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Academic Year 2000/2001
The Moral Basis of Politics
GOVT 159 FA
An introduction to upper-division courses in political theory, the course considers the basic moral issues that hedge government and politics: Under what, if any, circumstances ought one to obey the laws and orders of
those in power? Is there ever a
duty to resist political authority? By what values and principles can we evaluate political arrangements? What are the meanings of terms like freedom, justice, equality, law, community, interest and rights? How is our
vision of the good society to be
related to our strategies of political action? What is the role of organization, leadership, violence, etc., in bringing about social change? Readings will be from among political philosophers, utopian works, novels,
contemporary social criticism and
modern social science.
MAJOR READINGS
Plato, APOLOGY and CRITO
Sophocles, ANTIGONE
Thoreau, "Civil Disobedience"
Martin Luther King, Jr., "Letter from Birmingham City Jail"
Marx, "Communist Manifesto"
Locke, ESSAY [ON] CIVIL
GOVERNMENT
Rousseau, SOCIAL CONTRACT and
"Discourse on Inequality"
Machiavelli, THE PRINCE
Dostoevsky, "The Grand Inquisitor"
Weber,"Politics As A Vocation"
Burke, PHILOSOPHY OF EDMUND BURKE
Bondurant, CONQUEST OF VIOLENCE
Walzer, JUST AND
UNJUST WARS
Arendt, EICHMANN IN JER
USALE
EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS
Approximately seven very short (2-3 page) essays. One 5-7 page paper. Final exam.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS
Section 01 will meet in lecture twice a week and in a discussion section on Fridays.
Please check with instructor for the requirements and specific information about each section.
Unless preregistered students attend the first class meeting or communicate directly with the instructor prior to the first class, they will be dropped from the class list. NOTE: Students must still submit a completed
Drop/Add form to the Registrar's
Office.
COURSE FORMAT:
Lecture/Discussion
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Level:
UGRD
Credit:
1
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS GOVT
Grading Mode:
Student Option
Prerequisites:
NONE
SECTION 01
- Instructor(s): Schwartz,Nancy L.
- Times: .M.W.F. 10:00AM-10:50AM; Location: PAC104
- Reserved Seats: (Total Limit: 20)
- SR. major: X Jr. major: X
- SR. non-major: X Jr. non-major: X SO: X FR: 20
Special Attributes:
- Curricular Renewal: Ethical Reasoning, Writing
- FYI: First Year Initiative:Seminar
SECTION 02
- Instructor(s): Moon,J. Donald
- Times: ..T.T.. 10:00AM-11:20AM; Location: PAC002
- Reserved Seats: (Total Limit: 40)
- SR. major: X Jr. major: X
- SR. non-major: X Jr. non-major: X SO: 15 FR: 25
Special Attributes:
- Curricular Renewal: Ethical Reasoning, Writing
Links to Web Resources For This Course.
Last Updated on MAR-26-2001
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Copyright Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459