference
source. Library research is strongly recommended. Links to web sites with
additional commentary, original sources and scholarly references are provided in
the syllabus posted on the instructor’s homepage. The revised essay will be due the following Friday at the
beginning of class.
6. The following standards will be applied
in determining the grade for this essay assignment:
GRADE
A. well written and organized, shows
outstanding mastery of the materials, makes a logical and coherent argument,
synthesizes ideas, and shows interrelationships and evidence of reading beyond
the class texts.
B.
well written and competently organized.
Shows good understanding of the textbook material.
C.
only an adequate understanding of the material. The writing and format is adequate and without major deficiency.
D.
limited mastery of the subject matter.
Format and writing falls below acceptable standards.
F.
inadequate or unsatisfactory attainment.
Student is either not capable of doing the assignment or made no effort to do so.
7. If the
student does not attend class on the day of a quiz ,“0” grade will be given
8. The grade
for the writing assignment will be the average of the grades for the quizzes
and two essays. The two lowest grades
will be dropped.
Newsgroup
A course newsgroup will be established in the College news
server. Students can post responses and questions concerning issues raised either
in the course texts, or in class discussions or lectures. They are encouraged to take issue with the
arguments found in the text and positions taken by the professor. Also, students can use the course newsgroup
to post questions about the content of the texts or lectures, answer questions
posted by others, and engage in debates on course topics. It is expected that the newsgroup will
encourage a lively and thoughtful debate outside of class. Students are expected to regularly check the
news group for class announcements.
Further information on how to assess and use the newsgroup will be
provided in class.
GRADING
The final grade for the course will be based upon:
Two examinations @ 20 points each 40
points
Class participation including news group and attendance
5 points
Quizzes and writing component 30
points
Comprehensive final examination 25
points
Examinations are a mixture of essay and short-answer
questions.
There will be no make-up examinations. If a student misses an examination because
of a legitimate excuse, a double grade on the next test will be given. Otherwise, a grade of “0” will be given for
the missed test. If I have not heard
from you before leaving my office to give an exam, I will assume you have decided
to sit for the examination. Final
examination make-ups will be given only in the most extraordinary circumstances
that, in the instructor’s opinion, have prevented the student from attending
the regularly scheduled examination period.
All reading assignments are to be completed before class. Class participation is important and the
professor will make a note of those who contribute to class discussions. Textbooks containing daily assignments
are to be brought to class.
ATTENDANCE
Every student will be held responsible on the examination
for all lecture and classroom discussions.
Classes begin promptly on the hour.
Late arrivals will be counted as absent. It is the student’s responsibility to see that legitimate excuses
for absences are brought to the instructor’s attention. Students will not wear hats or other
inappropriate attire in class.
CODE OF INTEGRITY
This course abides by the college’s Code of Integrity. On all material submitted for a grade,
students are requested to sign the pledge stating, “I support the Elizabethtown
code; I will uphold honesty in our community.”
COURSE
OUTLINE
8/26 Introduction (Curtis, Vol. I, pp. 13-21, T&S, Chap 1)
a. Objectives of
course
b. What is
political theory?
c. Why study political philosophy?
d. Origins of Western political thought
e. What is the task of the genuine political
philosopher
Terms: philia, sophia, theoria,
descriptive, prescriptive
The
Founding of Political Philosophy:
Greeks and the Polis
8/28- Plato, The Republic: The Rule of the Philosopher-King (T&S
Ch. 3, Curtis, Vol. I pp. 23-25, 26-30, 34-64).
9/6
a. Describe the three definitions of justice
found in Bk. I of The Republic
Analyze the problems with
each.
b. What are the
roles of the three classes of citizens in Plato’s Republic? What are the 3 parts of the soul?
c. Describe Socrates’ proposal for communism of
wives and children.
d. How are the rulers selected in Plato’s
Republic? Will this process guarantee
that only the wisest and most virtuous will rule?
e. How would
Plato’s utopian regime be established?
Why are laws unnecessary in the ideal state?
f. What is
Socrates’ definition of justice?
g. In what ways
does Plato’s Laws differ from his earlier work, The Republic?
Terms:
Hellenic, Sophists, rhetoric, polis, ontology, “Myth of the Metals,”
philodoxer, philosopher,
doxa,
“Allegory of the Cave,” Nocturnal Council, metics, dialogue, communism,
guardians, auxilliaries,
philosopher-King.
