Overview

Deepen your understanding of politics in this course that reveals the remarkable evolution, impact, and legacy of modern political philosophy.

Course No. 4750

Without even realizing it, we all use the fruits of political philosophy. From liberty to democracy to community, the terms and concepts originated by political philosophers are ingrained in our global consciousness. Yet many of us have an incomplete picture of how these ideas developed and, quite possibly, a skewed perception of their intentions and implications. This highly relevant course sheds light on the labyrinth of Western political and social theory, as well as its influence on modern history. Guided by an award-winning professor of philosophy and author, these eye-opening lectures reveal how political philosophers, in responding to the societal problems and changing conditions of their day in revolutionary ways, created virtual blueprints of action for leaders. You’ll gain not only the tools to comprehend the omnipresent language of politics but a thorough understanding of the wellspring of thought that has emerged over centuries of political philosophy and the intellectual origins of major historical movements and events. Throughout, questions of democracy, freedom, and distributive justice are addressed, and revolutionary figures who have left an indelible mark on history—from Niccolò Machiavelli to Ayn Rand—are encountered. By the conclusion of lecture 36, you will have the context necessary to appreciate the evolution of a myriad of political ideas, including hot-button topics of today such as libertarianism, neoconservatism, feminism, and environmentalism.

Course Structure

01: Origins and Conflicts of Modern Politics

Kick off the course with a discussion of political philosophy’s continuing influence in the world and its major concepts, including democracy, republicanism, and liberalism. Consider moral realism versus moral relativism, and learn how the history of modern political thought has evolved from its formation through its contemporary period.

Duration: 35 min

02: Ancient Republics, Empires, Fiefdoms

Modern political philosophy emerged, along with the rise of modernity, out of medieval feudalism. Delve into the history of politics leading up to 16th-century Europe, including the development of ancient political organization, the ideas of Plato and Aristotle—the first Western political theorists—and the contributions of medieval philosophy, such as the notion of “just war.”

Duration: 30 min

03: Machiavelli’s New Order

Does politics demand behavior that is ethically immoral? Do the ends justify the means? Explore the legacy of Niccolò Machiavelli, the first modern political philosopher and political scientist, who broke with the classical virtue politics of Plato, Aristotle, Rome, and medieval Christianity, establishing a new order of political thought that focused on politics in the real world.

Duration: 29 min

04: Hobbes, Natural Law, the Social Contract

Explore the first version of social contract theory as espoused by Thomas Hobbes, who based his view on moral relativism and a pessimistic state of nature in which there is a war of all against all. Learn why for society to function, according to Hobbes, the people must give up control to the sovereign, upon which no limits can be placed.

Duration: 32 min

05: Locke on Limited Government and Toleration

Turn to John Locke and his more “liberal” notion of the state of nature and the social contract, which reinterpreted civic republicanism in terms of the preservation of property. Follow the arguments he presented in his Second Treatise on Government and Letter on Toleration, which ultimately established the foundation of the Anglo-American version of modern republicanism.

Duration: 33 min

06: Rousseau’s Republican Community

As the Enlightenment’s greatest champion of equality, Swiss writer Jean-Jacques Rousseau endorsed the social contract—but his ideas differed from Hobbes and Locke in critical ways. Here, examine Rousseau’s legacy and thought, which sought to structure modern civil society in a way that might recapture what he saw as the independence and equality of primitive society.

Duration: 32 min

07: Kant’s Ethics of Duty and Natural Rights

Immanuel Kant is attributed with creating one of the two most influential theories of ethics, deontological ethics—the other being utilitarianism—each of which became the background for an enduring view of modern republicanism. In this lecture, examine Kant’s fundamental arguments, which are key to understanding much of modern political theory.

Duration: 31 min

08: Smith and the Market Revolution

Inspired by the commercial success of Holland and England, a number of 18th-century intellectuals argued that a society of self-interested producers is good, despite its flaunting of traditional, classical, and Christian virtues. Investigate these thinkers, including Voltaire and Adam Smith, who each believed commerce promotes liberty, peace, and prosperity.

Duration: 32 min

09: Montesquieu and the American Founding

The complexities of the American Constitution and system of government are a consequence of disagreements between Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison. Look at their arguments and contributions to political thought—including the Declaration of Independence, parts of the Constitution, and the Federalist Papers—along with the ideas of Montesquieu, whose notion of the separation of powers greatly influenced American governance.

Duration: 31 min

10: Debating the French Revolution

As the greatest political event of the 18th century, the French Revolution inspired political thinkers around the world. In the first of three lectures tracing the uprising’s philosophical impact, delve into the liberal, conservative, and proto-progressive arguments made during “the battle of the pamphlets”—the first intellectual feud over the meaning of the Revolution.

