MODULE SPECIFICATION TEMPLATE
MODULE DETAILS
Module title
Reading Plato's Republic in a Global Polity
Module code
tbc
Credit value
20
Level
Level 4
Level 5
X Level 6
Level 7
Level 8
Mark the box to the right of Level 0 (for modules at foundation
the appropriate level with
level)
an ‘X’
Entry criteria for registration on this module
Pre-requisites
Students must have: (1) developed an ability to organise and
present argument in written and oral forms, (2) begun to address
Specify in terms of module interdisciplinary means of working, based on the methodologies
codes or equivalent
taught in year 1; and (3) students should normally have
successfully completed year 1 of the Humanities Degree
Programme.
Co-requisite modules
Specify in terms of module
codes or equivalent
Module delivery
Mode of delivery
Taught
X
Distance
Placement
X
Block
Other
Online
Other
Pattern of delivery
Weekly
When module is delivered
Semester 1
X
Semester 2
Throughout year
Other
Brief description of
module content and/ or
This unit introduces moral and political theory, through a close
reading of Plato's Republic linking each theme to contemporary
aims
political questions.
Overview (max 80 words)
Module team/ author/
coordinator(s)
Vicky Margree
School
Humanities
Site/ campus where
delivered
Pavilion Parade
Bob Brecher
Course(s) for which module is appropriate and status on that course
Course
Status (mandatory/ compulsory/
optional)
Humanities (LV00)
Optional
Philosophy, Politics and Ethics (LV25)
Optional
MODULE AIMS, ASSESSMENT AND SUPPORT
Aims
The unit aims: 1.) to introduce students to the complexity of the
relationship between ethics and politics; 2.) to develop
theoretical awareness of the relevance of ancient philosophical
questions to the world we now live in;; 3.) to introduce students
to different moral theories; (4) to familiarise students different
interpretations of Plato's Republic.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the unit students will have: (1) been introduced to
the appropriate application of methodologies in an
interdisciplinary context; (2) absorbed an appropriate content
and/or concept base for the specialised courses of Part 3; (3)
developed their learning capacities through increasingly active
participation in seminars and the production of sustained
argument and analysis in written work; (4) obtained a clear
understanding of the contested nature of ethics and politics; (5)
developed the ability to deploy these concepts in thinking about
the ethical dilemma in contemporary society.
Content
This course introduces the relationship between ethics,
philosophy and politics through a close reading of Plato’s
Republic. It explores the relevance of the questions Plato asks
for contemporary society. Every week the discussion of Plato’s
text is related to contemporary concerns including the clash
between law and morality, the mass media as mass delusion,
class and politics, and gender politics. The course begins by
exploring the different answers Socrates interlocutors give to the
question of what the good is. Lectures explore claims that
morality is convention, that morality is the disguised interest of
the stronger, and Socrates’ argument that objective knowledge
of the good is both desirable and possible. We then examine
Plato’s account of the good society, in particular the division of
society in to different classes, his critique of democracy and his
defence of reason as opposed to appetite. We also ask examine
Plato’s claim that the division of labor must be made by aptitude
and ability, not by sex. Following this the unit analyses Plato’s
claim that justice is a good in itself. We ask if this idea of justice
is still relevant to consideration of the life of the individual and
his/her desires, the demands of society and its temptations, and
whether or not philosophical life really is a life which exercises
control over desire.
Learning support
Indicative Reading and References
Annas, J. An introduction to Plato's Republic Oxford, 1981.
Badiou, Alain Plato's Republic, London, Wiley, 2012.
Kraut, R. (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Plato (Cambridge
1993).
Murdoch, I. The fire and the sun : why Plato banished the artists
: based upon the Romanes Lecture 1976 (Oxford 1977).
Plato, The Republic, London: Penguin, 2008.
Internet Resources
www.protevi.com/john/FH/Republic_complete.pdf
Teaching and learning activities
Details of teaching and
learning activities
Lectures (1.5 hours per week)
Seminars (1.5 hours per week)
Pre and post essay tutorials: 0.5 hours each
Seminar Feedback 0.5 hours
Examination Preparation 3 hours
Examination 3 hours
Private study (10 hours per week)
Allocation of study hours (indicative)
Study
hours
Where 10 credits = 100 learning hours
SCHEDULED
This is an indication of the number of hours
students can expect to spend in scheduled
teaching activities including lectures, seminars,
tutorials, project supervision, demonstrations,
practical classes and workshops, supervised time
in workshops/ studios, fieldwork, external visits,
and work-based learning.
50
GUIDED INDEPENDENT
STUDY
All students are expected to undertake guided
independent study which includes wider reading/
practice, follow-up work, the completion of
assessment tasks, and revisions.
150
PLACEMENT
The placement is a specific type of learning away
from the University that is not work-based learning
or a year abroad.
n/a
TOTAL STUDY HOURS 200
Assessment tasks
Details of assessment
for this module
The essays are assessed in relation to Learning Objectives i, ii,
iv and v with particular attention to students’ ability to (i) produce
a clearly structured and cogently argued essay; (ii) draw on an
appropriate range of interdisciplinary resources and demonstrate
their relevance to the question at hand; (iii) identify the key
issues and problems in their analysis, and in the upper range to
attempt a resolution of those issues, and/or show an awareness
of the limitations of the work, (iv) demonstrate understanding of
how cultural memory is constructed and maintained.
The seminars and oral presentations are assessed in relation to
LOs iii,iv and v with particular attention to: (i) students’ ability to
contribute effectively to group work, responding and listening
appropriately to the contributions of others, (ii) clarity of thought
and of argument in presentation, (iii) knowledge of key concepts
and arguments in relation to required reading.
The examination is assessed in relation to LO i, ii, iv and v.
•Assessment process
All essays are assessed by the tutor, and then discussed with
each student on return;
Seminars are assessed continuously by the tutor;
Seminar marks and comments are fed back to students by
personal tutors.
Types of assessment task1
Indicative list of summative assessment tasks which lead to the award of credit
or which are required for progression.
%
weighting
(or indicate
if
component
is pass/fail)
WRITTEN
Written exam (LO ii, iv and v)
12
COURSEWORK
One 1800 word essay (LO I, ii, iii, iv and v)
44
PRACTICAL
Weekly assessment of seminar performance and
44
1 Set exercises, which assess the application of knowledge or analytical, problem-solving or evaluative skills, are
included under the type of assessment most appropriate to the particular task.
seminar presentation. (LO iii, iv and v)
EXAMINATION INFORMATION
Area examination board
Humanities
Refer to Faculty Office for guidance in completing the following sections
External examiners
Name
Position and institution
Date appointed
Date
tenure
ends
Professor Darryl Jones
Trinity
2009/10
2013/4
Professor Mark McGovern
Edgehill
2012/13
2015/16
Professor James Connelly
Hull University
2009/10
2012/13
Professor Brian Kelly
Queens University, Belfast
2012/13
2015/6
QUALITY ASSURANCE
Date of first approval
Only complete where this
is not the first version
Date of last revision
Only complete where this
is not the first version
Date of approval for this
version
Version number
Modules replaced
Specify codes of modules
for which this is a
replacement
Available as free-standing module?
Yes
x
No