Studying at York
Advanced Topics in Political Philosophy - PHI00083M
Module summary
This module will examine a range of texts in political philosophy, giving students the opportunity to think and write about fundamental conceptual and normative problems relating to issues in politics and policy. Themes covered may include: how to think about the value (if any) of equality; what the ideas of fairness and equality of opportunity require of institutions in their selection practices; the extent to which democracy gives people equal political power; how to theorise and address racial and gender injustice; the place of anger in political deliberation; the values of cooperation and solidarity; public funding of the arts; and questions around immigration and border controls. We’ll be reading some fascinating and challenging pieces of philosophy, including some very recent work from the cutting edge of the discipline.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
Module aims
This module will examine a range of core conceptual, normative, and methodological issues relating to philosophical approaches to thinking about politics. The module aims to develop academic skills in the reading of texts in political philosophy and the relating of those texts to real world political problems. As a result, the module aims to develop in students analytical skills of identifying and solving abstract problems, and relating theory and reality.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of this module students should be able to:
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Engage with and interpret complex texts in political philosophy;
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Apply philosophical thinking to real-world problems of politics;
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Understand methodological debates about the nature of political philosophy and its relation to the world of politics;
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be able to read and critically engage with a wide variety of complex and difficult material in recent political philosophy;
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develop and defend a considered view on important questions of social justice.
Module content
The precise issues and philosophers studied will vary to some degree from year to year, depending on the interests of the module convenor, but indicative topics will include issues such as political obligation and legitimacy; the justification of the state; inequality, gender and sexism; race and racism; disability, discrimination and implicit bias; the nature of individual rights; and the justification of democracy. The module will also involve a methodological component, looking at questions of ideal and non-ideal theory, and the relationship of political philosophy to public policy and the world of real politics.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
All feedback will be returned in line with University and Departmental policy.
Indicative reading
G. A. Cohen, If You’re An Egalitarian, How Come You’re So Rich
Tommie Shelby, Dark Ghettos: Injustice, Dissent and Reform
Philip Pettit, Republicanism: A Theory of Freedom and Government
Elizabeth Anderson, The Imperative of Integration
Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Women
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, A Discourse on the Origins of Inequality
David Leopold and Marc Stears, eds., Political Theory: Methods and Approaches