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Description
Liberty. Democracy. Rights. Community. Without even realizing it, we all use the fruits of political philosophy. The question is, are we using them well? This is your opportunity to navigate the labyrinth of Western political and social theory. Trace the rise of movements including capitalism, liberalism, conservatism, nationalism, socialism, and communism.
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Although the "old" left declined in the West after WWII, Frankfurt School thinker Herbert Marcuse was able to help create what was sometimes called a Freudian left through a psychological reinterpretation of Marxism. Delve into the New Left of the 1960s and Marcuse's ideas, which critiqued capitalism's seduction of society through the welfare state and culture industry.
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Explore the events surrounding World War II, including the role philosophers played and how political philosophers interpreted the new totalitarianism of Russia, Italy, and Germany. Grasp how this period produced our familiar spectrum of international politics, with communism on the far left and fascism on the far right.
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Revisit the topic of the ethics of war, which was touched upon earlier in the course. First, review the three active philosophical positions - pacifism, realism, and just war theory - then look at Michael Walzer's version of just war theory and his take on recent wars from a moral perspective.
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Michael Walzer created perhaps the most interesting alternative to the distributive justice theories of Rawls and Nozick in his Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality. Explore his more communitarian theory of distributive justice and the distinction he draws between "thin" and "thick" political discourse, in attempting to deal with criticisms of his view.
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Inspired by the commercial success of Holland and England, a number of 18th-century intellectuals argued that a society of self-interested producers is good, despite its flaunting of traditional, classical, and Christian virtues. Investigate these thinkers, including Voltaire and Adam Smith, who each believed commerce promotes liberty, peace, and prosperity.
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Is "color-blindness" inherently unequal? Does a cultural group have rights? Is the goal of liberal democratic equality to treat citizens indifferently with respect to their racial, ethnic, or cultural distinctiveness, or to take that distinctiveness into account and value it? Here, explore the question of how recognizing cultural differences changes liberal republicanism.
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Neoliberals and economic conservatives disagree widely on many points, but they share a common enemy: expansive, progressive government. See the two paths conservatism took in the post - WWII world and examine the thought these camps produced - all of which serves as background for today's arguments about government and economy.
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As the greatest political event of the 18th century, the French Revolution inspired political thinkers around the world. In the first of three lectures tracing the uprising's philosophical impact, delve into the liberal, conservative, and proto-progressive arguments made during "the battle of the pamphlets" - the first intellectual feud over the meaning of the Revolution.
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In the 1920s, opposition to bourgeois-led parliamentary democracy split between internationalist socialism and a new nationalist socialism, which came to be called fascism. Explore the roots of fascism and its most sophisticated political thinker, Carl Schmitt, who presents a deep philosophical critique of parliamentary democracy and liberal republicanism.
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The modern world brought higher standards of living, unprecedented scientific knowledge, and widespread literacy, yet it also undermined tradition and, for many, led to a loss of community. Learn how figures from the newly emerging social sciences, including Max Weber, Sigmund Freud, and Friedrich Nietzsche, changed the intellectual environment in attempting to describe this shift.
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Immanuel Kant is attributed with creating one of the two most influential theories of ethics, deontological ethics - the other being utilitarianism - each of which became the background for an enduring view of modern republicanism. In this lecture, examine Kant's fundamental arguments, which are key to understanding much of modern political theory.
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The complexities of the American Constitution and system of government are a consequence of disagreements between Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison. Look at their arguments and contributions to political thought - including the Declaration of Independence, parts of the Constitution, and the Federalist Papers - along with the ideas of Montesquieu.
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Environmentalism has been associated with the political left because it is often in the position of opposing major economic interests. Yet it's fundamentally conservative in that it wants to "go back" to an earlier time. Survey some of the ideas and arguments of this movement and gauge its effect on liberal republican political theory.
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Now, turn to another German émigré philosopher who, like Arendt, probed further into the conflict between politics and philosophy while turning to the ancients for a political approach that avoids the mistakes of modernity. Examine Leo Strauss's work, which has significantly influenced American neoconservatives, and the related writings of his friend, Alexandre Kojève.
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Is it just for one man to drive a luxury car and eat at expensive restaurants while another goes homeless and hungry? Consider such questions of justice as you explore the views of John Rawls, whose 1971 A Theory of Justice became the most famous justification of welfare liberalism in the late 20th century.
Description
Postmodern critique has changed the discussions of sociology, literature, philosophy, and political theory by pressing feminist and multiculturalist versions of egalitarian liberalism or progressivism in a radical, anti-Eurocentric direction. Explore some ideas - both leftist and conservative - behind postmodernism in politics, as put forth by Cornel West, Michel Foucault, and others.
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