Postgraduate Course: Freedom and the State: The Social Contract MSc (PHIL11170)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This module looks at some classic theories of the state and of political obligation, such as those of Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Kant and Rawls, and asks you to decide whether you accept their answers to questions of this kind, or whether you can find better ones.
Shared with undergraduate course Freedom and the State: The Social Contract PHIL10170.
For courses co-taught with undergraduate students and with no remaining undergraduate spaces left, a maximum of 8 MSc students can join the course. Priority will be given to MSc students who wish to take the course for credit on a first come first served basis after matriculation. |
| Course description |
Why do we have a government? What is it for? Is it just that, human beings being what they are, they have to have someone to keep them in order? Or is there some other reason, some better reason? People talk a lot about political freedom. But is there really any such thing as a free society? Doesn't the very existence of governments and laws mean it's impossible for us to live together and be free at the same time? Why should we obey the law? Is it just because we'll be punished if we don't, or is there a better reason? Does it make a difference who made the law?
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2017/18, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 5 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 11,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 11,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
174 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
One 3000 word essay (100%).
Word limit: 2700 minimum / 3300 words maximum (excluding references).
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate core skills in philosophy, including interpreting and critically engaging with philosophical texts, evaluating arguments and theories, and developing one's own ideas in response to the issues discussed.
- acquire knowledge of the main interpretations of Social Contract Theory
- analyse the strengths and weakness of social contract theory
- acquire a sense of the history of social contract theory
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Reading List
Primary sources
Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan
John Locke, Second Treatise of Government
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on the Origin of Inequality and The Social Contract
Immanuel Kant, Political Writings (selected writings, CUP)
John Rawls, Theory of Justice
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Critical thinking, interpretation, argumentation. |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
The course is taught by Dr Alix Cohen. |
| Keywords | Social Contract,State,Political Philosophy,History of Political Thought |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Alix Cohen
Tel:
Email: Alix.Cohen@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Becky Verdon
Tel: (0131 6)51 5002
Email: Rebecca.Verdon@ed.ac.uk |
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