Introduction to Political Philosophy

80-135
Summer I, 2007

Teaser Trailer

1. Have you ever wanted to join the Justice League of America?

2. Have you ever admired John Stuart Mill and wondered exactly what was the deal with those chops? Did they make him popular with the ladies?

3. When you think of John Locke, do you appreciate your property rights or get excited for the next episode of Lost?

4. Have you ever wondered if Milton Friedman could beat Superman in a fight?

Find answers to these and other burning questions this summer in Introduction to Political Philosophy.

 

Your Instructor

Name: David Gray, Graduate Student Extraordinaire

Office: Baker Hall 143

Work Phone: 412-268-8148

Email: degray@andrew.cmu.edu

 

Course Description

In this course, we will undertake an analysis of some extremely influential theories of justice in political philosophy. We will explore how the contestations between these theories frame most present-day political debates concerning controversies such as affirmative action, disability rights, and gay marriage. In class discussion, students are encouraged to present and critically examine their own views on these controversies. With an emphasis on both theory and practice, we shall witness not only how political theory informs political practices but also how these practices inform the theory.

 

Important Handouts

Syllabus

 

Schedule

Date
Topic
Readings
May 21

Introductions

None
May 22 Utilitarianism

Jeremy Bentham, Principles of Morals and Legislation from Mary Warnock (ed.), Utilitarianism and On Liberty (UOL), Chapters I and IV, pp. 17-22, 41-43

John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism from (UOL), Chapter II (Paragraphs 1-10, 18-19, 23-25), pp. 185-190, 194-196, 199-202
May 23 Utilitarianism and Justice

John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism from (UOL), Chapter V, pp. 216-235
May 24 Utilitarianism and Liberty

John Stuart Mill, On Liberty from (UOL), Chapters I and III, pp. 88-98, 131-146
May 25 Liberty and Society

John Stuart Mill, On Liberty from (UOL), Chapter IV, pp. 147-162
     
May 28

No Class!

 Memorial Day - Woo Hoo!
May 29 Eminent Domain

Dahlia Lithwick, “Condemn-Nation: This was your land, but now it’s my land” (handout)

Kelo v. City of New London, Justice Stevens’ Ruling (handout) and Justice O’Connor’s Dissent (handout)

First Paper Topic Handed Out
May 30 Locke on Private Property

John Locke, Second Treatise of Government (Sections 1-73), pp. 7-40
May 31 Locke on Civil Society

John Locke, Second Treatise of Government (Sections 87-91, 95-99, 119-131, 134-142, 149), pp. 46-49, 52-53, 63-68, 69-75, 77-78
June 1 Liberty vs. Equality

Milton Friedman, Free to Choose, “Created Equal”, pp. 128-149 (handout)

F.A. Hayek, The Constitution of Liberty, “Equality Value, and Merit”, pp. 85-102 (handout)
     
June 4 Nozick on Just Holdings

Robert Nozick, Anarchy, State, and Utopia, pp. 149-164, 167-182 (handout)

First Paper Due at 11:59:59 PM
June 5 Surrogate Motherhood

Kyle Wood, “Brief on In the Matter of Baby ‘M’” (handout)

Richard Posner, “Selling Babies” (handout)

Elizabeth Anderson, “Is Women’s Labor a Commodity?” (handout)
June 6 The Value of Equality

Thomas Scanlon, “When does Equality Matter?” (handout)
June 7 Equality and Responsibility

Ronald Dworkin, Sovereign Virtue, “Does Equality Matter?”, pp. 1-7 (handout)

Ronald Dworkin, Sovereign Virtue, “Justice, Insurance, and Luck”, pp. 320-325, 331-350 (handout)
June 8 Health Care

Ronald Dworkin, Sovereign Virtue, “Justice and the High Cost of Health”, pp. 307-19 (handout)

Malcolm Gladwell, “The Moral Hazard Myth: The bad idea behind our failed health-care system” (handout)

Ezekiel Emanuel and Victor Fuchs, “Getting Covered: Choose a plan everyone can agree on” (handout)
     
June 11 Justice as Fairness

John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Chapter I (Sections 1-6), pp. 3-30
June 12 Two Principles of Justice

John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Chapter II (Sections 11-14, 17), pp. 52-78, 86-93
June 13 The Original Position John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Chapters III (Sections 20, 22, 24-26) and IV (Section 40), pp. 102-105, 109-112, 118-139, 221-227
June 14 Distribution, Entitlement, and Merit John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Chapters V (Sections 41, 47-48) and VII (Section 68), pp. 228-234, 267-277, 392-396
June 15 The Good of Justice