Web
Links: Plato Web Site; The Internet Classics
Archive | The Republic by Plato
9/9- Aristotle
and the Mixed Polity (T&S Ch. 4; Curtis, Vol. I, pp 64-96)
9/13
a. What are
Aristotle’s criticisms of Plato?
b. Why is man a
social animal? What is the purpose of
the polis? What is distributive
justice?
c. Explain
Aristotle’s scheme for classifying constitutions?
d. Why is
friendship necessary in order to bind people together into a genuine community?
e. What is the
most practical state?
f. What are the
causes of sedition in a polis?
Terms: telos,
teleology, Golden Mean, asceticism, oligarchy, Peloponnesian War, hubris,
nomos, King Philip of Macedonia, timocracy.
Web
Links: Aristotle;The Internet Classics
Archive | Politics by Aristotle
The
Legacy of Rome
9/16- Roman
Law, Polybius and Cicero (T&S Ch. 5, Curtis Vol. 1, pp 123 - 125)
20
a. Roman Law
(Wiser, pp. 78 - 81)
1. How was
Roman law developed?
2.
Distinguish between jus civile, jus
gentium and jus naturale.
3. What is
the significance of the Justinian code?
Web Links: Roman
Law: Homepage; Justinian Code
b. Polybius and the cycle of constitutions.
(Curtis Vol 1, pp 120 - 122, 125 - 131)
1. What
were the advantages of the mixed constitution of Rome?
2. What was
the pattern of consitutional change for unmixed forms of government? Could
stability ever be maintained in a regime?
Web
Links: Selections from
Polybius' "History", Polybius and the
Founding Fathers: the separation of powers, The
Republic Strikes Back - Polybius
c. Cicero on natural law, mixed constitution and
the causes of constitutional change. (T&S, pp 64-69, Curtis, Vol. 1, pp.
122 - 123, 131 - 139)
1. Define
natural law.
2. Why was
the state formed? What binds a people
together into a community?
3. How does
Cicero classify constitutions and what is his theory of constitutional change?
4. Describe
his theory of the best possible regime.
5. Why is
widespread respect for tradition necessary for political stability?
Terms: praetors, consuls, comitia,
patricians, plebians, pax romana, Cynics, Epicureans, Stoics, and right
reason.
Web
Links: Marcus Tullius
Cicero, The
Internet Classics Archive | Works by Cicero
9/23 FIRST
EXAMINATION
Medieval
and Renaissance Europe
9/25- St. Augustine
and the City of God (T&S, pp 74-84, Curtis, Vol 1, pp 141 - 143, 146 - 156)
30
a. The City of God was written to respond
to what accusations made against Christianity?
b. Why had Rome fallen according to St.
Augustine?
c. What are the two cities of St. Åugustine?
d. What is the origin of the state? Is justice possible in the state?
Terms: Alaric, Manichaeanism, original sin, free
will, Visigoths, sacred love, profane love, pagan, Gnostic
Web Links: Augustine of Hippo, St. Augustine (354-430)
10/2 Thomas Aquinas
and the Natural Law Tradition (T&S, pp. 90-96, Curtis, Vol 1, pp 177 - 178, 196 - 207)
a. What is the best possible state?
b. Four types of law.
c. Define natural law. How is natural law discovered?
Terms: two swords doctrine, Summa Theologica,
Thomism, Pope Gelasius I, Pope Gregory VII,
Albert the Great
Web
Links: The Summa Theologica, Great Books Index - St Thomas
Aquinas
10/4- Machiavelli: The Founder of Modern Power Politics
(T&S Ch. 9, Curtis, Vol 1, pp 215-217,
7 219-229)
FILM: “Man and
the State: Machiavelli on Political
Power”
a. What was Machiavelli’s purpose for writing
The Prince?
b. How does his political thought represent a
significant break from that of the Middle Ages?
c. Explain Machiavelli’s realpolitik
principles.
d. Will ability and strength always guarantee
success to the statesman?
e. What is the best possible regime?
f. What is the role of religion and morality in
Machiavelli’s politics?
Terms: secular,
de Medici family, Florence, Savonarola, realpolitik, “fox and the lion,”
fortuna, virtu, Cesare Borgia, raison d’etat, Discourses,
“unarmed prophets,” Pope Alexander VI, civil religion
Web
Links: Nicolo Machiavelli
[Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy], Niccolo
Machiavelli Italian Statesman and Political Philosopher
The
Enlightenment: The Foundations of
Modern Politics
10/9-16 Thomas
Hobbes: Reason and Power Politics
(T&S Ch. 12, Curtis, Vol 1, pp. 326 - 328, 329 - 349)
a.
