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Course Descriptions

 

PSCI 6606 : POLITICAL THEORY OF JUSTICE

  1. COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVE

Since early political writings, justice has been considered by most political thinkers to be the most important principle of order. But apart from the general agreement on the importance of justice for social and political organization, political writers are divided over the source, the nature, and the scope of justice. The main purpose of this course is, therefore, to explore the meaning of justice, and identify the fundamental principles which form the foundation of a just order.

While various conceptions of justice will be explored, the conception of justice that will be pursued in this course relates justice to a set of principles rooted in a universal law that transcends all positive laws and legitimize their application. It will be further argued that the closest thing that approximate a notion of justice based on a universal–transcendental Law in modern political thought is the idea of human rights.

While the idea of human rights has already been articulated, enshrined in the Universal Bill of Rights, and adopted by almost all U.N. members, the international political order is still far from experiencing global justice. We will examine, therefore, some of the reasons behind the gap between the rhetoric of universal human rights and actual partices — more particularly between the ethos of justice and the exercise of power.

Discussion materials selected for this course are grouped into five district—though interrelated themes:

  1. Political Theories of Justice.
  2. Criteria of Justice : Formal vs. Distributive.
  3. Justice as Right.
  4. Islam and Human Rights.
  5. Global Justice and International Morality.

 

I. COURSE READINGS

Assigned reading for the course will be drawn from a course packet consisting of selected articles and chapters. The course packet will be made available to students for duplication. Details on how to obtain a copy of the course packet will be discussed in class.

 

II. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Student’ should study assigned readings prior to coming to class, and should be prepared to discuss assigned materials for scheduled topics.

2. As particular topics are addressed, selected class members will also be asked to function as "rapporteurs" reviewing assigned reading and discussing them in class.

 

TERM PAPERS

Each student is required to write and submit a term paper on a topic selected in consultation with me. Papers are to be 20 to 25 double-spaced typewritten pages in length. Additional information on topics will be given subsequently.

Upon the completion and submission of the papers, students will be scheduled to present and discuss their term papers in class. The grading of the term papers will depend heavily on the outcome of presentation and discussion. Paper proposals are due on October 24, while the papers themselves are due on December 19, 1998.

 

COURSE GRADING

Quality of ongoing participation, including written reviews of assigned readings (20%)

Written papers on approved topics (30%).

Written Proposal, presentation and discussion of research paper (10%).

Final Examination (40%).

 

  1. SCHEDULE OF CLASSES AND ASSIGNED READINGS

General Introduction

  1. Political Theories of Justice.

    1. Encylopedia of Philosophy (McMillan, 1991), Vol. 4, pp. 298-302.
    2. Alasdair MacIntyre, Whose Justice? Which Rationality?, pp. 1-11.
    3. William Ebenstein, "Great Political Thinkers: Plato to the Present" 4th ed. "Plato : Republic" pp. 14-39, "Aristotle: Politics" pp. 77-109, "St. Thomas Aquinas : II Summa Theologica", pp. 233-241.
    4. Henry Paolucci and Dino Bigongiari, The Political Writings of St. Augustine, chap. I, pp. 1-43.
    5. Hans Reiss, Kant Political Writings, pp. 131-175.
    6. Mark Goldie (ed.) Two Treatises of Government, pp. 115-117, 178-197.

 

  1. Criteria of Justice : Formal vs. Distributive

    1. Gregory Vlastos, "Justice and Equality" in Jeremy Waldron (ed.) Theories of Rights, pp. 41-76.
    2. John Rawls, "A Theory of Justice" in John Aarthur and William H. Shaw (eds.), Social and Political Philosophy, pp. 542-562.
    3. John Rawls, "Political Liberalism", pp. 3-46.
    4. Robert Nozick, "Rights and the Entitlement Theory." pp. 209-222, in John Arthur and William A. Shaw (eds.), Social & Political Philosophy.

 

  1. Justice as Rights

    1. Jack Donnelly, The Concept of Human Rights (1985), pp 1-67.
    2. Ronald Dworkin, Taking Rights Seriously (1977), pp. 150-205.
    3. Susan Mendus, "Human Rights in Political Theory" . pp.10-24. Fred Halliday, "Relativism and Universalism in Human Rights: The Case of the Islamic Middle East" in David Beetham (ed.), Politics and Human Rights (1995), pp. 152-167.
    4. Rhoda E. Howard and Jack Donnelly, "Human Dignity, Human Rights, and Political Regimes" in Jack Donnelly, Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice, pp. 66-124,.
    5. Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na‘ im (ed.), "Human Rights in Cross-Cultural Perspectives : A Quest for Consensus" (1992), pp. 21-64, 133-161.

 

  1. Islam and Human Rights
  1. Sheikh Showkat Husain, "Human Rights in Islam Principles and Precedents" in Tahir Mahmood (ed.) Human Rights in Islamic Law, pp. 84-117.
  2. Abul A‘la Maududi, "Human Rights, the West and Islam" in Tahir Mahmood (ed.) Human Rights in Islamic Law (1993), pp. 1-12 & pp. 161-1 74
  3. Roger Garaudy, "Human Rights and Islam: Foundation, Tradition, Violation" in Hans Kung and Jurgen Moltmann (ed.) The Ethics of World Religions and Human Rights, pp. 46-59.
  4. Ann Elizabeth Mayer, Islam and Human Rights: Tradition and Politics (2nd Edition), Chap.1, pp. 1-18; Chap.4, 61-78; Chap.5, pp. 79-92, Chap.8, 141-161.
  5. Muslim Voices in the Human Rights Debate, Human Rights Quarterly 17.4 (1995) 587-617, The Johns Hopkins University Press (1996).
  1. Global Justice and International Morality

    1. Kai Nielsen, "Global Justice, Capitalism and the Third World" in Robin Attfield and Barry Wilkins (ed.) International Justice and the Third World: Studies in the Philosophy of Development. (1992), pp. 17-33,.
    2. Charles W. Kegley, Jr., "The New Global Order: The Power of Principle in a Pluralistic World", in Joel H. Rosenthal (ed.) Ethics & International Affairs: A Reader (1995), pp. 114-134.
    3. John Irving (translated), (1995) "Ethics and International Politics" by Luigi Bonanate, pp. 6-19, 102-124.
    4. Jack Donnelly, "Twentieth-Century Realism", in Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel (ed.), Traditions of International Ethics (1992) pp. 85-104.
    5. Joseph Boyle, "Natural Law and International Ethics" in Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel (ed.), Traditions of International Ethics (1992) ", pp. 112-128.
    6. Thomas Donaldson, "Kant’s Global Rationalism", in Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel (ed.), Traditions of International Ethics (1992) pp. 136-150.
    7. R. J. Vincent, "The Idea of Rights in international Ethics" in Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel (ed.), Traditions of International Ethics (1992) " pp. 250-266.

 

                        

© Louay Safi 1999