John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Chapter IX (Sections 79, 83-87), pp. 456-464, 480-514
     
June 18 Natural Endowments and Entitlement

Robert Nozick, Anarchy, State, and Utopia, pp. 213-231 (handout)
June 19 Affirmative Action

Richard Bernstein, “Racial Discrimination or Righting Past Wrongs?” (handout)

Michael Kinsley, “Bakke to the Drawing Board” (handout)

Dahlia Lithwick, “Frank Admissions: The court finally talks serious about race” (handout)

Michael Brus, “Proxy War: Liberals denounce racial profiling. Conservatives denounce affirmative action. What’s the difference?” (handout)

Ronald Dworkin, A Matter of Principle, “Bakke’s Case: Are Quotas Unfair?”, pp. 293-303 (handout)

Michael Sandel, Liberalism and the Limits of Justice, “The Case of Affirmative Action” pp. 135-147 (handout)

Second Paper Topic Handed Out
June 20 Moral Excellence, Pleasure, and Community

Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Books II (Chapters 1-3) (handout) and X (Chapters 1-3) (handout)

Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics from Stephen Everson (ed.), The Politics and the Constitution of Athens (PCA), Book X (Chapter 9), pp. 3-7

Aristotle, The Politics from (PCA), Books VIII (Chapter 1) and I (Chapters 1-7, 12-13), pp. 195, 11-19, 27-30
June 21 Civic Excellence, Happiness, and the State Aristotle, The Politics from (PCA), Books III (Chapters 1, 3-4, 6-12) and VII (Chapters 1-3, 13-14), pp. 61-63, 64-68, 69-80, 166-171, 184-188
June 22 Ability and Disability

Bob Ryan, “Sorry, Free Rides Not Right” (handout)

Tom Kite, “Keep the PGA on Foot” (handout)

Assorted Letters to the Editor from The New York Times (handout)

William Saletan, “The Beam in Your Eye: If steroids are cheating, why isn’t LASIK?” (handout)

PGA Tour, Inc. v. Martin, Justice Scalia’s Dissent (handout)
     
June 25 Community, Virtues, and Goods

Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue, “The Virtues, the Unity of a Human Life and the Concept of a Tradition”, pp. 204-225 (handout)

Michael Walzer, Spheres of Justice, pp. 6-10, 64-67, 78-91, 312-314 (handout)
June 26 The Limits of Justice

Michael Sandel, Liberalism and the Limits of Justice, pp. 1-24, 165-183 (handout)

Michael Sandel, Public Philosophy, “Morality and the Liberal Ideal”, pp. 147-155 (handout)
June 27 Political Liberalism

John Rawls, Political Liberalism, pp. 3-15, 29-35, 144-158 (handout)

Michael Sandel, Public Philosophy, “Political Liberalism”, pp. 223-239 (handout)

Second Paper Due at 11:59:59 PM
June 28 Gay Marriage

Michael Kinsley, “Abolish Marriage: Let’s really get the government out of our bedrooms” (handout)

John Finnis, “What's Wrong with Homosexuality?” (handout)

Stephen Macedo, “Homosexuality and the Conservative Mind” (handout)

Robin West, “Universalism, Liberal Theory, and the Problem of Gay Marriage” (handout)
June 29 Final Exam  
     

 

Course Texts

  • Aristotle. The Politics and the Constitution of Athens. Revised Student Edition. Edited
    by Stephen Everson. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
  • John Locke. Second Treatise of Government. Edited by C.B. Macpherson. Indianapolis,
    IN: Hackett, 1980.
  • John Stuart Mill. Utilitarianism and On Liberty. Second Edition edited by Mary Warnock.
    Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2003.
  • John Rawls. A Theory of Justice. Revised Edition. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of
    Harvard University Press. 1999.

 

Useful Links

Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy -- http://www.rep.routledge.com/index.html
Sweet online resource! Go here first. There is also a CD-ROM version available from CMU's Hunt Library.

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy -- http://plato.stanford.edu
Another good online encyclopedia for philosophy.

Answers

1. I know I certainly have!

2. Actually J.S. Mill was popular with the ladies -- and not just because of those dapper chops. He was an advocate for women's rights.

3. Who cares about property rights! What do those freakin' numbers mean?

4. Economists and philosophers have debated this question for centuries, but I'd put my money on Friedman -- he's a scrapper!

 

 

I love Apache! So should you!