1. Introduction to political philosophy Shipwrecked
Part I. A toolbox of contemporary approaches
2. Liberalism Fairness Public reasoning
3. Socialism A camping trip Selfishness and hypocrisy
4. Libertarianism Property The minimal state
5. Democracy Deliberation The public sphere
6. Cosmopolitanism Duties to the global poor? Progress
7. Review for first written assignment + Project work preparation
Part II. Exploring freedom, equality and democracy
8. Freedom What is ‘freedom’? Free markets
9. Ideological illusions War
10. Equality Equality of what? Multiculturalism, feminism
11. Difference Sustainability
12. Democracy How ‘democratic’ are we? Corrupted democracy
13. Governmentality Religion
14. Preparation of second written assignment + Review for final examination
Basic bibliography
Below are the main philosophical readings that you will be expected to study for each class, arranged by week and class. Supplementary materials and bibliographical details will be given on the class website.
2. John Rawls, Justice as Fairness, §§ 1, 2, 3.1, 6.1-6.2, 7.1, 13.1-13.2 and 14.1-14.4
__, ‘The Idea of Public Reason Revisited’, Intro. and §§ 1.1, 2.4, 3 and 4.1
3. G.A. Cohen, Why not Socialism?, pp. 3-24 and 34-45
__, If You’re an Egalitarian, How Come You’re So Rich?, pp. 117-128 and 142-145
4. Robert Nozick, Anarchy, State and Utopia, pp. 10-17, 149-164, and 167-182
5. Jürgen Habermas, Between Facts and Norms, §§ 3.3, 4.2.2-3, 4.3.1-2, and 8
__, The Inclusion of the Other, pp. 239-249
6. Thomas Pogge, ‘Eradicating Systemic Poverty’
Francis Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man, Intro. and chs. 26-27
8. Isaiah Berlin, ‘Two Concepts of Liberty’
Charles Taylor, ‘What’s Wrong with Negative Liberty’
Milton Friedman, Capitalism and Freedom, chs. 1-2
Michael Sandel, What Money Can’t Buy, lect. 1
9. Slavoj Žižek, The Sublime Object of Ideology, pp. 24-30, 116-119, and 185-188
Douglas Lackey, ‘Nipping Evil in the Bud’
Fernando Tesón, ‘The Liberal Case for Humanitarian Intervention’, §§ 1 and 2
10. Ronald Dworkin, ‘What is Equality?’
Marilyn Fyre, ‘Oppression’
Chandran Kukathas, ‘Anarcho-Multiculturalism’
11. Jacques Derrida, The Politics of Friendship
Edward Said, Orientalism, Intro. and ch. 3.iv
James Garvey, The Ethics of Climate Change, chs. 3-5
12. Joshua Cohen, ‘Deliberation and Democratic Legitimacy’
Hannah Arendt, On Revolution, ch. 6
Noam Chomsky, ‘Domestic Constituencies’ and ‘Notes on Anarchism’
13. Michel Foucault, ‘Power, Right, Truth’ and ‘Governmentality’
Robert Audi, ‘Liberal Democracy and the Place of Religion in Politics’