Classics of Social and Political Thought I SOSC 151 Section 14, MW 3:00pm-­‐4:20pm, Wieboldt Hall 130 Fall Quarter 2011 Professor Mara Marin mara@uchicago.edu Office Hours: Fridays 2:00 -­‐ 3:30 p.m. (Gates-­‐Blake 333) Intern: William Wood (williamcarroz@gmail.com) Office hours: Tuesdays 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. (Classics Cafe) I. Course goals Course Content Classics of Social and Political Thought gives an introduction to the basic problems and concepts of political philosophy through intensive readings of a limited number of texts drawn from the canon of (mainly) western philosophy. This quarter we start by reading classical ancient and medieval political works by Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas and end the course with Machiavelli’s The Prince. Some of the questions that we will consider include: What is justice? What makes a good political society? What is the relation between individual and political community? What is the relation between morality, religion and politics? What is the role of education in social and political organization? Is democracy the best regime? We will discuss concepts such as: justice, virtue, natural law, citizenship, rule, happiness. Skills In this class you will learn to: • Critically analyze important works of social and political theory. • Evaluate theoretical arguments. • Generate interesting questions about society. • Participate in group discussions by both contributing your ideas and listening to your peers. • Write an essay with a clear, coherent and persuasive argument. • Work with peers to improve writing skills. II. Requirements and Grading Course requirements There will be three papers for this course – topics to be announced. Each of will count for 25% of the final grade. Papers should be typed, double-­‐spaced, and spell-­‐checked. Students should bring the first and second papers to Gates-­‐Blake 333 and place them in the box designated for this purpose, and e-­‐mail the third paper to mara@uchicago.edu. Class participation will count for the remaining 25% of your final grade. Students are expected to attend class with the text and their notes, ready to discuss the reading assignment, and raise questions about it. Students with more than two unexcused absences will be assumed to have withdrawn. Your participation grade will take into account your participation in class discussion and, three times a quarter, a discussion question. Make sure you sign-­‐up for it early in the quarter. You are required to post the discussion question on chalk by 8 pm the day before it is due. You are also required to read the chalk posts of your colleagues before each class. A good discussion question raises a specific issue about a specific idea in the text; it points out to the paragraph where the idea appears, it summarizes it and raises a question about it. The question can raise an interpretive issue, a debatable question or point to a tension in the text. Be prepared to explain the question in class. A good contributor to class discussion takes part in the discussion of the texts in a way that advances a productive class discussion by taking into account and building upon other views expressed in class, offering reasons for her/his views, and keeping to the point. To do so it is as important to listen carefully to the other views expressed in class as to formulate and defend your own questions and ideas. No computers in class. To pass this course, you must pass each of the four components of the course. For example, someone who completes all the written work but does not participate in class discussion regularly or does not post questions on chalk will receive a failing grade for class participation and will subsequently fail the course. Likewise, someone who is an excellent contributor to class discussions but does not complete the written work will fail the course, regardless of the quality of the other written work. If you are sick or go through a personal emergency, please e-­‐mail me, your intern (see e-­‐mail address above) AND either your college advisor or your resident head immediately so that we can arrange for you to do your work. If there is a conflict between course participation and religious observance, please contact me in advance. Late work policy In the absence of such certified excuses, late papers will be penalized by a third of a letter-­‐grade on the first day and a full letter-­‐grade per day after that. For example, if your essay is due on Monday at 5 pm, anything you hand in after 5 pm on Monday and before 5 pm on Tuesday will start as a “A-­‐;” anything you hand in after 5 pm on Tuesday and before 5 pm on Wednesday will start as a “B-­‐;” etc. I will not accept an essay more than 3 days (72 hours) after it is due. Plagiarism Plagiarism is unacceptable and will result in penalties up to and including a failing grade for the assignment (and hence for the course) and referral to the university for disciplinary action. You will not need to draw on any other sources besides the primary texts discussed in class for your papers. If you decide to do so you are required to acknowledge that source and provide a reference. Texts The following texts are available for sale at the Seminary Co-­‐op. Please use these editions, and bring your copy of the text we are discussing to class with you. •
Plato, The Republic, trans. Allan Bloom (Basic Books, 1991) •
Aristotle, The Politics, trans. C. D. C Reeve (Hackett, 1998) •
Thomas Aquinas, On Law, Morality, and Politics, trans. & ed. William P. Baumgarth & Richard J. Regan, 2nd ed. (Hackett, 2003) Niccolò Machiavelli, The Prince, trans. Harvey C. Mansfield, 2nd ed. (University of Chicago Press, 1998) Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics (selections) are available on the chalk site for this course, under “Course Documents” (see chalk.uchicago.edu). •
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Schedule of Readings Monday September 26 Introduction to the course (no reading) Wednesday, September 28 Plato, The Republic, Book I Monday October 3 Plato, The Republic, Book II-­‐III Wednesday October 5 Plato, The Republic, Book IV Monday October 10 Plato, The Republic, Book V Wednesday October 12 Plato, The Republic, Books VI – Book VII 531c First paper due on Friday, October 14 by 4pm. Monday October 17 Wednesday October 19 Monday October 24 Wednesday October 26 Monday October 31 Wednesday November 2 Plato, The Republic, Books VII 531d – Book IX 576b. Plato, The Republic, Books IX 576b – Book X. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Book I, Ch. 1-­‐2, 5, 7-­‐9, 12, 13. Aristotle, Politics, Book I, Ch. 1-­‐7; 12, 13; Book II, Ch. 1, 2 – 5. Aristotle, Politics, Book III Aristotle, Politics, Book IV, Chapters 1-­‐2, 4-­‐9, 11, 12 Book V, Chapters 1, 2, 8. Monday November 7 Aristotle, Politics, Book VII, Chapters 1-­‐5, 7-­‐10, 13-­‐15, Book VIII Chapter 1-­‐3. Wednesday November 9 Aquinas (all selections from On Law, Morality, and Politics), Summa Theologica I-­‐II Questions 90-­‐93 (pp. 10-­‐40). Second paper due on Friday, November 11 by 4pm. Monday November 14 Wednesday November 16 Monday November 21 Wednesday November 23 Monday November 28 Wednesday November 30 Aquinas (all selections from On Law, Morality, and Politics), Summa Theologica I-­‐II Questions 94-­‐95 (pp. 40-­‐59). Aquinas, Summa Theologica I-­‐II Q 96-­‐97 (pp. 59-­‐75); Q 100 A 1, 2, 8-­‐9 (pp. 76-­‐79, 81-­‐86); Aquinas, Summa Theologica I-­‐II Q 105 A1 (pp. 93-­‐96); ST II-­‐II Q 57 A 2-­‐4 (pp. 100-­‐105); Q 58 A 2 (pp. 107-­‐108), Q 40 A. 1 (pp. 164-­‐67); Q 104 A 5-­‐6 (pp. 182-­‐85); Q 42 A 2 (pp. 188-­‐89); Q. 10 A. 8, 11, Q. 11 A. 3, Commentary on the Sentences Distinctions 44, 37 (pp. 190-­‐96); On Kingship Book I, Chapter 6 (pp. 207-­‐210). Machiavelli, The Prince, Dedicatory Letter (pp. 3-­‐4), Chapters I-­‐V. Machiavelli, The Prince, Chapters VI-­‐XVII. Machiavelli, The Prince, Chapters XVIII-­‐XXVI. Final paper due on Monday, December 5 by 4pm. 3