Duration: 31 min

11: Legacies of the Revolution-Right to Left

Where do the political terms “right” and “left” come from? Find out here, in a lecture that explores powerful 19th-century thinkers on both sides of the spectrum, whose reactions to the polarizing French Revolution helped pave the way for more extreme conservatism and anarchist socialism that lasted throughout the century.

Duration: 33 min

12: Nationalism and a People’s War

Part of the legacy of the French Revolution was the development of two phenomena: nationalism and the modern way of warfare. Look at the philosophical work of military theorist Carl von Clausewitz, who distinguished between “real war” and “pure war” (the latter being the type ushered in by Napoleon), as you consider the novelty and significance of these changes.

Duration: 29 min

13: Civil Society-Constant, Hegel, Tocqueville

Between the extremes of left and right, Benjamin Constant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and Alexis de Tocqueville made major contributions to political theory by examining the idea of what a free republic can and should be. Examine their writing, which demonstrated that two kinds of republicanism exist: liberal and civic.

Duration: 33 min

14: Mill on Liberty and Utility

Despite later declaring himself a socialist, John Stuart Mill is admired by neoliberals and libertarians for his “harm principle” and rejection of paternalism as expressed in On Liberty. Investigate Mill’s doctrine of individual liberty and redefinition of utilitarianism, as well as his economic stance, all of which became crucial to subsequent political and economic theory.

Duration: 30 min

15: Marx’s Critique of Capitalism

German philosopher Karl Marx’s critique of capitalism and vision of communism went unapplied until 1917 in Russia. By 1980, approximately one-third of the world’s population lived in countries adhering to his work. Explore Marx’s basic claims (formulated in conjunction with Friedrich Engels), which represented the most powerful version of socialism and the greatest threat to liberal capitalism.

Duration: 31 min

16: Modern vs. Traditional Society

The modern world brought higher standards of living, unprecedented scientific knowledge, and widespread literacy, yet it also undermined tradition and, for many, led to a loss of community. Learn how figures from the newly emerging social sciences, including Max Weber, Sigmund Freud, and Friedrich Nietzsche, changed the intellectual environment in attempting to describe this shift.

Duration: 32 min

17: Progressivism and New Liberalism

From 1900 to 1920, American progressives such as Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and John Dewey argued for an “organic” view of society against the natural rights, atomistic individualism, and limited government of the 19th century. Understand the role, effects, and issues raised by progressivism and new liberalism in America, including the welfare state.

Duration: 30 min

18: Fleeing Liberalism-Varieties of Socialism

Explore the growing variants of socialism, including a milder, “evolutionary” socialism in western Europe, an intermediate version of “Western Marxist” political theory, and a more radical, authoritarian communism in Russia. Look closely at the ideas of Vladimir Lenin and get a clear explanation of capitalism vs. communism.

Duration: 31 min

19: Fleeing Liberalism-Fascism and Carl Schmitt

In the 1920s, opposition to bourgeois-led parliamentary democracy split between internationalist socialism and a new nationalist socialism, which came to be called fascism. Explore the roots of fascism and its most sophisticated political thinker, Carl Schmitt, who presents a deep philosophical critique of parliamentary democracy and liberal republicanism.

Duration: 32 min

20: Totalitarianism and Total War

Explore the events surrounding World War II, including the role philosophers played and how political philosophers interpreted the new totalitarianism of Russia, Italy, and Germany. Grasp how this period produced our familiar spectrum of international politics, with communism on the far left and fascism on the far right.

Duration: 31 min

21: Conservative or Neoliberal-Oakeshott, Hayek

Neoliberals and economic conservatives disagree widely on many points, but they share a common enemy: expansive, progressive government. See the two paths conservatism took in the post-WWII world and examine the thought these camps produced—all of which serves as background for today’s arguments about government and economy.

Duration: 30 min

22: Reviving the Public Realm-Hannah Arendt

Hannah Arendt, one of the 20th century’s premier political philosophers, was critical of the modern dominance of economics over politics in both communism and liberal capitalism, and she called for a return to civic republicanism. Here, look closely at the ideas she puts forth in The Human Condition and related works.

Duration: 31 min

23: Philosophy vs. Politics-Strauss and Friends

Now, turn to another German émigré philosopher who, like Arendt, probed further into the conflict between politics and philosophy while turning to the ancients for a political approach that avoids the mistakes of modernity. Examine Leo Strauss’s work, which has significantly influenced American neoconservatives, and the related writings of his friend, Alexandre Kojève.

