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Regular version of the site
Bachelor 2017/2018

The History of Political Thought

Type: Compulsory course (Political Science and World Politics)
Area of studies: Political Science
When: 1 year, 2-4 module
Mode of studies: offline
Instructors: Sergei Akopov, Alexander A. Balayan, Elena Cirkovic, Maxim Khomyakov, Vladimir Kostyushev, Dmitriy Riabov
Language: English
ECTS credits: 8
Contact hours: 116

Course Syllabus

Abstract

The course looks at political concepts produced in Europe, North America, Asia, Africa and also Russia. Students will learn about why these concepts matter, what controversies surround each of them and what the vigorous debates and disagreements about them reveals about the character of contemporary politics in the era of globalization.
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

  • The main goal of this course is to introduce students to some of the key political ideas in a chronological and cross-country perspective, grounding students in several national theoretical traditions and encouraging them to produce analysis beyond the nation-states centered paradigm
Expected Learning Outcomes

Expected Learning Outcomes

  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Ancient Egypt
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Ancient China
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Ancient India
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Thucydides
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Ancient Greece
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Aristotle
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Augustine
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Thomas Aquinas
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Islam
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Machiavelli
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Grotius and Pufendorf
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Hobbes
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Locke
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Montesquieu
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Rousseau
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Thomas Jefferson
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Kant
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Hegel
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of John Stuart Mill
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Marxism and Socialism
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Carl Schmitt
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Hanna Arendt
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of John Rawls
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of M. Walzer
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of A. MacIntyre
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Charles Taylor
  • Student is familiar with political ideas of Feminist theory
  • Student is familiar with political ideas in Russia from historical perspective
Course Contents

Course Contents

  • Political ideas and religion in Ancient Egypt
  • Political ideas in Ancient China (Confucius and Laozi)
  • Ancient India and Hindu Political thought
  • Thucydides: fear, power, interests and necessity
  • Ancient Greece: Socrates and Plato (Visions of Good and Just Society)
  • Political Ideas of Aristotle
  • Augustine's Political Philosophy
  • Political Ideas of Thomas Aquinas
  • Islam and Political Ideas in The Middle East
  • Political Ideas of Machiavelli
  • Political Ideas of Grotius and Pufendorf. Natural Law
  • Political Ideas of Hobbes
  • Political Ideas of Locke
  • Montesquieu: Forms of Government and Their Principles
  • Rousseau and the French Revolution
  • Jefferson, American Revolution and Idea of Democracy
  • Kant's Political Thought
  • Political Ideas of Hegel
  • Marxism and Socialism
  • Political Ideas of John Stuart Mill
  • Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and development of their political ideas in the XX century
  • Politics of Carl Schmitt
  • Political Ideas of Hanna Arendt
  • Political Ideas of John Rawls
  • Communitarianism: M. Walzer's Spheres of Justice
  • A. MacIntyre: communitarian neoAristotelism
  • Charles Taylor: from communitarism to multiculturalism
  • Feminist Political Theory and its critics
  • Political Thought in Russia: a Historical Overview
Assessment Elements

Assessment Elements

  • non-blocking Class participation
    At a minimum, every student is expected to read the required readings each week (never more than two texts) and prepare discussion points on the seminar questions (five every week). The surest way for a student to get a top grade for Participation is to show evidence, in class, of having read and understood not just these texts but also some of the optional readings, as well. You will notice from a close reading of the seminar questions, up to half of them require some knowledge of the optional readings. It follows that the highest grades for Participation will only be available to students who can prepare discussion points that include references to these optional readings. Every week the seminar leaders (Dr. Vladimir Ryzhkov and Dr. Dmitry Ryabov) will keep a running tally of each students Participation score, and work out their overall grade for Participation after the final seminar.
  • non-blocking Essay
    Every student is expected to write an assessed Research Essay (word limit of 2000 words). Topics for a research essay should narrow down one of the questions from examination list for the course. Here are a few tips on how to do well in this assessment: ● Think about a research question that you want to answer. You can use the seminar questions as a guide. You can, if you wish, actually use one of these seminar questions as your research question. But you may also wish to come up with your own question. ● If you wish some assistance in formulating your question, do not hesitate to consult either one of the course instructors. ● Structure your essay so that it includes at least the following sections: Introduction, Literature Review, Analytical part that consistently represents argumentation answering your research question, Conclusion and discussion of results within the existing in scholarly literature debates. As a rough guide, the Introduction and Conclusion should be no more than 500 words (25%) of your whole essay. The Literature Review section ought to concentrate on the literature debates about the political ideas you are looking at, with reference to the overall research question you are looking to answer. The Analytical part section ought to offer your own answer to this question. ● Do not go over or under the word limit 2000 words by more or less than 10%. Every 10% (200 words) more or less than the word limit will incur a 10% grade penalty. The word limit does NOT include the title page, footnotes, endnotes and bibliography. It only refers to the substantive content of the essay itself. ● Write your essay in 12 point Times New Roman, 1.5 spacing. You can use larger font for titles and section headings, if you wish. Or you can put these in bold or underline them. This is a stylistic choice that is up to you.
  • non-blocking Exam
Interim Assessment

Interim Assessment

  • Interim assessment (4 module)
    0.4 * Class participation + 0.4 * Essay + 0.2 * Exam
Bibliography

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

  • Harrison, K., & Boyd, T. (2012). Understanding political ideas and movements: a guide for A2 politics students. Germany, Europe: Manchester Univ. Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.D92F8E9
  • Ideas and politics in social science research / ed. by Daniel Béland . (2011). Oxford [u.a.]: Oxford Univ. Pr. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edswao&AN=edswao.332205363
  • Paipais, V. V. aut. (2017). Political ontology and international political thought voiding a pluralist world Vassilios Paipais. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edswao&AN=edswao.986889669X

Recommended Additional Bibliography

  • Fives, A., & Breen, K. (2016). Philosophy and Political Engagement : Reflection in the Public Sphere. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1216680
  • Freeden, M. (2012). JAN-WERNER MULLER. Contesting Democracy: Political Ideas in Twentieth-Century Europe. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.99641387
  • Hayden, P. (2016). Camus and the Challenge of Political Thought : Between Despair and Hope. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Pivot. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1168143
  • Lakoff, S. A. (2011). Ten Political Ideas That Have Shaped the Modern World. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=383895