Louisiana State University Political Science 2060, Section 1: Introduction to Political Theory Summer 2013; Monday-Friday: 1:20-2:20 PM Instructor: Eric Schmidt Email: eschm13@lsu.edu Office: 334 Stubbs Hall Office Hours: M-F After Class, and by appointment The Department of Political Science office & instructor s mailbox are located in 240 Stubbs Hall Man is a mystery: if you spend your entire life trying to puzzle it out, then do not say that you have wasted your time. I occupy myself with this mystery, because I want to be a man. Fyodor Dostoevsky Course Description: This course is intended as an introduction to political philosophy as seen through an examination of some of the major texts and thinkers of the Western political tradition. Three broad themes that are central to understanding political life are focused upon: the classical/christian experience (Plato, Aristotle, Augustine), the rise of liberalism (Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau), and democracy in America (The Federalist, Tocqueville). The way in which different political philosophies have given expression to various forms of political institutions and our ways of life are examined throughout the course. This course is approved for general education credit in the social sciences and so is designed to convey an understanding of factors associated with global interdependence, including economic, political, psychological, cultural and linguistic forces. According to the LSU catalogue, General education courses are not hurdles to be overcome; rather, they are means by which students learn to think, describe, interpret, and analyze the world. Their primary aim is to educate rather than train, and to instill a desire for life-long learning. Required Texts: Democracy in America, by Alexis de Tocqueville. Trans. and introd. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. (Co-trans., Delba Winthrop.) ISBN-10: 0226805360 ISBN-13: 978-0226805368 The Republic Of Plato: Second Edition [Paperback] Plato (Author), Allan Bloom (Translator) ISBN-10: 0465069347 ISBN-13: 978-0465069347 The Prince: Second Edition [Paperback] Niccolo Machiavelli (Author), Harvey C. Mansfield (Translator) ISBN-10: 0226500446 ISBN-13: 978-0226500447 Edition: 2nd The Politics [Paperback] Aristotle (Author), Carnes Lord (Translator) ISBN-10: 0226026698 ISBN-13: 978-0226026695 Edition: First Edition On the Social Contract: with Geneva Manuscript and Political Economy [Paperback] Jean Jacques Rousseau (Author), Roger D. Masters (Editor), Judith R. Masters (Translator) ISBN-10: 0312694466 ISBN-13: 978-0312694463 Edition: 1 st 1
Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics [Paperback] Aristotle (Author), Robert C. Bartlett (Translator), Susan D. Collins (Translator) ISBN-10: 0226026752 ISBN-13: 978-0226026756 Augustine: The City of God against the Pagans (Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought) [Paperback] Augustine (Author), R. W. Dyson (Editor) ISBN-10: 0521468434 ISBN-13: 978-0521468435 Four Texts on Socrates: Plato's "Euthyphro," "Apology of Socrates," "Crito," and Aristophanes' "Clouds" [Paperback] Plato (Author), Aristophanes (Author), Thomas G. West (Translator), Grace Starry West (Translator) ISBN-10: 0801485746 ISBN-13: 978-0801485749 Recommended Texts: (Note that these texts are limited to those whose authors wrote in English. Yet, if possible, the student should endeavor to obtain these copies which were selected as outstanding editions.) David Wootton, ed., Essential Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers (Hackett, 2003) [ISBN: 978-0-87220-655-7] Locke: Two Treatises of Government (Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought) [Paperback] John Locke (Author), Peter Laslett (Editor) ISBN-10: 0521357306 ISBN-13: 978-0521357302 Edition: 3rd Leviathan: With Selected Variants from the Latin Edition of 1668 [Paperback] Thomas Hobbes (Author), Edwin Curley (Editor) ISBN-10: 0872201775 ISBN-13: 978-0872201774 Course assignments and requirements: Participation: Classes will be a combination of lecture and discussion. Good note taking is absolutely essential. Class participation and attendance are important and roll will be taken. Students should come to class with their assignment read (with a copy of the reading!) and should be prepared to ask as well as answer questions. Reading Summaries: On four separate occasions, students will bring to class