Course Description
Political theory for students with little or no previous coursework in the area. Focuses on one or more important political concepts or phenomena (e.g., power, freedom, or political ambition) and as entry-point into various approaches and literatures within the field.
Athena Title
Intro to Political Theory Hon
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in POLS 3000, POLS 3000E
Prerequisite
(POLS 1101 or POLS 1101E or POLS 1105H) and permission of Honors
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The course has three goals: first, to provide an introduction to some of the most important problems and theories in political philosophy; second, to examine how different political theories are formulated and how they relate to each other; and third, to explore the ways in which works of political philosophy may inform and enrich contemporary political discussions. The honors option of POLS 3000 will be more writing intensive and will expose students to more secondary literature. Two additional goals of the course, on top of the goals set for a regular POLS 3000, are to teach students how to write argumentative essays that address moral and philosophical questions about politics and to teach them to how to research and understand scholarly literature in political theory.
Topical Outline
The Rule of the Wise and Just Achieving Stability and Security Protecting Individual Rights Naturalizing Humans through Politics Promoting Human Development Achieving a Fair Society A Libertarian Solution