Entry requirements

60 points/90 ECTS credits in political science or corresponding knowledge. "Corresponding" includes studies in social sciences with extensive and distinct elements of politics and government. Students within the Master Programme in Politics and International Studies and the Master Programme in Development Studies, admitted to the third semester, are required to have obtained at least 45 credits within the programme.

Learning outcomes

This course presents different perspectives on political theory and introduces some fundamental problems which have been reflected upon by classical as well as modern political thinkers. It will thereby give the students an opportunity to take their own stand on these issues.

Content

The course is divided in four parts. On the basis of lectures and the literature, the students will write memos and discuss fundamental issues in political theory at the seminars. The purpose of the fourth part of the course is to provide the liberty for the students to develop a more comprehensive normative, historical or conceptual argument of their own. The course paper will be discussed at a final seminar.

The purpose of the first part of the course is to explore the foundations of political theory and political thought. What does one do when investigating political ideas? What does interpreting something mean, e.g., interpreting a text or an image with a political meaning? The students investigate the tension between interpretating political thought out of its historical, linguistic, cultural, political and theoretical context on the one hand, and searching for a valid or fertile argument on the other hand. Moreover, seminars will explore the foundation of normative political theory, i.e., theorising regarding arguments about what is justified and what is not. Which rational reasons are there for not holding that such normative theorising is an expression of mere opinion? Departing from Plato's Gorgias, the seminars will investigate the nihilist position, according to which there is no right or wrong in moral and political issues, and the converse argument, namely, that we can know that nihilism is wrong since it is self-contradictory.

The second part of the course addresses the relation between the 'political liberalism' of John Rawls on the one hand and natural right as represented by John Finnis. What is to be considered 'good', and which kind of good should or can the state foster? What is the relation between politics, morality, and the law? Are there universal principles that every legal system should embody?

The third part of the course gives an analytical and critical overview of contemporary liberal theories. The main book is Gerald Gaus "Contemporary Theories of Liberalism". The major theme is different conceptions of public reason within Post-Enlightenment Liberalism. Broadly speaking, it deals with different definitions and derivations of the common good. On what grounds should citizens agree on the principles for a political constitution? Can the agreement be based on common moral insights, or is it a pragmatic compromise between self-regarding individuals and groups? Is an "overlapping consensus" regarding constitutional justice possible in a multicultural society?

Instruction

The course is divided in four parts. On the basis of lectures and the literature, the students will write memos and discuss fundamental issues in political theory at the seminars. The purpose of the fourth part of the course is to provide the liberty for the students to develop a more comprehensive normative, historical or conceptual argument of their own. The course paper will be discussed at a final seminar.

Assessment

Examination is based upon the assessment of a course paper, shorter seminar papers and active participation in seminars. Grades awarded Fail (U) - Pass (G) - Pass with Distinction (VG).