Duration: 29 min

24: Marcuse and the New Left

Although the “old” left declined in the West after WWII, Frankfurt School thinker Herbert Marcuse was able to help create what was sometimes called a Freudian left through a psychological reinterpretation of Marxism. Delve into the New Left of the 1960s and Marcuse’s ideas, which critiqued capitalism’s seduction of society through the welfare state and culture industry.

Duration: 31 min

25: Rawls’s A Theory of Justice

Is it just for one man to drive a luxury car and eat at expensive restaurants while another goes homeless and hungry? Consider such questions of justice as you explore the views of John Rawls, whose 1971 A Theory of Justice became the most famous justification of welfare liberalism in the late 20th century.

Duration: 32 min

26: Ayn Rand, Robert Nozick, Libertarianism

Take a nuanced look at libertarianism, starting with the views of novelist Ayn Rand, who defended laissez-faire and espoused a philosophy of “objectivism.” Then turn to the work Anarchy, State, and Utopia, in which philosopher Robert Nozick provided a libertarian rebuttal to Rawls, laying the groundwork for future disagreements over the welfare state.

Duration: 32 min

27: What about Community?

As Rawls’s theory of distributive justice, and some libertarian critics, were dominating political philosophy, a new group of political theorists called communitarians emerged to critique their views. See how this diverse movement of thinkers concerned with community, civic republicanism, and civil society responded to the individualism and neutrality of Rawls and Nozick.

Duration: 33 min

28: Walzer on Everything Money Shouldn’t Buy

Michael Walzer created perhaps the most interesting alternative to the distributive justice theories of Rawls and Nozick in his Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality. Explore his more communitarian theory of distributive justice and the distinction he draws between “thin” and “thick” political discourse, in attempting to deal with criticisms of his view.

Duration: 30 min

29: Identity Politics-Feminism

The personal is political. This phrase, coined by Carol Hanisch in her 1969 essay of the same name, succinctly describes how feminism forever altered the boundary between the private and the public, which liberalism has always tended to reinforce. Here, consider the feminist challenge to liberal republican political theory and look at the many versions of feminist philosophy.

Duration: 30 min

30: Identity Politics-Multiculturalism

Is “color-blindness” inherently unequal? Does a cultural group have rights? Is the goal of liberal democratic equality to treat citizens indifferently with respect to their racial, ethnic, or cultural distinctiveness, or to take that distinctiveness into account and value it? Here, explore the question of how recognizing cultural differences changes liberal republicanism.

Duration: 30 min

31: The Politics of Nature-Environmentalism

Environmentalism has been associated with the political left because it is often in the position of opposing major economic interests. Yet it’s fundamentally conservative in that it wants to “go back” to an earlier time. Survey some of the ideas and arguments of this movement and gauge its effect on liberal republican political theory.

Duration: 31 min

32: Postmodernism, Truth, and Power

Postmodern critique has changed the discussions of sociology, literature, philosophy, and political theory by pressing feminist and multiculturalist versions of egalitarian liberalism or progressivism in a radical, anti-Eurocentric direction. Explore some of the ideas—both leftist and conservative—behind postmodernism in politics, as put forth by Cornel West, Michel Foucault, Gayatri Spivak, and others.

Duration: 31 min

33: Habermas-Democracy as Communication

No one has done more to give both a historical and a systematic philosophical defense of modern republicanism in the postwar period than Jürgen Habermas. Explore his philosophy of communication, as well as his arguments for liberal republicanism and social democracy against philosophical and theoretical attacks by conservatism, Nietzschean “will to power,” and postmodernism.

Duration: 32 min

34: The End of History? Clash of Civilizations?

The fall of communism and rise of economic globalization appeared to solidify the supremacy of liberal republicanism. Yet we have since witnessed a reassertion of ethnic nationalism and radical Islam, leading to an even more politically complex world. Is liberal republicanism destined to be universal, or is it inapplicable to some civilizations?

Duration: 30 min

35: Just Wars? The Problem of Dirty Hands

Revisit the topic of the ethics of war, which was touched upon earlier in the course. First, review the three active philosophical positions—pacifism, realism, and just war theory—then look at Michael Walzer’s version of just war theory and his take on recent wars from a moral perspective.

Duration: 32 min

36: Why Political Philosophy Matters

Do we need more government or less? Will the liberal republican model stand up to and address the problems its ever-modernizing society will create? Professor Cahoone concludes by demonstrating how he would work through some of the issues covered. Also, see how Americans—while seemingly hopelessly divided politically—actually disagree less than we might believe.

Duration: 33 min