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COR 201, Sec. 6
and 7: Human Nature and the Social Order I
Fall 2004
M. Michelle Smith
Lupton 315a
Office Hours: TTh
4:30-6 PM
404-364-8339
msmith@oglethorpe.edu
Course
Description and Objectives
Any being has its
own good. What is good for a cat is not necessarily what is
good for a human being or a dog or, say, a mouse. An
individual human being has its own good, but so does a
family, religious organization, city or nation. Anyone who
has been sent to the principal’s office or gotten a speeding
ticket will know that the good of the individual and the
good of the groups to which he belongs are not obviously the
same. Our primary question in this course must be this: is
the struggle between the demands of the groups of which we
are members and the desires and thoughts we have as
individuals the result of a lack of agreement between the
individual’s good and the group’s good? In other words, is
it true, as Mom always said, that following the group’s
rules is what’s best for us as individuals? Or is it the
case, as the sneering cynic always says, that good guys
finish last? A corollary to these questions is this: is
there any group the good of which is identical to an
individual’s good? If so, how do we find out what it is,
and how do we know if such a group is possible? Finally, if
there is such a group, what would it look like?
Our consideration
of these questions will span three eras in the history of
political thought. We focus on early modern political
philosophy first because it is most familiar to us. Then we
move to medieval theological thought, because the early
moderns were self-consciously reacting to it. Finally, we
reach ancient political philosophy. The theological
thinkers that we will read all felt they had to respond to
Aristotle. Most tried to integrate Aristotelian thought
into their religious systems. Thus the reaction against
medieval thought in the modern period is a reaction against
Aristotle as well. Your goal this semester will be clearly
to identify the three different types of thought represented
by the readings. You should know their distinctive
characteristics, the authors who represent them and the
range of possibilities within each type that is presented by
the thinkers we study.
Texts
Aristotle.
Politics (Carnes Lord trans)
Aristotle.
Ethics (Joe Sachs trans)
St. Augustine.
The City of God
St. Thomas
Aquinas. Treatise on Law (excerpts, photocopy)
Al-Farabi. The
Political Regime and Plato’s Laws (excerpts, photocopy)
Machiavelli,
Niccolo. The Prince (Harvey Mansfield trans)
Hobbes, Thomas.
Leviathan (excerpts, photocopy)
Locke, John.
Second Treatise of Government
Assignments
|
Take-Home
Exams |
3 @ 25% each |
|
Final Exam |
25% |
Assignment
Descriptions
Take-Home Exams:
There will be three of these, and they will each cover the
material read in class immediately prior to the exam (i.e.
they are not comprehensive). Each exam consists of four
questions. These questions should be answered in
approximately 2-3 typed and double spaced pages. You may
choose the citation style you like best, but you must choose
one and use it consistently. The exam sheet, including
signed pledge, serves as the cover page. Please do not
substitute other cover sheets or use paper or plastic
folders or binders. I will not grade exams that do not
include the signed cover sheet. Late exams will only be
accepted with a physician’s signed document stating that you
were under the care of said physician as well as physically
unable to attend class on the day the exam is due. If you
have a sports event or other planned commitment, make
arrangements with me to get the exam in on or before the due
date.
Final Exam: This
is to be taken in class on the official exam date.
University policy prohibits changing a final exam date or
time. Only a physicians’s document stating that you were
under the care of said physician as well as physically
unable to attend class on the day of the exam will be
accepted as an excuse for missing the exam. I will provide
blue books. The exam will consist of five essay questions
and will be comprehensive. The exam sheet, including signed
pledge, must be turned in with the blue book. Exams lacking
this sheet will not be graded.
Attendance
Poor class
attendance is highly correlated with poor performance on
assignments. Furthermore, while attendance is not figured
explicitly into your grade, I do keep it in mind as a
deciding factor in borderline course grades.
Honor Code
All assignments
must be pledged, and violations will be turned in to the
Honor Council for hearing.
E-Mail
Please be certain
that I have your e-mail address by the first week of class.
I may wish to contact you if there are changes in schedule.
Feel free to e-mail me with questions concerning course
materials. I cannot guarantee instant response, but I will
answer. I never send out grades by e-mail.
Schedule
22 August:
Introduction
26 August: NM,
Dedicatory Letter-Ch.VI
31 August: NM,
Ch.VII-Ch.XIII
2 September: NM,
Ch.XIV-Ch.XX
7 September: NM,
Ch.XXI-Ch.XXVI
9 September:
Hobbes, Leviathan
14 September: JL,
Preface-Ch.V
16 September: JL,
Ch.VI-Ch.X
21 September: JL,
Ch.XI-Ch.XV
23 September: JL,
Ch.XVI-XIX and Review
28 September:
Take-Home 1 Due, No Class Meeting
30 September:
Aquinas, Treatise on Law
5 October:
Augustine, Books I, II, IV
7 October:
Augustine, Books V, VIII, XI
12 October:
Augustine, Books XIV, XIX
14 October:
Al-Farabi, The Political Regime
19 October:
Al-Farabi, Plato’s Laws
21 October:
Review
26 October:
Take-Home 2 Due, No Class Meeting
28 October:
Aristotle, Ethics, Books I-II
2 November:
Aristotle, Ethics, Books III-IV
4 November:
Aristotle, Ethics, Books V-VI
9 November:
Aristotle, Ethics, Books VII-VIII
11 November:
Aristotle, Ethics, Books IX-X
16 November:
Aristotle, Politics, Books 1
18 November:
Aristotle, Politics, Books 2-3
23 November:
Aristotle, Politics, Books 4-5
25 November:
Aristotle, Politics, Books 6-7
30 November:
Aristotle, Politics, Books 8 and Review
2 December:
Take-Home 3 Due, Final Exam Review
9 December:
Final, Section 7 @ 3 PM
13 December:
Final, Section 6 @ 8 AM |