and turn in a typed, one-page, single-spaced summary of the reading for the day. Each summary is worth 5% of the final grade. A good reading summary should detail the major ideas and themes of that day s reading. The student should be able to communicate clearly the main point(s) the author is attempting to make. Students should also provide references and limited quotations to back up their claims, and adhere to the rules of good grammar and economy of style. Reading Questions: On four separate occasions (and not on the same day as a reading summary), students will come up with 10 questions about the reading of that day. A good question will consist of an explanatory sentence to set up a question 2
which is directly related to the reading. Students should also give citations, and a diversity of questions to reflect that they have read the entire assignment. Each set of reading questions is 5% of the final grade. Reading questions and summaries are due at the beginning of class. Students may do NO MORE THAN 2 sets of questions or summaries in a given week, and are encouraged to do the assignments as early as possible in order to get feedback. Late assignments will be marked down a grade. Exams: Two exams, a Midterm and a Final will be given in this course. They will involve a choice of short answer essay questions, and notes will not be allowed. Absences and exemptions from exams can only be made with prior notification and approval, and will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Students are expected to adhere to the University Code of Conduct, which can be located at http://saa.lsu.edu/codestudent-conduct. Violators will be referred immediately to the Dean of Students. During exams, all electronic devices must be turned off and put away. A NOTE ON ELECTRONIC DEVICES: while the use of laptops for note taking is not currently forbidden in this course, it is strongly discouraged. I reserve the right to change this policy if I perceive that the presence of laptops is causing a general disturbance in the classroom. Screens tend to cause distractions, not only for those immediately in front of them, but also for everyone else seated in range of view. Phone use in class is expressly forbidden, and repeated infractions of this rule may result in loss of participation points or expulsion from class. Students are expected to be prepared and attentive during each class meeting, and respectful of their classmates and instructor. Grading: 4 Summaries 20% 4 Reading Questions 20% Midterm 20% Final 30% Participation 10% 90%-100%=A 80%-89.9%=B 70%-79.9%=C Grading Scale: 60%-69.9%=D <60%=F I. The Classical Tradition June 10 th - Introduction June 11 th - Plato, Apology June 12 th - Plato, Crito Tentative Course Outline: 3
June 13 th - Plato, Republic, Book I June 14 th - Plato, Republic, Book IV June 17 th - Plato, Republic, Book V June 18 th - Plato, Republic, Books VIII-IX June 19 th - Aristotle, Ethics, Book I June 20 th - Aristotle, Ethics, Book V June 21 st - Aristotle, Ethics, Book VIII-IX June 24 th - Aristotle, Politics, Book I June 25 th - Aristotle, Politics, Book IV June 26 th - Aristotle, Politics, Book VII June 27 th - Augustine, City of God, 2.20-22, 4.3-21 June 28 th - Augustine, City of God 5.24-26, 14.28, 15.1-5 July 1 st - Augustine, City of God 19.5-22 July 2 nd - Midterm II. The Rise of Liberalism July 3 rd - Machiavelli, The Prince, 1-12 July 4 th No Class July 5 th Machiavelli, The Prince, 13-26 July 8 th Hobbes, Leviathan, 6, 13-15 July 9 th Hobbes, Leviathan, 17-19 July 10 th Hobbes, Leviathan, 21, 24, 26 July 11 th Locke, Second Treatise, 2, 5 July 12 th Locke, Second Treatise, 7, 8 July 15 th Locke, Second Treatise, 9-13 July 16 th Locke, Second Treatise, 18, 19 July 17 th Rousseau, Social Contract, Book I 4
July 18 th Rousseau, Social Contract, Book II July 19 th Rousseau, Social Contract, Book III July 22 nd Rousseau, Social Contract, Book IV III. Democracy in America July 23 rd Federalist Papers (Wootton), 1, 10, 14-15 July 24 th Federalist Papers (Wootton), 47-52 July 25 th Tocqueville, Democracy in America, Introduction, Vol. I, Part I, ch. 2-3 July 26 th Tocqueville, Democracy in America, pp. 274-302, 426-28, 479-84, 485-88 (Mansfield and Winthrop July 29 th - Tocqueville, Democracy in America, pg. 500-08, 535-39, 589-99, 661-65, 673-76 (Mansfield and Winthrop) LAST CLASS: Monday, July 29th FINAL EXAM: Thursday, August 1 st, 10:00-Noon 5