PHIL 311 Outline

THE KING'S UNIVERSITY

COURSE NUMBER:

PHIL 311

COURSE TITLE:

History of Political Thought II: Modern Political Thought

NAME OF INSTRUCTOR:

Michael DeMoor

CREDIT WEIGHT AND WEEKLY TIME DISTRIBUTION:

credits 3(hrs lect 3 - hrs sem 0 - hrs lab 0)

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Examines the major social and political ideas developed in the modern era, focusing on select writings of major political philosophers such as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Marx and Nietzsche.

Same as POLI 311.

This course does not fulfil philosophy foundation requirements.

Prerequisites: PHIL 230, POLI 205

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Bailey et al. eds. The Broadview Anthology of Social and Political Thought: Volume 1: From Plato to Nietzsche. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 2008.
Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice”:
Extra bits from Hobbes available online http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/texts/hobbes/leviathan-contents.html

MARK DISTRIBUTION IN PERCENT:


One class presentation of a reading	10%
Five reflective library-based reports (4-5 pp)	50%
Class Participation	10%
Final Exam	30%

	100%

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

To introduce students to the major Western political ideas and thinkers between the fifteenth and late nineteenth centuries, by reading original texts.
To enable students to understand the historical ideas that shaped contemporary politics and culture.
To enable students to interact critically with the modern political philosophy heritage from a Christian perspective.

COURSE OUTLINE:

Introduction
Course Themes
Machiavelli
Shakespeare "Merchant"
Hobbes
Locke
Rousseau
Kant
Bentham
First Nation's social thought

Required texts, assignments, and grade distributions may vary from one offering of this course to the next. Please consult the course instructor for up to date details.