Political Theory – Course Outline

Unlike other academic fields that study political and social issues, political philosophy primarily pursues normative questions. While fields such as political science and sociology are concerned with describing social and political phenomena using quantitative and qualitative methods, political philosophy is mainly concerned with how political life ought to be. This course will introduce you to a broad survey of fundamental topics in political theory. Some of these topics include to what extent, if at all, can government be justified. If government can be justified, what kind is the best or most just? Most of us today agree that freedom and equality are important political and social values. But how should we understand these values and how much of each should the government secure for its citizens? Throughout the course we will also be looking at some controversial political issues including terrorism, torture, the environment, and drug legalization.

If you are engaged and work hard, by the end of this course you will be able to better understand and pursue the core issues in political theory. You will develop and refine your skills in critical thinking, developing arguments, critiquing arguments, and clearly expressing your own point of view in written and spoken form. Developing these skills will help you better articulate arguments and viewpoints surrounding important political issues that concern us today.

Required Texts

Jonathan Wolff, An Introduction To Political Philosophy Revised Edition (2006)

Other texts will be made available