Social and Political Philosophy

(4-8 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Taught at a host institution. This subject is designed to acquaint students with the transition from classical political philosophy to modern social theory - that is, to introduce them to major theories developed from the late eighteenth century to the early twenty century, theories which (a) explored the nature and direction of social and economic change in Europe and (b) grappled with the moral and political issues raised by social and economic change. The subject enables students to study in depth a range of important texts, helping them to develop the skills required to identify and comment critically on the principal arguments contained in those texts. Students are also encouraged to appreciate the intellectual and historical context in which the texts were written. Students will concentrate on a small number of named theorists - Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill, Friedrich Hegel, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Emile Durkheim, Henri Saint-Simon, and Alexis de Tocqueville - in great depth. Students will be expected to demonstrate detailed and critical acquaintance with major texts of this period, and to analyse some of the main issues of contention, or agreement, in the period covered by the subject. This subject will enable students to read complex texts with discrimination and attune themselves to the variety and depth of modern social and political debates in an historical perspective.