DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
POLS 251-2: INTRODUCTION TO
POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY (FALL 2006)
CLASS MEETS: 3:30-4:45 p.m. MW
INSTRUCTOR NATHAN DINNEEN
OFFICE: DU 476
OFFICE HOURS: 4:45- 5:45pm MW
AND
BY APPOINTMENT
Please
email at niupols251@mac.com
Philosophy is understood as the Òlove of wisdom.Ó What does it mean to qualify philosophy in terms of Òthe politicalÓ? Cicero, perhaps, says it best: ÒWhereas philosophy prior to Socrates was concerned with numbers and motions and with whence all things came and where they go, Socrates was the first to call philosophy down from heaven and to place it in cities, and even to introduce it into the household, and to compel philosophy to inquire about life and manners and about good and bad.Ó Political philosophy, then, is chiefly concerned with human action, thereby making it the central theme of philosophy.
One could say that those who inquire into the nature of human actions are political philosophers. Such an inquiry, however, does not yield consistent results. Political philosophers differ over what human nature is or even what Ònature in generalÓ is. The purposeful activity of human action, as a result, is understood in various ways based upon varying notions of human nature. Do human beings have a purpose other than the ones that they have willed or created? If so, how do the notions of necessity, choice, chance, and the divine influence our understanding of human action? These questions are fundamentally interested in the possibility of Òwise action.Ó
The understanding of wise action requires that there be someone who is able to distinguish between good and bad action, that is, a wise person. Philosophers by no means alone have an unchallenged right to this title. Poets, prophets, politicians, and many more seek to have this reputation bestowed upon them. In other words, claims to wisdom are contested. In our course of study, we will examine three quarrels regarding the contest of wisdom: the quarrel between philosophy and poetry, the quarrel between ancient and moderns, and the quarrel between biblical religion and philosophy. The first and third quarrels as you can plainly see involve philosophy. The second quarrel does so as well. One, in fact, could say that it is a civil war within philosophy between ancient and modern political philosophers. The thinkers that I have chosen to shed light on these quarrels are Plato, Machiavelli, and Spinoza. In addition to them, we will read Rousseau, who was the first, besides Jonathan Swift, to indicate the crises ushered in by modern thought.
By the end of the semester, you should have a basic understanding of the three quarrels and know how they relate to political philosophy.
Please purchase the following editions. We will frequently refer to them in class and it will be time consuming and confusing if we do not all have the same editions.
Plato, The Republic of
Plato, trans. Allan Bloom
Machiavelli, The Prince, trans. Harvey C. Mansfield
Spinoza, Theologico-Political
Treatise, trans. Martin Yaffe
Rousseau, The First and
Second Discourses, trans. Roger and
Judith Masters
8/28 Introduction:
Political Philosophy and the Three Quarrels
8/30 Machiavelli, The
Prince, Dedicatory Letter, Chap. 1-7
9/4 NO
CLASS
9/6 Machiavelli,
Chap. 8-14
9/11 Machiavelli,
Chap. 15-21, QUIZ #1
9/13 Machiavelli, Chap. 22-26,
Appendix, p. 107-111,
(Pass out Essay Questions for Paper #1)
9/18 Plato, The
Republic, Book I
9/20 Plato, Book II
9/25 Plato, Book
III, PAPER #1 DUE
9/27 Plato, Book IV
10/2 Plato, Book V
10/4 Plato, Book VI
and QUIZ #2
10/9 Plato, Book
VII
10/11 Plato, Book VIII
10/16 Plato, Book IX
10/18 Plato, Book, X, (Pass out Essay
Questions for Paper #2)
[Note: October 20th is the Last Day to
withdraw from class]
10/23 Spinoza, Theologico-Political
Treatise, Preface (xv-xxiii), Chap.
2-4
10/25 Spinoza, Chap. 5-7
10/30 Spinoza, Chap. 11-14, PAPER #2 DUE
11/1 Spinoza, Chap.
15-16
11/6 Spinoza, Chap.
17-18, and QUIZ #3
11/8 Spinoza, Chap.
19-20
11/13 Chesterton (Handout), (Pass out Essay
Questions for Paper #3)
11/20 Rousseau, First Discourse
11/22 NO CLASS
11/27 Rousseau, First Discourse, PAPER #3 DUE
11/29 Rousseau, Second Discourse and QUIZ #4;
(Pass out Essay Questions for Paper #4)
12/4 Rousseau, Second
Discourse
12/6 Rousseau, Second
Discourse and Final Thoughts
12/11 Final 4-5:50 p.m., PAPER #4 DUE
1. Attendance:
Attendance at each class is both expected and required. Attendance will be
taken at most classes after the first few days. It will be taken at the beginning of each class. Should students arrive ÒreasonablyÓ
late, that is, after attendance has been taken, they will not receive full
credit. Instead, they will be
marked absent with a note that they arrived late. If students are ÒunreasonablyÓ late, they will not receive
any credit whatsoever. In
addition, students who leave class early will be counted absent. After three absences, each absence
after it will lower a studentÕs final course grade by a letter grade.
[Ò10 Minute RuleÓ: In the unforeseeable and unlikely event
that the instructor is later than 10 minutes, the class is cancelled.]
