5431005Ethics (Special Lectures)
| Numbering Code | G-LET06 65431 LJ34 | Year/Term | 2022 ・ Second semester | |
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| Number of Credits | 2 | Course Type | special lecture | |
| Target Year | Target Student | |||
| Language | English | Day/Period | Thu.2 | |
| Instructor name | Campbell, Michael (Graduate School of Letters Assistant Professor) | |||
| Outline and Purpose of the Course |
Peter Winch (1926 - 1997) was one of the most important British philosophers of the post-War period. He was known for his contributions to the philosophy of social science, Wittgenstein scholarship, ethics, political philosophy, and the philosophy of religion. His work includes On the Idea of a Social Science and its Relation to Philosophy (Routledge, 1958), Simone Weil: The Just Balance (Cambridge University Press, 1989) and numerous articles, the most important of which were reprinted in his collections Ethics and Action (Routledge, 1972) and Trying to Make Sense (Basil Blackwell, 1987). In this course students will be introduced to Peter Winch's work through considering his approach to questions of political philosophy. When Winch died he was working on a book on the nature of political authority and the justification of the state. In the lecture course we will study Winch's unpublished manuscript, together with his published writings on political authority and relevant secondary literature. We will consider how Winch might have developed the manuscript further, and what makes his approach to questions of political authority and legitimacy unique. Topics that we will cover include: the nature and justification of political authority, the relation between power and justification, and the concept of 'the state' and its relation to the institutions and individuals which constitute it. As well as looking in detail at the work of Peter Winch, we will also consider how these issues are dealt with by thinkers including Hobbes, Hume, Rousseau, and Simone Weil. Through participating in this course, students will get an insight into the thought of one of the leading philosophers in the 20th Century, as well as an improved understanding of issues in classical and contemporary political philosophy. Students will also get a chance to work with philosophical texts in a range of forms, through comparing Winch’s published papers to both his lecture notes and his unfinished manuscript. |
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| Course Goals |
To introduce students to the work of one of the 20th Century’s most important philosophers. To familiarise students with some of the aims, methods and problems of both classical and contemporary political philosophy. To develop a deepened understanding of certain perennial questions concerning the nature of the state, authority and justification. To develop students' ability to reason critically, to construct and critique arguments and to write philosophical essays in English. |
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| Schedule and Contents |
Weeks 1 - 3 Background: Peter Winch’s philosophical approach Weeks 4 - 7 From the ‘Paradox of Authority’ to the ‘Authority of Reason’ Weeks 8 - 11 Winch’s Critique of the Social Contract Tradition Week 12 - 14 From the ‘Habit of Obedience’ to ‘Fluency in the Language of Critique’ Week 15 Feedback class Note that this schedule is provisional and may change as the course goes on. |
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| Evaluation Methods and Policy | Students will be evaluated by a midterm paper (40%) and a final paper (60%), which will be graded out of 100. Papers must be written in English and be approximately 1000 words long. | |||
| Course Requirements | None | |||
| Study outside of Class (preparation and review) | Students will be provided with texts in English to read in preparation for the class. Periodically there will be optional short quizzes or writing exercises to test students comprehension of the material. | |||
| Textbooks | Textbooks/References | Students will be distributed copies of Winch's relevant papers, as well as relevant secondary literature. Important background reading is Peter Winch's On the Idea of a Social Science and its Relation to Philosophy (ISBN: 978-0415423588), and students may if they wish consider purchasing their own copy of this book. It is also available in Japanese translation. | ||
