91 - 100 of 266 results for: POLISCI

Democratic rule is rule of the people. But what does that mean? This course explores democracy¿s roots in ancient Athens to its modern incarnation. The course aims to familiarize students with the various strands of democratic theory as well as the way democratic theory responds to hot political issues such as immigration and freedom of speech. The goal of the course is to equip students to think critically about democracy in the modern world and the different interpretation democratic rule can have. The questions we will investigate include: What does democracy require? What is the relationship between democracy and human rights or social justice? Can democracy justify border control? What restrictions, if any, does democracy place on hate speech? What is the role of courts in a democracy? The course provides tools to answer these questions by surveying different approaches to democracy in contemporary literature, as well surveying the history of democratic theory from ancient Athenian democracy to the modern age, with a look to the future of democracy in a globalized era.

All forms of democracy require some kind of communication so people can be aware of issues and make decisions. This course looks at competing visions of what democracy should be and different notions of the role of dialogue in a democracy. Is it just campaigning or does it include deliberation? Small scale discussions or sound bites on television? Or social media? What is the role of technology in changing our democratic practices, to mobilize, to persuade, to solve public problems? This course will include readings from political theory about democratic ideals - from the American founders to J.S. Mill and the Progressives to Joseph Schumpeter and modern writers skeptical of the public will. It will also include contemporary examinations of the media and the internet to see how those practices are changing and how the ideals can or cannot be realized.

The major topic will be the indeterminacy regarding the survival of humankind. With the advent of the atomic bomb humankind became potentially the maker of its own demise. Will combine a number of significant case studies (environmental disasters, industrial catastrophes, threat of nuclear devastation, technological risks) with the lessons drawn from a form of literature that is at the intersection of STS and the Humanities, in particular the early warnings made by such thinkers as Ivan Illich, Martin Heidegger, Hans Jonas, Günther Anders, and Hannah Arendt.

This course examines the theory and practice of deliberative democracy and engages both in a dialogue with critics. In spring quarter 2015, this course will have a special focus on deliberative democracy in the the Greater China region. The course will discuss whether a democracy which emphasizes people thinking and talking together on the basis of good information be made practical in the modern age. What kinds of distortions arise when people try to discuss politics or policy together? The course draws on ideas as well as criticisms from the jury literature, from the psychology of group processes and from the most recent normative and empirical literature on deliberative forums. Case studies from the Deliberative Polling method and other deliberation methods, its applications, defenders and critics, both normative and empirical, will provide a cases studies for discussion. Some course sessions will utilize the case method to examine public consultations, the media, and civil society. Throughout the course, students will address how public participation is currently conducted around the world. As we have all seen successful, but more likely unsuccessful attempts to consult the public and this course will examine the various ways of consulting the public and how governments, media, and the public have responded and used the results.

How can we account for creativity and innovation in political thinking? Are these qualities simply a product of political expediency and rhetorical urgency, or do they also depend on qualities of mind and historical contingencies that have to be studied individually? This class will explore these questions with three noteworthy cases: Niccolo Machiavelli, John Locke, and James Madison. Extensive reading in both primary writings and secondary sources.

What is the basis of private action for the public good? How are charitablenndollars distributed and what role do nonprofit organizations andnnphilanthropic dollars play in a modern democracy? How do nongovernmental nnorganizations operate domestically and globally? The historical developmentnnand modern structure of civil society emphasizing philanthropy and thennnonprofit sector. Readings in political philosophy, political sociology, andnnpublic policy. WIM for PoliSci students who enroll in PoliSci 236S.

What is the basis of private action for the public good? How are charitablenndollars distributed and what role do nonprofit organizations andnnphilanthropic dollars play in a modern democracy? How do nongovernmental nnorganizations operate domestically and globally? The historical developmentnnand modern structure of civil society emphasizing philanthropy and thennnonprofit sector. Readings in political philosophy, political sociology, andnnpublic policy. WIM for PoliSci students who enroll in PoliSci 236S.

In the aftermath of the Second World War, the political theorist Hannah Arendt wrote that ¿the problem of evil will be the fundamental question of postwar intellectual life in Europe.¿ This question remains fundamental today. The acts to which the word ¿evil¿ might apply¿genocide, terrorism, torture, human trafficking, etc.¿persist. The rhetoric of evil also remains central to American political discourse, both as a means of condemning such acts and of justifying preventive and punitive measures intended to combat them. In this advanced undergraduate seminar, we will examine the intersection of politics and evil by considering works by philosophers and political theorists, with occasional forays into film and media. The thinkers covered will include: Hannah Arendt, Immanuel Kant, Niccolò Machiavelli, Friedrich Nietzche, and Michael Walzer.

A cross-national approach to the study of civil societies and their role in democracy. The concept of civil society--historical, normative, and empirical. Is civil society a universal or culturally relative concept? Does civil society provide a supportive platform for democracy or defend a protected realm of private action against the state? How are the norms of individual rights, the common good, and tolerance balanced in diverse civil societies? Results of theoretical exploration applied to student-conducted empirical research projects on civil societies in eight countries. Summary comparative discussions. Prerequisite: a course on civil society or political theory. Students will conduct original research in teams of two on the selected nations. Enrollment limited to 18. Enrollment preference given to students who have taken PoliSci 236S/ EthicSoc 232T.