PHIL 207C - Introduction to Social and Political Philosophy

(3 units) CO8

Major political philosophers, e.g., Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Rousseau, Mill, Marx, on topics such as justice, freedom, equality, tyranny, war, racism, sexism, power, consent, economics. The Constitutions of the United States and Nevada will also be taught. (PHIL 207C and PSC 207C are cross-listed; credit may be earned in one of the two.)

Grading Basis: Graded
Units of Lecture: 3
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
1. state a thesis about a problem in social and political philosophy, and provide evidence and philosophical argument (including replies to counter-arguments) in its defense.
2. explain and interpret at an introductory level the ideas associated with social and political philosophy in the contemporary literature.
3. distinguish better and worse reasoning, and recognize relevant logical relationships and patterns of inference in different works of social and political philosophy.
4. show what is at stake in abstract debates in social and political philosophy and indicate how different positions in these debates help elucidate our understanding of the Constitutions of the United States and Nevada, as well as the evolution of American institutions and ideals.
5. trace the sources and development of important political concepts within American intellectual traditions and cultural institutions.

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