PO301
Issues in Political Theory
Module Handbook 2009-10
Module Director: Ed Page
Contents of this handbook
- Contact Details
- Introduction
- Aims
- Objectives
- Module Arrangements
- Assessment
- Term Essays
- Lecture Programme
- Reading Lists by Topic
1. Contact Details
Ed Page
Office: B1.09, Tel. (02476) 523112
Office Hours: 15.00-16.00 Mondays 15.00-16.00 Tuesdays
Andrew Walton
Office: B1.15 Tel. (02476) 550496
Office Hour: 17.00-18.00 Tuesdays
2. Introduction
The study of politics has included not just the study of how the political world operates, but also the study of how it ought to operate. This module examines a set of issues that have received considerable attention within recent normative political theory. The module is divided into five parts: (1) Conceptions of Justice after Rawls (including those of Rawls, Nozick,Dworkin and G. A. Cohen), (2) Justice and the Welfare State (which considers issues concerning education, stakeholding, and health care), (3) Dealing with Diversity (which considers liberal, multicultural, democratic and feminist responses to pluralism), (4) Justiceat the Margins (which introduces questions about concerning justice and the treatment of environment and non-human animals and the issue of abortion), and (5)Non-Ideal Justice (which focuses on justice and war, and punishment).
3. Aims
The aims of this module are:
- To foster a detailed critical understanding of a range of arguments central to contemporary analytical political philosophy.
- To foster the ability to analyse and assess opposing arguments in political philosophy.
- To foster appreciation of the relevance of arguments in political philosophy to contemporary political and social issues and the ability to apply arguments in political philosophy to a range of such issues.
4. Objectives
By the end of the module, you should be able to:
- Comprehend and critically analyse complex arguments from the literature of contemporary political philosophy.
- Provide an account of your considered judgements about the issues discussed, taking account of a variety opposing arguments and perspectives.
- Construct your own sustained argument about major political values, and defend it against sceptics, using arguments from other disciplines where appropriate.
5. Module Arrangements
5.1. Timetable
The module will be taught by one lecture and one seminar each week. Lectures will take place on Thursdays, 12:00 to 1:00 pm in H0.51. A draft of the seminar groups will be distributed during the first lecture (Week One).
Week 6 of the Autumn and Spring terms are Reading Weeks throughout the Department, so there will be no lectures and no seminars.
5.2. Module requirements
Attendance at seminars and submission of required module work by the set date are module requirements. If you are unable to attend a seminar, you are expected to inform your seminar tutor of the reason for your absence before the seminar or, if this is not feasible, as soon as possible afterwards. Remember that your personal tutor is available if you wish to discuss any personal or health problems. You have an obligation to tell your personal tutor about any reasons for not fulfilling the requirements of this module. Your seminar tutor will report any unexplained absences, as explained in the PAIS Student Handbook.
Students should also bear in mind University Regulation 13: “…failure to attend prescribed classes or to complete prescribed coursework may result in a student being required to submit additional assessed work, or to sit an additional written examination, or in the student being required to withdraw from his/her course of study.” (Regulation 13.1 Section 1)
5.3. Feedback
We value your opinion about our teaching and seek to review our modules in order to improve them. There is a formal process of evaluation that will take place towards the end of Term 2. Details are included in your Student Handbook. But please don’t feel that you have to wait until then to express your views. Contact Matthew Clayton or Andrew Walton by e-mail or in person if anything goes wrong in the delivery of the module, or if you have questions or suggestions about its organisation.
5.4. Learning Methods
Lectures are meant to provide students with an overview of the various topics covered in the module, and the material presented in them is by no means to be considered exhaustive. Students are expected to do considerable additional reading for lectures and especially for seminars. Seminars are an extremely important part of the module, and their value depends on students’ active participation in the discussion. This may involve group work and oral or written presentations to the rest of the class. Discussions in, and preparations for, seminars are essential for understanding of the material in the lectures, and for extending this material.
6. Assessment
The formal assessment—the process which determines your mark for this module and which feeds into your degree result—can take place by three routes between which you may choose:
- One three-hour, four-question examination.
- One one-and-a-half hour, two question examination, plus one 5000 word assessed essay.
- Two 5000-word assessed essays.
NB1. Please consult the Undergraduate Handbook for details concerning new arrangements with respect to Online Module Registration and choice of assessment pattern.
NB2. There is a University rule which limits the overall amount of assessed work to 50% of the degree. Substitution of assessed essays (including, where applicable, a dissertation) for examinations may not exceed the equivalent of four modules spread over all second and third/final year modules. This rule is quite clear, but if you are unsure how it might apply to you, please consult your personal tutor.
