MODERN POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
In political philosophy, the “modern” era is usually dated from the Renaissance, and Machiavelli’s The Prince is considered the first major work in this tradition.  But it is impossible to cover the whole of this tradition in any single semester, so some choice of focus and emphasis must be made.  In this course, I want to concentrate on the future of liberal and democratic political philosophy in the wake of the end of the Cold War, and have chosen three major and extremely influential books on which we will focus, those by Fukuyama, Rawls, and Sen.  But we need to put these works and the questions they raise in historical, philosophic, and political context.  Thus, the course will begin with a discussion of the “Enlightenment” as a central moment and reference point for political philosophy today.  We then look at the attempts to develop a “liberal” political philosophy based on this reference point but responsive to the criticisms of the Enlightenment developed in the 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on the works by Mill, Nietzsche, and Dewey.  After a consideration of the impact of the Cold War on liberal and democratic thought will we turn the contemporary works, on which we will spend the bulk of the semester.

Of course, this kind of approach will leave out all sorts of important thinkers and works.  In addition, the focus on liberal and democratic thought, and the almost (but not quite!) exclusive emphasis on European and male authors, will also limit the comprehensiveness of the coverage of the tradition of modern political philosophy.  How would I defend this approach?  On the one hand, we will not totally neglect these other elements of the tradition; the lectures and discussions that surround the chosen works will try to provide some of the missing material.  But most importantly, I believe we will get a more in depth and sophisticated understanding of modern political thought with a sustained focus on one set of problems and the way a number of thinkers have tried to address them over time.  While a more comprehensive reading list would introduce you to a greater variety of writers, in the end you would be left with a less useful grasp of the continuing debates and controversies that have helped define contemporary political life.

READINGS:
The following books are required for the course and are available in the College bookstore:

John Stuart Mill, On Liberty.  (Hackett)
Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil.  (Vintage)
John Dewey, Individualism Old and New.  (Prometheus)
Francis Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man.  (Avon)
John Rawls, Political Liberalism.  (Columbia)
Amartya Sen, Development as Freedom.  (Anchor)

In addition, a number of shorter readings will be passed out in class.  You may have or find other editions of these works.  You are free to use them, but be aware that the pagination (and perhaps translation) might vary.

NOTE: In this course, I will assume that you have some general familiarity with modern European and American history, and with the general trend of modern political and social thought.  However, I will be glad to fill in any gaps in your knowledge; make sure you ask me about ideas, events, or writers that you are unfamiliar with.  In addition, you will not be tested on any material we do not go over in some detail in the class.

COURSE OUTLINE:

A) The Enlightenment, Liberalism, and the Crises of the 20th Century.

 ...- January 22-29 - The Enlightenment: Sources and Ideas.
  Reading: Crane Brinton, “The Age of Reason.”
       Condorcet, “The Perfectibility of Man.”
       Kant, “What Is Enlightenment?”
       (all distributed in class)

 ...- January 31-February 7 - J.S. Mill and Classical Liberalism.
  Reading: J.S. Mill, On Liberty.

 ...- February 9-19 - Nietzsche and the Critique of the Liberal Enlightenment.
  Reading: F. Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil.

 ...- February 21-28 - John Dewey and Modern (American) Liberalism.
  Reading: J. Dewey, Individualism Old and New.

...Friday, March 2 - Essay on Enlightenment and Liberalism due.

B) Political Philosophy in the Aftermath of the Cold War.

 ...- March 2-5 - The Cold War and Political Thought.
  Reading: J. Shklar, “The Liberalism of Fear.”
       (distributed in class)

 ...- March 7-23 - Fukuyama and the Triumph (?) of Liberal Capitalism.
  Reading: F. Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man.

...Monday, April 2 - Fukuyama Essay due.

 ...- March 26-April 20 - Rawls and the Challenge of a Renewed Liberalism.
  Reading: J. Rawls, Political Liberalism.

...Friday, April 27 - Rawls Essay due.
...- April 23-May 8 - Sen on the Problems of Development and the Meaning of Freedom.
  Reading: A. Sen, Development as Freedom.

...Friday, May 4 - Sen Essay due.

NOTE: The reading in this course is often difficult and sometimes heavy.  (We will not necessarily read all of the Fukuyama, Rawls or Sen books.  I will break down the required sections when we get there.)  As with any kind of philosophy, these texts can not be read quickly or generally; you have to take you time and carefully think about each step of the argument or analysis that is being presented.  Doing this is crucial.  The course will involve some lectures/presentation, but primarily it will be run as a seminar in which you do the readings before class and then we gather to toss around and evaluate the ideas they present.  It will not work if you are not prepared for class, haven’t thought about the relevance of each assignment to the other readings and contemporary political issues, and/or wait for me to tell you what the reading is about.

ASSIGNMENTS:

Your grade for the course will be based on your work on the following assignments:

1) An essay on some of the major issues and themes in the first part of the course, focusing on the Enlightenment, its legacy of liberalism, and the criticisms of both.  This paper should be about 5-6 pages in length, and will be due in class on Friday, March 2.  (20% of total grade.)

2) You will also have to write two essays on the three major texts in the class - Fukuyama, Rawls, and Sen.  I will provide topics/themes/questions on each of the books, and it will be up to you to choose which two books (of these three) to write about.  These essays should be 8-10 pages in length, and the due dates are the following: Fukuyama - Monday, April 2; Rawls - Friday, April 27; Sen - Friday, May 4.  (Each paper 20% of total grade; 40% total.)

3) A final exam, which will be comprehensive in format, which will be given in the period scheduled by the Registrar.  (30% of total grade.)

4) Class participation, which includes performing the role of presenter/discussant during one class session.  (10% of total grade.)

NOTE: The major assignments of the class will ask you to explore in essay form the course readings, and to pursue the analysis of particular current issues in light of one or more of the arguments presented in these readings.  In grading your work, I will be looking primarily at the quality and persuasiveness of your arguments, your ability to clearly support your opinions and conclusions.  I am most concerned with your success in understanding some of the perennial problems of politics, and in presenting your own ideas and conclusions concerning these problems.  As a result, the quality of your writing, in addition to the quality of your arguments, will be weighed in determining your grade on each assignment.

GRADING SYSTEM:
Each assignment will be graded on a point system, with 100 points being the maximum possible.  You will then be given a letter grade that matches the score.  I will use the following grading scale on each assignment:

A    = 100-93 
A-   = 92-90 
B+  = 89-87
B    = 86-83
B-   = 82-80
C+  = 79-77
C    = 76-73
C-   = 72-70
D+  = 69-67
D    = 66-63
D-   = 62-60
F    = 59 and below

In figuring your final grade, I will average and weight the numerical totals, and assign the appropriate letter grade.

HOW TO FIND ME:
Office - 229B Patterson Hall 
Office Hours: M, W - 11:30 am-12:30 pm  T, R - 1-2 pm
 946-7304 
cohenes@westminster.edu