Political Philosophy

Volledige vakbeschrijving

Politics is a complex and puzzling subject. It is hard to understand why people act the way they do and believe the things they do. We are all involved in politics as voters, activists, commentators, or receivers of political initiatives and their consequences. As political philosophers we try to understand underlying conceptions that guide politics and fundamental values that help justifying concrete policies. This course will provide an introduction to contemporary philosophical debates about core concepts of justice, liberty, equality, community and democracy in modern liberal-democratic societies. Students will become familiar with the work of some of the leading political philosophers of today, like John Rawls, Isaiah Berlin, Charles Taylor and Michael Sandel Since conceptual analysis is the core business of philosophy, students will learn to analyse concepts, to clarify fuzzy moral ideas, and how tensions between moral ideas can be made explicit. And they learn how to apply these concepts in current political debate and practice.