PHILOSOPHY 301

HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY:

Ancient Through Descartes

DR. JEFF JOHNSON

IMPORTANT NOTICE!

What follows is so self-evident to me that I have never stated explicitly in words.  But there seems to be a persistent misunderstanding, so here goes.  There are video-lectures that go with this course.  Viewing them is essential to doing well in the course.  They are a formal requirement.  Just as though you could hardly expect to do well in a course you never attended, trying to take this course without watching the video-lectures is just as foolhardy.

In this course you will be using a testing procedure requiring the use of a computer with Internet-access.

Contact the Division of Distance Education at http://www.eou.edu/dde/webadv/forms/testing.html or 1-800-544-2195 ext. 2 to  schedule a date for your exam(s).  

Our focus this quarter will be the history of political theory. I think you will find the topics we deal with here to be, not only of academic interest, but highly relevant to understanding the contemporary political climate.

We will begin with a detailed examination of the ethical and political thought of Plato. We will read and discuss five short dialogues, Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, and Pheado. We will then work through Plato's masterpiece, Republic.

The second half of our course will be a much briefer introduction to the political thought of five early thinkers.

• Aristotle

• St. Agustine

• St. Thomas Aquinas

• Machiavelli

• Thomas Hobbes

We will conclude with a quick look at the thought of the most influential contemporary political theorist, John Rawls.

UWR Outcomes for Upper Division Writing Intensive Courses:

• Students will produce at least 5,000 words (including drafts, in-class writing, informal papers, and polished papers); 2,000 words of this total should be in polished papers which students have revised after receiving feedback and criticism.
• Students will practice the forms of writing and reflect upon the nature of the writing used by graduates and professionals in the discipline the course represents.
• Students will write at least one paper integrating information from more than one source, employing the appropriate documentation style for the discipline represented by the course.
• Students will draft, revise, and edit their formal written work.
• Students will seek assistance from a Writing Tutor in the Writing Lab when needed and when referred by the instructor.

Additional Outcomes:

• Understand the philosophical controversies about the legitimacy of the state.

• Read philosophical texts critically and with understanding.

• Write effectively about philosophical controversies.

Means of Assessment and Grading:

• A 2500 to 4000 word analytical paper -- 30% of course grade. (outcomes 1, 2, and 3)

• A "blue book," essay mid-term examination -- 30% of course grade. (outcomes 1, 2, and 3)

• A "blue book," essay final examination -- 30% of course grade. (outcomes 1, 2, and 3)

• Please note: a grade of at least C- is required in order for this course to count toward the University Writing Requirement 

LINK TO ASSIGNMENT GUIDELINES

In addition to the six Platonic dialogues [only two inexpensive paperbacks], we will reading excerpts from some of the greatest political writings of all time. These are nicely collected in the Princeton Readings in Political Thought, edited by M. Cohen and N. Fermon.

We are exceptionally lucky that this anthology exists. When the on-campus course, from which the videotapes were made, was taught we used an anthology which is now unavailable. This out of print book included some contemporary essays discussing the various thinkers. These essays are discussed in the video lectures. Don't worry about not having direct access to these essays - the original sources that are in the Cohen and Fermon book are what will be important.

CALENDAR

I have kept the general structure of four lectures per week that was the format when the course was taught on-campus.  It is crucial that one-term, financial aid students come pretty close to the weekly time-table, though they are definitely free to accelerate the pace.