Literature and the Social Contract

This course considers imaginative works (short stories, novellas, films) through the prism of moral and political philosophy. We will focus on how representations of right and obligation inform notions of self, other, and the il/legitimacy of authority. Readings include: Hobbes, Rousseau, Kafka, Adichie, Mann, Melville, Orwell, Octavia Butler, Rawls, Le Guin, Yuri Herrera, Murayama, and Agamben. Enrollment limited to 17.