NB3. This document covers students who are taking Issues in Political Theory for the whole year. There are separate arrangements for Part-Year Students that are detailed in a separate document available from the Undergraduate Office. Please consult your seminar tutor if you are in doubt about the requirements for this module.
6.1 Assessed Essays
6.1.1 Choice of title
For the assessed essay, you can either choose a title from the Pre-Approved Assessed Essay Title list below, or alternatively you can negotiate your own title. If you negotiate a title with your tutor you must submit a title form to the office by the Negotiated Title Deadline listed in the PAIS Undergraduate Handbook 2008/2009.
If you decide to negotiate your own title, you must liaise with your seminar tutor to finalise the precise wording of the essay title. You must then complete the essay submission form with the agreed title, and obtain the signature of the seminar tutor. Only your tutor in the module is permitted to sign the form for you. If you fail to obtain his signature, you will not be able to submit the title or the essay. Do not leave agreement of titles until the last minute. If you wish to submit a negotiated title, approach your tutor to make an appointment at least two weeks before the deadline.
Approval by your seminar tutor is not final approval. The titles will be considered by the Department and the External Examiner, and may be changed. A list of approved titles will be published on the PAIS notice board as soon as possible after the deadline. You must check and double-check this list to ensure that you use the approved title. If you do not check, and your title has been altered, you could end up receiving a mark of zero for your essay because you submitted an essay with the incorrect title.
NB. Assessed essays form one method of examination for the module, and do not substitute for non-assessed Term Essays. You may write an assessed essay on a topic you have covered in a Term Essay (although you may wish to discuss the pros and cons of this with your seminar tutor). But there should be no significant overlap between any assessed essays you submit for this or any other module, and no significant overlap between any assessed essay and any exam answer.
6.1.2 Assessed essay submission
PAIS now operates a process of electronic submission for assessed fork in year 3. Full instructions are available at:
6.1.3 Assessed essay plan
Once your assessed essay title has been decided you are entitled to have your seminar tutor read and discuss with you a plan of up 500 words, in which you outline the central theme of the essay, itemise its structure and the material you will use in support of your argument. Seminar tutors will inform you of the deadline for the submission of assessed essay plans. After the meeting to discuss the plan, there can be no further contact about the substance of your assessed essay.
6.1.4 Deadline for submission of assessed essays
Two paper copies of the essay, an electronic copy of the essay, and the two submission forms for each essay must be submitted to the PAIS Undergraduate Office by the deadline indicated in the PAIS Undergraduate Handbook.
6.1.6 Extensions of deadlines for submission of assessed essays
It is important that you allow plenty of time to complete your essays. An extension of the deadline may be allowed in cases of illness and on production of a medical note that indicates that during the period of illness the candidate was unable to work on his/her essay(s). The failure of personal computers, software or floppy disks are not normally grounds for an extension. Extensions of deadlines may be granted only by the Director of Undergraduate Studies (Dr S. Kettell, room B1.11) or, in his absence, the Chair of PAIS (Prof. Ben Rosamond) Extensions cannot, under any circumstances, be given by module tutors.
6.1.7 Penalties for the late submission of assessed essays
According to University rules, late submission of an assessed essay will, unless an extension has been granted in advance of the deadline, result in the following penalty deduction: 5 marks per day, including weekend days (with no upper limit).
6.1.8 Presentation of essays
In addition to clear and precise referencing (see the Undergraduate Handbook on how to reference essays), please ensure that you:
- Use size 12 font
- Add page numbering
- Reference all your sources
- (An abstract is not required on assessed essays.)
6.1.9 Word limits
The limit for assessed essays in years 3is 5,000 wordswith no lower limit. Students breaching the 5,000 word limit will incur penalties as set out in the undergraduate handbook. Footnotes, references, bibliographies do not count towards the word limit.
6.1.10 Return of assessed work
Assessed essays WILL NOT be returned to students as they are covered by the same rules as examination scripts. If copies are needed, they should be made before the essays are submitted.
6.1.11 Plagiarism and Cheating
There are severe penalties for cheating of any kind in all forms of University test. Plagiarism is a form of cheating, as it attempts to acquire a benefit from the work of others unfairly. The Department’s policy on Plagiarism is fully explained in the PAIS Undergraduate Handbook 2008/2009, available both in hard copy and on the PAIS website. The handbook explains how the University’s published regulation may be accessed on the web.
6.2 Pre-Approved Assessed Essay Titles
A critical assessment of Rawls’s Difference Principle.