English Civil Wars -- Why was the old aristocratic order declining? What was Hobbes’ response?
b. What is the
nature of man? What determines man’s
nature?
c. Explain
Hobbes’ theory of the state of nature.
d. How is the
social contract formed? Why is the
citizen obligated to obey the sovereign?
e. How does
Hobbes’ political thought represent a break from the Classical and Christian
tradition?
Terms: Leviathan, sovereignty, felicity,
diffidence, state of nature, social contract, covenant, sommun bonum,
tautology, Behemoth, sommum malum
Web Links: Thomas Hobbes [Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy], Thomas Hobbes
10/18- John
Locke and the Origins of Modern Liberalism (T&S Ch. 13, Curtis, Vol 1, pp
359-360, 21 372- 389)
a. Locke’s theory
of ideas.
b. How does
Locke’s theory of the state of nature differ from that of Hobbes? Compare and contrast Hobbes and Locke’s
description of the nature of man.
c. Why do men
come together to form government? What
powers do the people give to the sovereign?
What constraints does Locke place upon the exercise of majority will?
d. What recourse
does the citizen have against tyranny?
When are citizens obligated to obey the sovereign?
e. Explain
Locke’s theory of the right to private property. Explain his labor theory of value? Why is this theory flawed?
f. Why is Locke
considered to be the father of modern democracy? How did he influence the American Founding Fathers?
Terms: On Civil Government, Glorious
Revolution of 1688, King James II, William and Mary, Whig, tabula rasa,
theory of obligation, laws of nature, consent, popular sovereignty,
individualism, natural rights, exchange theory of value, epistemology.
Web Links: John Locke [Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy], John Locke
10/23 David
Hume: Philosophical Skeptic and Çritic
of the Social Contract Theory (T&S, pp 215-219, Curtis, Vol 1, pp 391-392,
397-409)
a. What were
Hume’s criticisms of the natural rights theory? Did Hume believe that moral truth could be proven by reason? Explain.
b. Describe
Hume’s criticisms of the social contract theory.
c. Why did Hume
believe that utility and not natural law was the standard by which morality is
measured?
Terms: rationalists, utility, convention, immutable
law of nature, skepticism, political obligation, philosophes
Web Links: THE
HUME ARCHIVES
10/25- Rousseau and
the Rise of Modern Revolutionary Radicalism (T&S Ch.14, Curtis,
11/1 Vol 11, pgs. 14-17, 18-34)
a. What are the
basic characteristics of Rousseau’s political thought?
b. Why does
Rousseau believe that society has corrupted man? How can society’s corrupting influence be ended?
c. Why did the
noble savage leave the state of nature to form a political association?
d. How is the
social contract formed? What is the
General Will? How is it
discovered? Can the General Will ever
be legitimately violated?
e. Explain
Rousseau’s radical egalitarianism, anti-private property views, and principles
of pure democracy.
Terms: egalitarianism, Emile, prejudice,
Robinson Crusoe, private will, numerical majority, direct democracy,
legislator, collectivism, alienation, General Will, Will of All, civil religion
Web
Links: Jean-Jacques
Rousseau | Philosopher, Jean Jacques Rousseau
[Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy]
11/4 SECOND
EXAMINATION
11/6 Montesquieu and the Functional Separation of Powers (Curtis Vol 1, pp 417-419, 425-440) Describe Montesquieu’s theory of the separation of powers and its importance to the American Founding Fathers.
Terms: The
Spirit of the Laws, separation
of powers, bicameral legislature, checks and balances, liberty, enlightenment
Web Links: Great Books Index -
Montesquieu, Baron de
Montesquieu : A Short Biography
11/8 Adam Smith and
the Emergence of Classical Economics (Curtis, Vol 2, pp. 108-117)
Film: “Adam Smith and Wealth of Nations”
a. How did the
“mercantile system” work and what were Smith’s criticisms of it?
b. What was the
role of government?
c. What is the
source of wealth? How does the
operation of a pricing system regulate a market economy? Why did Smith oppose extensive government
regulation of the economy?
d. How did the
division of labor bring about an increase in production?
