PS 491 (Senior Capstone Course)
Dr. Troy Gibson
Contact Information:
· Office location – LAB 418
· Phone – (601) 266-4277
· Email –
· Office hours – MW 9-11
Course Description: This course is designed to help students apply the tools and concepts they have picked up as Political Science majors by focusing on one theme, worldviews in politics. We will discuss the debate behind the debate in politics, the importance of understanding the concept of worldview and how various worldviews form the basis upon which citizens develop their political preferences, behavior and public ethics.
Course Requirements:
· Final Exam (25%)
· Daily Grades (25%) – quizzes, short papers
· Participation (10%)
· Group Paper* and Conference** (20%)
· Book Review (20%)***
Course Schedule:
Jan 14 & 15 – Introductory remarks / March 10 ******Spring Break******Jan 21 & 23 – (No class Monday); Ch. 1 Sire. Worldviews as a concept in politics.
Assigned reading: Naugle / March 17 & 19 – Pantheistic and Eastern Religions (Sire 7 & 8)
Jan 28 & 30 – Broad outline of Western thought concerning worldviews in public life/discourse.
Assigned Reading: Clark “Culture Wars” / March 24 & 25 – Postmodernism (Sire 9)
Assigned Reading: (Nietzsche: Zarathustra speaks)
Feb 4 & 6 – Worldviews: Christian Theism, Sire Ch. 2
Assigned Reading: Lewis essay on Ethics / March 31 & April 2 – Worldviews in Art, Literature, Media: Crimes and Misdemeanors (film in class)
Feb 11 & 13 – Worldviews: Deism and Naturalism (Sire 3 & 4)
Assigned Reading: Peter Singer; Clark “Crime and Causality” / April 7 & 9 – Worldviews in international affairs and legal theory
Assigned reading: Huntington and Leff
Book Reviews Due April 9
Feb 18 & 20 – “The Great Debate: Does God Exist” / April 14 & 16 – continue
Papers Due April 16
Feb 25 & 27 – Nihilism (Sire 5)
Assigned Reading: Sartre: The Wall discuss Wednesday / April 21 & 23 – Worldviews and Politics Conference: Human Rights
Papers Due
March 3 & 5 – Existentialism (Sire 6)
Assigned Reading – Sartre existential ethics / April 28 & 30; May 5 – Worldviews and Politics Conference: Military Force and/or Intervention in Foreign Affairs; Exit interviews
*Group paper. Each group must write a paper (12 pages, 12 point font, double-spaced). In addition to a brief restatement of what the worldview is and how it might be justified or defended generally, it must also identify at least two authors or thinkers in their respective worldview or perspective, what the worldview would perhaps say about either Human Rights (or War) and why, and a discussion of relevant evidence concerning the topic that might have implications for the worldview.
**Conference: The class will be divided into two panels of four-person presentation teams. Each team will be responsible for presenting their policy preference, explaining how that preference is or is not shaped and justified by a particular worldview, and responding to those from other worldviews in a conference style discussion session on one of two separate topics. Presentations should speak to the philosophical or worldview basis of the position taken, available evidence in support of the position, and criticism of alternative worldview perspectives on the issue.
***Book review: Select a book from the list provided by the instructor and write a book review in which you identify the worldview assumptions in it. Critique the book in the light of an alternative worldview. Should be single spaced, 12 point font, 2-3 pages. See website for help writing a book review.
If a student has a disability that qualifies under the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) and requires accommodations, he/she should contact the Office for Disability Accommodations (ODA) for information on appropriate policies and procedures. Disabilities covered by ADA may include learning, psychiatric, physical disabilities, or chronic health disorders. Students can contact ODA if they are not certain whether a medical condition/disability qualifies.
Address:
The University of Southern Mississippi
Office for Disability Accommodations
Hattiesburg, MS 39406
Voice Telephone: (228) 214-3232 or (601) 266-5024 Fax: (601) 266-6035
Individuals with hearing impairments can contact ODA using the Mississippi Relay
Service at 1-800-582-2233 (TTY) or email Suzy Hebert at .