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Political Science 227 Classical Political Philosophy Fall, 1998 Dr. Schaefer Syllabus Theme of the Course: This course will be devoted to the study of three major works of classical political thought: Thucydides' The Peloponnesian War, Plato's Republic, and Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics. The course is premised on the assumption that political science is not necessarily a progressive discipline at the most fundamental level. That is, it is not necessarily the case that those who live later in history are thereby in a better position to understand the essential nature of political life than the wisest human beings of previous times were. Although (conversely) there is no reason to assume that the antiquity of a book demonstrates its wisdom, it may be that the wisest individuals who lived at the beginning of the philosophic or scientific study of political life had a certain advantage of perspective, in that their vision was not yet clouded by a theoretical "tradition" that to some extent covers over the most important phenomena. In sum, we are not reading old books in this course out of a merely antiquarian or historical concern, but in the hope and (the instructor believes) reasonable expectation that they can teach us important things that could not be learned, or at least could not be learned so well, from more recent books. The first book we study, Thucydides' Peloponnesian War, is not strictly a work of political philosophy. Instead of expressly setting forth any general, theoretical teaching about such issues as the best form of government, the best way of life, or the nature of justice, Thucydides articulates a specific account and analysis of the events of what he describes as the greatest "motion" or change to have occurred up to his time, the great (and devastating) war between Athens and Sparta. But his book is much more than a work of "history" in the usual sense, that is, a factual record of a particular sequence of events. Rather, as one of his greatest admirers, the modern philosopher Thomas Hobbes observed, he teaches his readers about the fundamental character of political life "covertly" (through the events and details he chooses to record, the sequence in which he puts them, and especially through the speeches he assigns to various political actors). The central theme of his book may be described as the relation between justice and necessity. Plato's Republic, the next work to be studied, is subtitled "On Justice." In this respect, its theme is directly related to Thucydides'. But it explores, more fundamentally, the relation between philosophy and political life, including the limits of the justice that is politically possible, or the limits of political life itself. Rather than constituting Plato's recipe for an "ideal state," as has often been claimed, it is more accurately understood, as Allan Bloom argues, as a critique of political utopianism or fanaticism. Understanding the Republic will require that one constantly bear in mind the fact that it is a dialogue, not a treatise. That is, the fact that it depicts a conversation between Plato's teacher Socrates and several other characters, in which Plato himself never "speaks" directly to the reader, means that Socrates' words must be read in the light of the dramatic situation: the character of his interlocutors, and what they do as well as what they say. Our final reading, Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, is the classic philosophic treatment of morality. As we shall see, it represents an attempt both to articulate the "gentleman's" code of morality and to refine or improve that morality through the subtle influence of philosophy. At the same time, it gradually reveals the limitations of the moral life as such, by comparison with the life devoted to contemplation, while nonetheless trying to enlist the gentlemen as allies of philosophy (thus mitigating the likelihood that future philosophers will suffer the fate of Socrates). Although Aristotle's account of morality differs in important respects from that which is widely accepted today - partly on account of the influence of Biblical thought and of modern political philosophy on our typical way of looking at things - it will be suggested that Aristotle may nonetheless account better for certain fundamental aspects of political life than the customary morality of today (or of Aristotle's own time) does. Procedures: The difficulty of the books we will be reading in this course - that is, the subtlety with which they are written and the denseness of their content - necessitates that the student read each of them more than once during the semester. The instructor aims to provide the class with as much help as he can in understanding them: the lectures have such assistance as their sole purpose, and it is hoped that ample class time (as well as office hours) will be available to address any questions that students may have. But since the instructor himself has only a limited understanding of these books (despite having studied them over a relatively long period), it is to be expected, and even hoped, that students will be left at the end of the course with at least as many questions (and the desire to try to answer them in the future) as answers. It is very important that the student complete each assignment before the date on which it is to be discussed. Only by doing this will he or she receive full benefit from the class meeting. The student is encouraged to raise in class questions or problems that he found while reading. While the class discussion may sometimes lag behind the schedule listed below, the student should conform to that schedule to avoid an excessive burden late in the term. Regular class attendance is expected. "Cutting" will seriously disadvantage the student on examinations and papers. Although non-attendance will not be directly penalized, it will be taken into account in cases where a student's final average is on a borderline between two grades. There will be no class meetings on Sept. 21 and 30 (Jewish holidays). To compensate, an extended makeup class meeting will be added during the study period at the end of the semester; or else I will try to schedule an additional makeup session on an evening earlier in the semester if everyone can make it. Written Work: There will be a midterm examination in early November, two short papers which will require careful thought rather than library research, and a final examination. All late papers will be penalized one grade (e.g., C+ to C, B- to C+). Office Hours: My regular office hours will be 11:00-11:55 on Tuesday and 12:00-1:15 on Monday and Wednesday. Students are encouraged to come to see me during these hours to discuss any questions relating to the course or the works we are studying. If you can't make it during the listed hours, speak to me after class to arrange another appointment; or try knocking on my door to see whether I’m in (as I often am). My office is Rm. 307 Fenwick. TEXTS TO BE PURCHASED: The Landmark Thucydides,
ed. Strassler (Simon & Schuster)
SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS:
Week(s)
Assignment
1-4 Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War:
Book I, secs. 1-55, 66-102, 118-144.
(Please note: these are section numbers, not page numbers!)
David Bolotin, "Thucydides," in Leo Strauss and Joseph Cropsey,
5-9
Plato, Republic (including editor's notes and "Interpretative
MIDTERM
EXAMINATION (Around the end of Week 7)
10-13 Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics:
Books I-VI, all.
J. Winfree Smith, "Aristotle's Ethics"
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