Terms: division of labor, mercantile system, capital,
consumption, Theory of Moral Sentiments, sympathy, “Invisible Hand,”
natural price, market price, supply and demand, monopoly, system of natural
liberty, planned economy, laissez-faire, exchange theory of value.
Web Links: Adam Smith
| Economist and Philosopher
11/11 Edmund Burke --
the Father of Modern Conservatism (T&S, pp. 219-221, Curtis, Vol 2, pp
48-49, 51-64)
a. What was
Burke’s reaction to the French Revolution?
How does he respond to the abstract reasoning of the French
revolutionaries?
b. What is the
role of tradition? Why did Burke
believe that man must rely upon his civilized prejudices?
c. How does sound
reform take place? What did Burke think
of the Social Contract theories?
d. Can absolute
equality or freedom ever be achieved?
What were Burke’s thoughts on aristocracy? Explain Burke’s doctrine on individual rights. Why is the right to private property
essential to civilization?
Terms: Reflections on the Revolution in France,
natural aristocracy, prudence, prejudice.
Web Links: Reflections
on the Revolution, Biographies:
The Political Philosopher, Edmund Burke (1729-97).
The
Rise of Nineteenth Century Liberalism
11/13 Jeremy Bentham
on Utilitarianism (Curtis, Vol 2, pp 105-108, 117-120)
a. What is the
fundamental principle of Utilitarianism?
b. Explain
Bentham’s Principle of Utility.
c. What are the
responsibilities of government?
d. Explain
Bentham’s calculus of pleasure and pains and how it was to be used by
legislators.
e. Explain
Bentham’s theory of crime and rehabilitation.
f. Did Bentham
believe moral judgment must be based upon universal standards of the good? What is the source of moral judgment?
Terms: liberalism, Liberales, utility,
“greatest happiness principle,” Panopticon, hedonism, egoism.
Web Links: Jeremy Bentham [Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy], Jeremy's Labyrinth,
Jeremy Bentham
11/15 John Stuart
Mill on Liberty (T&S Ch. 13, Curtis, Vol 2, pp 125-129, 182, 186-204)
a. To what
ultimate principle did Mill appeal?
b. Why did Mill
feel that liberty was essential to human progress and for the sake of
truth? What are the political and
social costs of a principle of absolute freedom of expression?
c. What were
Mill’s criticisms of Benthamism?
d. How does
Mill’s political thought represent a bridge between classical and modern
liberalism?
Terms: On Liberty, liberty, prima facie,
James Mill, proportional representation
Web Links: John Stuart Mill, J.S. Mill
The
Marxist Challenge
11/18 Karl Marx and
the Critique of Capitalism (T&S Ch. 18, Curtis, Vol 2, Sec. VI)
20
a. The sources of
man’s alienation
1. religion
2. private
property
b.
Why has man, according to Marx, existed in a state of self-alienation
throughout history?
Why does Marx
believe that communism will mean the end of man’s self alienation?
c. How will man’s
nature be altered by a worldwide communist revolution?
d. Explain Marx’s
theory of economic development. What
causes the progress of history from one
economic stage to the next? What
are the stages of history? What is the
cause of social
revolution?
e. Why is
capitalism doomed according to Marx?
What happens to the state after the communist revolution?
Terms: Das Kapital, Communist Manifesto,
alienation, bourgeoise, proletariat, communism, dehumanization, capitalism,
expropriate, dialectrical materialsm, forces of production, relations of
production, substructure, superstructure, material forces of production,
existing relations of production, class struggle, dialectic, thesis, antithesis,
synthesis, surplus value, subsistence level, monopoly, class antagoniisms,
division of labor, dictatorship of the proletariat, labor theory of value,
Hegel, primitive communism, feudalism.
Web Links: Karl Marx, Karl Marx, Karl Marx, Manifesto of
the Communist Party
12/6 a. The Prophet Mohammad and the Founding of
Islam.
b.
Basic religious tenets
c.
Conflict with Western values
d.
Theocracy and Islam
e.
Spread of Islamic fundamentalism
Terms: Islamism, mujahideen, Quran, Allah,
Muhammad, jihad, theocracy, martyr.
The Koran, ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM, Islam Guide: A Brief Illustrated Guide to
Understanding Islam, Muslims, & the Quran
FINAL
EXAMINATION - 1:30 class—Friday, Dec. 12 11-2 PM
2:30 class—Tuesday, Dec. 10 11-2PM