On the relationship between liberty and self-ownership.
An evaluation of Dworkin’s conception of Equality of Resources.
Luck egalitarianism and its critics.
The idea of an egalitarian ethos.
Egalitarianism and the levelling down objection.
A critical assessment of Van Parijs’s defence of unconditional basic income.
OnAdam Swift’s theory of educational justice
A critical evaluation of Norman Daniels’s conception of justice in the distribution of health care.
An inquiry into the legitimacy of religious and cultural exemptions.
An examination of whether democracy is intrinsically just.
The value of democracy
A critical discussion of Susan Möller-Okin’s theory of liberal feminism
An evaluation of Ronald Dworkin’s account of the political morality of abortion.
Abortion, women’s rights, and foetal rights.
A critical evaluation of Peter Singer’s theory of animal welfarism
On the limits of our duties to future generations.
A critical assessment of retributivist conceptions of punishment.
On the relationship between principles of jus ad bellum and jus in bello.
7. Term Essays (which do not count towards the assessment of the module)
7.1 Compulsory non-assessed work
In the Autumn Term, you must write a non-assessed essay by a date to be set by your seminar tutor. The compulsory non-assessed essay should be chosen from List A.
The Department has issued the following policy statement on non-assessed work:
Failure to submit essays by the dates prescribed by the seminar tutor will be officially recorded in student files and may be taken into account by examination boards. Students should also bear in mind the following regulation:“failure to attend prescribed classes or to complete prescribed coursework may result in a student being required to submit additional assessed work, or to sit an additional written examination, or in the student being required to withdraw from his/her course of study.” (Regulation 13.1 Section 1)
7.2 Optional non-assessed work
In the Spring Term, you may, but are not required to, write a second non-assessed essay on which your seminar tutor will offer you written feedback. Deadlines for submission will be announced by your seminar tutor.
7.3 Essay requirements
The essays should be no more than 1500 words long, must be based on a range of sources, and must include full references for any passages cited or views attributed, as well as a bibliography. They should be word-processed.
In the treatment of your chosen topic, you should strive to present your thoughts by means of a coherent and sustained argument, backed by textual evidence whenever appropriate. Note, however, that seminar tutors are obviously not expecting you to pronounce the final word on the issues you are dealing with.
When writing an essay you should bear in mind the following points. (See the Undergraduate Handbook for further guidance on writing essays.)
- Argue a case in response to the question
An essay is often better to the extent that it argues for a particular conclusion, explicitly setting out the argument for the position adopted. You should avoid writing that merely surveys the positions concerning the issue without defending a particular conclusion. In addition, you should ensure that the essay answers the particular question that is addressed. In some cases, the question may include certain technical terms, e.g. the ‘original position’, and these will need to be defined or discussed.
In making the argument you will no doubt refer to the work of various political philosophers and their critics. In doing so, it is desirable to expound and assess the view offered. How convincing are the arguments for or against it? Are there any relevant distinctions that the author ignores? Are the inferences valid and the premises of the argument sound? Note, however, that many of the thinkers you are writing about are very bright and have developed their views over a considerable period of time in the light of the views of, and criticism from, other bright philosophers. Thus, if you find yourself attributing to them views that seem absurd or incoherent, assume that you have misinterpreted them (unless there is ample evidence that you have not).
Usually, essays are better if you take a stand on the issue yourself and argue for it as convincingly as possible. If this is not possible, because you are undecided on the issue, you should argue why neither side of the case is wholly convincing.
- Structure
An essay should be clearly structured. It should include an opening section, in which the key terms are defined and, perhaps, the main features of the essay are sign-posted; a middle section, in which the arguments are developed, making the necessary distinctions, responding to possible objections, and criticising other positions; and a final section in which the original question is re-addressed and conclusions offered.
- Knowledge and style
If certain empirical or historical information is relevant it should be accurately stated. In addition, you should describe the positions you examine accurately. In doing this, it is generally better to summarise the view in your own words, rather than to quote, because this reveals the extent to which you understand it. Thus, an essay should not consist merely of a series of quotations. If, however, something of importance does hang on the use of particular words then, by all means, quote and explain its significance. When summarising or quoting it is essential that you acknowledge and reference the source (see the Undergraduate Handbook for further information).
- Communication
Express your ideas as clearly and sharply as possible. Always define any technical terminology. Essay writing requires thought about how best to communicate your ideas. It might be that the way in which you arrive at a view is not the way to present it in its most convincing manner. It can be worthwhile to ask someone to read a first draft and to write a final draft that remedies any obscurities or gaps in the argument, and takes into account any other comments of the reader.