POL 211
Core Seminar
Political Theory’s Greatest Hits
(For Students of Politics)
Bernard Yack
Olin-Sang 108
(6-2640, )
Office Hours: Thursdays 10:15-12:00
This seminar explores some of the arguments made by political theorists that have had the greatest impact on the study of politics – political theory’s “greatest hits,” if you will, for students of politics. The focus of class discussion, as well as written assignments, will be the assigned texts, all of which require close reading. The course is designed to familiarize you with issues and arguments in the field of political theory that will help you as student of politics, as well as, hopefully, to make you more comfortable with the subject matter that can often seem hopelessly abstract and forbidding
Requirements
Students will write two papers of around 9-10 pages. (You can substitute a topic of your own, after consulting with me.) Papers will be due on March 22 and during the exam period. I will provide topics, but will be happy to work out topics with you. In addition, each student will make 2 short class presentations (5+ minutes), in response to one of the study questions handed out for each week's reading assignments.
Required Readings
All of the readings, except Hobbes, are contained in the coursepack, which should be available for the first day of class, if not sooner. If you don’t own a copy of Hobbes’s Leviathan please get one from Amazon or a book store. I prefer the Penguin edition
Seminar Schedule and Reading Assignments
1. January 19: Introduction
2. January 26: We’re All Political Animals
Readings: Aristotle, Politics, Book 1, Chapters 1-2, Book 3.
Bernard Yack, “Community: An Aristotelian Social Theory,” from A. Tessitore (ed.), Aristotle and Modern Politics, 19-46 (= Chapter 1 of Yack, The Problems of a Political Animal).
3. February 2: No We’re Not!
Readings: Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, Author's Introduction, Chapters 10-18
Chapter 29 (You can skip over Chapters 12 and 16 if you want.)
4. February 9: The Harmony of the Spheres
Readings: John Locke, Letter on Toleration, 12-52. Michael Walzer, Spheres of Justice, Preface, Chapters 1, 12.
5. February 23: Friends and Enemies
Readings: Carl Schmitt, The Concept of the Political, 19-58, 69-78; Leo Strauss,
“Comments on Schmitt,” in Schmitt, Concept of the Political, 81-105.
6. March 1: Class and Ideology
Readings. Karl Marx, "The Communist Manifesto," 469-500; "The German
Ideology," 150-74. (Marx selections from R. Tucker (ed.), The Marx-Engels
Reader. Antonio Gramsci, Selections from An Antonio Gramsci
Reader, 189-200, 300-311.
7. March 8: Dirty Hands
Readings: Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince, Chapters 15-21. Max Weber,
“Politics as a Vocation,” in Weber, Political Writings; Michael Walzer, Political
Action: The Problem of Dirty Hands,” Philosophy and Public Affairs 2 (1973): 160-80
8. March 15: Democrats Don’t Rule
Readings: Joseph Schumpeter, Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy, selections; Adam Przeworski, “Minimalist Conception of Democracy,” in Ian Shapiro (ed.), Democracy’s Value, Chapter 2; Ian Shapiro, The State of Democratic Theory, Chapter 3.
9. March 22: Populism and Democratic Counter-Domination
Readings: Elia Kazan (director), “A Face in the Crowd” (1958 film)
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, Vol. II, Book 2, Chapter 1:
“Why Democratic Nations Love Equality More Than Liberty.”
10. March 29: Justice as Fairness
Readings: John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, 11-22, 60-65, 100-08, 136-60;
Michael Sandel, "The Procedural Republic and the Unencumbered Self,"
Political Theory 12 (1984) 81-96;
11. April 5: Gender, Identity, and Multiculturalism
Readings: Susan Okin et al, Is Multiculturalism Good for Women? Sarah Song,
“Majority Norms, Multiculturalism, and Gender Equality,” American Political
Science Review 99 (2005): 473-89.
12. April 12: Repressive Tolerance and Discipline
Readings: Herbert Marcuse, "Repressive Tolerance," from Marcuse, B. Moore,
and Robert Paul Wolff, A Critique of Pure Tolerance;
Michel Foucault, A Foucault Reader, 170-213.
13. April 19: Limits of Political Rationalism
Readings: Michael Oakeshott, "Rationalism in Politics," from Oakeshott,
Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays.
Friedrich Hayek, The Mirage of Social Justice, 62-100
Four Credit Course
Success in this 4 credit course is based on the expectation that will spend, on average, around 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class (readings, discussion sections, preparation for exams, etc.).
Documented Disabilities
If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see Prof. Yack after class.
Cell phones and Laptops
Use of Cellphones in Class is not permitted. Laptop use during class is restricted to class-related activity.
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