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POL 342
Political Philosophy II: Modern

Dr. Knippenberg

Phone: 364-8341

Email: jknippenberg@facstaff.oglethorpe.edu

We live at time in which Western liberal political thought seems to hold at least intellectual sway over much of the world. Its principal twentieth century critics--Marxism and Marxism-Leninism--have collapsed as viable and attractive alternatives. Virtually everyone now speaks the language of rights. Many wish to adopt and emulate the institutions of the North American and Western European liberal democracies. It is thus tempting to think that, so far as politics and political thought are concerned, intellectual history has effectively come to an end. We have discovered the best practicable regime, and it remains for us only to implement it everywhere.

Recent events should not, however, make us complacent. While it might be true that liberalism's only universalistic challenger, Marxism-Leninism, has been revealed and discredited as mere bureaucratic despotism, it is premature to conclude that liberalism has therefore won the day, that the truths asserted by the American founders have indeed been proven to be self-evident, and that we need no longer give any thought to the larger questions of political philosophy. In the first place, we cannot forget the continuing vitality of potentially illiberal forces like religion and nationalism. Their appeal may indicate something about the shortcomings of liberalism: perhaps commodious self-preservation does not satisfy all the significant human longings.

In addition, it is possible to argue that the failure of the solutions proposed by the nineteenth century critics of liberalism does not discredit their critique. Liberalism may be better than its practicable alternatives, but that does not mean that it is perfect or, indeed, founded on the truth. Unless we continue to think critically about the currently dominant strain of political thought, we are condemned to repeat any errors it contains.

Finally, even if liberalism is based on a true account of nature and human nature, we are faced with the problem of implementing it in many places which have only the most slender traditions of liberal thinking and institutions. In order to translate rhetoric into functional political institutions, we must have a sound grasp of the theory underlying both the words and the practices. To be liberals, in other words, we must do more than mouth liberal slogans; we must understand how and why liberalism is true. We must be able to give a rational account of liberalism, one that does not begin and end with a sterile relativism that holds that all "values" are of equal worth, that all opinions are equally valid (and invalid). We must be able to say something more than that we are liberals and believe in liberalism because we were raised that way.

To understand our predicament, we must engage in a kind of intellectual archaeology, reopening questions our forefathers thought were closed once and for all. This project requires, first, a reexamination of the foundation of modern political thought laid in the writings of Niccolo Machiavelli. Then we will consider Thomas Hobbes's attempt to soften the harsh consequences of Machiavelli's teaching, an attempt which, in its insistence on the primacy of natural rights and hence of human liberty, itself constitutes the foundation of liberal political thought. The efforts of Hobbes and his successors give rise to Rousseau's attempt to correct and criticize liberalism by means of a more consistent reasoning from its assumptions. This attempt inspired Kant to formulate the first version of the "idealistic" defense of liberalism in terms of human dignity. We will conclude by considering one of the most powerful and provocative recent arrticulations of the political character of modernity, Alexandre Kojeve's Introduction to the Reading of Hegel, along with the debate between Kojeve and Leo Strauss over the relationship between ancient and modern tyranny.

If all goes well, then, in our consideration of modern political thought, we will reopen for ourselves the question of political philosophy in particular and of philosophy in general: can human reason come to grips with the manifold problems and questions of human existence? This critical reflection is indeed the beginning of all philosophy, to which we can only begin to introduce ourselves in this course.

TEXTS:

Please purchase the following books:

Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago Press)
Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett preferred; other complete editions accepted)
Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses..., ed. and trans. Gourevitch
Kant's Political Writings
Kojeve, Introduction to the Reading of Hegel

The following books are useful references:

Strauss and Cropsey, eds., History of Political Philosophy, 3rd ed.
Strauss, Natural Right and History
Melzer, The Natural Goodness of Man

ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING:

Short papers........................................15% total
Due:
Monday, February 7
Monday, March 6
Monday, April 3
Two 5 - 7 page papers...........................25% each
Due:
Monday, March 27
Friday, April 21
Class participation..................................10%
Final examination....................................25%
Due:
Monday, May 1

ACADEMIC POLICIES AND REGULATIONS:

In accordance with Oglethorpe's Honor Code, all the work you hand in must be pledged: "I have neither given nor received any unauthorized aid in completing this assignment." For the purposes of this course, "unauthorized aid" consists in plagiarism, which (as the Faculty Handbook states) "includes representing someone else's words, ideas, data, or original research as one's own, and in general failing to footnote or otherwise acknowledge the source of such work." If in completing an assignment you consult secondary sources, be sure to cite them properly. Unless I announce otherwise, you may discuss your assignments with your colleagues, but the work you submit must be your own.

Attendance is mandatory. I reserve the right to give the grade "FA" to students who regularly miss class.

I am happy to help you plan your academic schedule. To receive an extension, you must request it a week in advance. Unless you have a medical excuse, I will penalize late papers two points per weekday up to a total of ten points. I will not accept any papers more than five weekdays overdue.

If for some reason you need to take an "Incomplete" in the course, you must arrange it with me before the end of the semester. We must agree to a contract containing a schedule for the completion of the course requirements.

You may find the grading scale and the policy governing S/U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory) grades in the Oglethorpe University Bulletin.

TENTATIVE READING SCHEDULE:

Machiavelli: 4 weeks
Hobbes: 2 weeks
Rousseau: 3 weeks
Kant: 2 weeks
Kojeve: 3 weeks