2. Class Preparation: The best way to prepare for each class
is to read the entire assigned portion of each book prior to the first day we
begin that book. While one reading
of this material is not sufficient, the lectures and class discussion will be
easier to grasp if you have done at least that much.
3. Class Participation: The proper kind of participation in the class is expected, required
and rewarded. What is meant by the
proper kind of participation is as follows:
First,
participation means being attentive to the lectures and discussions. Students
who sleep, read the newspaper, persistently talk with other students or are
otherwise inattentive to the lectures and discussions will not be
tolerated. At the instructorÕs
discretion, you may be administratively dismissed from the course.
Second,
participation requires that you are prepared to be questioned about each
reading. Moreover, the lectures will presuppose studentsÕ familiarity with the
readings. Good students will not
only be present and attentive in class, they will also actively participate by
answering the instructorÕs questions about the reading, by asking intelligent
questions and by making thoughtful observations.
It
is important that you understand the kind of discussion sought. The purpose of discussion is to enable
students to raise questions concerning the meaning of the lectures or texts and
to relate different arguments, passages and insights to each other. Above all,
discussion and the instructorÕs questioning of your comments are meant to help
you learn how to express your thoughts coherently.
Some
classes will be mainly lecture and discussion but most will involve reading and
discussing passages from the readings.
Since classes are usually conducted by reading and discussing passages
from the assigned readings, it is necessary that you bring the appropriate
readings to class. Failure to
comply with this policy could result in you being counted absent and your final
grade being lowered.
4. Quizzes and Papers
Quizzes are given at the beginning of the class. No make-up quizzes will be given. The quizzes are short answer. They will cover the assigned readings and what has been discussed in class.
In your papers you are to respond to a list of topics that the instructor will hand out. Each paper is to be no more than 600 words. You must include a word count at the end of each paper.
An ÒAÓ on a written assignment requires that you show clarity, economy, and focus. To achieve such results, you must first attempt to understand the author as he understood himself. This attempt requires that you cite the passages of the author that are relevant to answering the paper topic. Yet, when citing it is best if you paraphrase the authorÕs thoughts so that I can determine if you know what the author is saying. In other words, you should rarely quote from the text. Instead, paraphrase the thought of the author and then place the page number of the text you are paraphrasing at the end of the sentence. This way the instructor can know that you diligently read the text and also compare your paraphrase to the authorÕs own words. It should be noted that I do not expect you to reword common ideas (e.g., Òstate of natureÓ or Òthe best regimeÓ). In fact, it is best if you stick to the wording of the authors while making your argument. What I do not want, however, is for your paper to be made entirely of quotes that contain sentence after sentence of the authorÕs own words. Lastly, there is no need to appeal to the arguments of the scholars of Plato, Machiavelli, Spinoza, and Rousseau. Stick to the original text and you should be fine, which means do not quote from the instructorÕs lecture either. You must supply textual evidence for your argument. That said, your lecture notes, however, may help guide your analysis of the original text.
Papers are due on the date specified. Papers over a week late will not be accepted. Late papers will be reduced by a letter grade.
Plagiarism will result in you
failing, at least, that assignment and, perhaps, the course.
5. Final Grade:
1. Final grades are based on 3 out of the 4 quizzes, 3 out of the 4 papers, the quality of class participation, and, to a certain degree, on attendance. The lowest quiz and paper grade will be dropped.
á
Quizzes 20%
á
Participation 20%
á
Papers 60%
2.
No one will receive an
ÒAÓ who does not demonstrate the kind of class participation indicated above.
3.
Final course grade is
reduced one letter grade for each absence over 3.
Undergraduate Writing
Awards: The Department of Political
Science will recognize, on an annual basis, outstanding undergraduate papers
written in conjunction with 300-400 level political science courses or directed
studies. Authors do not have to be political science majors or have a particular
class standing. Winners are expected to attend the DepartmentÕs spring
graduation ceremony where they will receive a certificate and $50.00. Papers,
which can be submitted by students or faculty, must be supplied in triplicate
to a department secretary by February 28th. All copies should have two cover
pages-one with the studentÕs name and one without the studentÕs name. Only
papers written in the previous calendar year can be considered for the award.
Statement Concerning
Students with Disabilities: NIU abides by
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that mandates reasonable
accommodations be provided for qualified students with disabilities. If a
student has a disability and may require some type of instructional and/or
examination accommodation, please contact the instructor early in the semester
(preferably within the first two weeks) so that he can provide or facilitate in
providing accommodations the student may need. If a student has not already
done so, he/she will need to register with the Center for Access-Ability
Resources (CAAR), the designated office on campus to provide services and
administer exams with accommodations for students with disabilities. The CAAR
office is located on the 4th floor of the University Health Services building and
its phone number is (815) 753-1303.
Department of Political
Science Web Site: Undergraduates are
strongly encouraged to consult the Department of Political Science web site on
a regular basis. This up-to-date, central source of information will assist
students in contacting faculty and staff, reviewing course requirements and
syllabi, exploring graduate study, researching career options, tracking
department events, and accessing important details related to undergraduate
programs and activities. To reach the site, go to http://www.polisci.niu.edu.