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Ascher Syllabi (Graduate & Undergraduate) Political Science 814 Major Political Theorists: Foundational Texts Wednesday, 4-6:40pm, Cunningham Hall 107 Spring 2014 Ivan Ascher [email protected] Office Hours: Tuesday 2-4pm, 640 Bolton Last updated: 1/21/14 This course is an advanced introduction to the field of political theory. As such, its aim is really twofold. First, the course serves as an introduction to major figures and questions in the tradition of Western political thought. Specifically, we will engage the writings of Plato, Machiavelli and Nietzsche and, through them, some of basic questions that have occupied political theorists (e.g. what is the best regime? how is power acquired or maintained? what is the relation between truth and power?). Secondly, the course serves also as an introduction to the academic study of political theory as it developed in the United States in the latter half of the 20th century. Alongside the so-called “primary” texts by Plato, Machiavelli and Nietzsche, therefore, we will also be engaging the work of their scholarly interpreters, and discussing some of the interpretive and political debates between them. Ultimately, we may find that this division between “primary” and “secondary” literatures does not hold, just as we may call into doubt some of the other divisions we will encounter (e.g., politics v. philosophy, political science v. political theory, philosophy v. literature). For now, though, we’ll let it stand. Most readings will be made available electronically to the extent possible. Tentative Reading Schedule Week 1. January 22. Introduction Week 2. January 29. What is politics? Max Weber, “Politics as a Vocation” in The Vocation Lectures, trans. Rodney Livingstone (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Co., 2004) Max Weber, “Science as a Vocation” in The Vocation Lectures, trans. Rodney Livingstone (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Co., 2004) Jacques Rancière, Ten Theses on Politics Jacques Rancière, Disagreement, Chapters 1, 2, 6 Week 3. February 5. Political Theory as a Vocation Leo Strauss, What is Political Philosophy? (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988), pp. 9- 77. Sheldon S. Wolin, “Political Theory as a Vocation,” American Political Science Review 63 (1969): 1062-82. Wendy Brown, “At the Edge,” Political Theory 30 (August 2002): 555-76. Adriana Cavarero, “Politicizing Theory,” Political Theory 30 (August 2002): 506-532 Andrew Rehfeld, “Offensive Political Theory”, Perspectives Anne Norton, “Political Science as a Vocation” Anne Norton, 95 Theses on Politics, Culture and Method (selections) Week 4. February 12. Questions of interpretation Leo Strauss, “Persecution and the Art of Writing.” Social Research 8:4 ( ), 488-504 Ellen Meikisins Wood, Citizens to Lords (London and New York: Verso, 2008), pp. 1-27 Quentin Skinner, “Meaning and understanding in the history of ideas” Quentin Skinner, “Motives, Intentions and the Interpretation of Texts”, New Literary History, Vol. 3, No. 2 (Hiver 1972), pp. 393-408. (also in J. Tully ed., Meaning and Context.) Shadia Drury, “The Esoteric Philosophy of Leo Strauss” in Political Theory 3:13 Derrida, Of Grammatology (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1974), pp. 3-65, 141-64. Week 5. February 19. Plato (1) Plato, The Republic, Books I-IV Sheldon Wolin, “Plato” in Politics and Vision Recommended: Ellen Meiksins Wood, Citizens to Lords (London and New York: Verso, 2008), pp. 28-82. Week 6. February 26. Plato (2) Plato, The Republic, Books V-VI Leo Strauss, “On Plato’s Republic,” in The City and Man (pp. 50-138). Week 7. March 5. Plato (3) Plato, The Republic, Books VII-X Jacques Rancière, “Order of the City,” “Order of Discourse,” in The Philosopher and his Poor Wendy Brown, “‘Supposing Truth Were a Woman...’ Plato’s Subversion of Masculine Discourse”, in Political Theory, 16: 4 (Nov. 1988), pp. 594-616. Week 8. March 12. Machiavelli (1) Niccoló Machiavelli, The Prince Quentin Skinner, Chapters 4-6 of The Foundations of Modern Political Thought, 69-186 Leo Strauss, Thoughts on Machiavelli, Selections Week 9. March 26. Machiavelli (2) Sheldon S. Wolin, “Machiavelli: Politics and the The Economy of Violence”, in Politics and Vision, pp. 174-213. Claude Lefort, “Machiavel et la verità effetuale”, in Écrire. À l’épreuve du politique (Paris : Calmann-Lévy, 1992). Victoria Kahn, “Virtú and the Example of Agathocles in Machiavelli’s Prince,” Machiavelli and the Discourse of Literature, eds. Albert Russell Ascoli and Victoria Kahn (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1993), pp. 195-217. Week 10. April 2. Machiavelli (3) Mary Dietz, “Trapping the Prince. Machiavelli and the Politics of Deception” American Political Science Review, Vol. 80, No. 3, September 1986. 2 Louis Althusser, Machiavelli and Us, trans. Gregory Elliott (London and New York: Verso, 2001), pp. 3-32, 81-103. Hanna Piktin, Fortune is a Woman, Chicago: University of Chicago, Chapters 1, 11, 12. Week 11. April 9. Nietzsche (1) Friedrich Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Morals Week 12. April 16 – NO CLASS – WPSA Meeting Week 13. April 23. Nietzsche Michel Foucault, “Nietzsche, la généalogie, l’histoire”, in Dits et écrits I, 1004-1024. Wendy Brown, “Politics without Banisters: Genealogical Politics in Nietzsche and Foucault,” in Politics out of History, Princeton: Princeton University Press Leo Strauss, “Notes on Beyond Good and Evil” Thomas Lemke, “Foucault, Governmentality, Critique” Vanessa Lemm, “The Biological Threshold of Modern Politics: Nietzsche, Foucault and the Question of Animal Life” in Siemens and Root, eds, Nietzsche Power and Politics Week 14. April 30. Class presentations / Readings to be determined Week 15. May 7. Class presentations / Readings to be determined Critical Commentaries on Readings Four to five times during the semester (depending on enrollment), you will be asked to provide 4- 5 pages of written commentary on the week’s readings, to be shared with the class on the Tuesday prior to class. These critical reflections are not summaries or descriptive overviews of the readings. They should be analytical, critically engaging the central arguments and difficulties of the texts under discussion. These reflections will also serve to stimulate discussion during our seminar meeting on Wednesday. Class Presentations Students will be responsible for class presentation of weekly readings designed to provoke and facilitate discussion (again, depending on enrollment). Class size will determine whether this is done individually or collectively in small groups. Rather than provide an overview of the week’s readings, presentations should be concise and conceptually oriented. They should clarify key arguments, critically engage readings, and pose questions that open up the material for discussion. Seminar Papers Enrolled students will be expected to write a seminar paper, on a topic to be chosen in consultation with the instructor. A draft of the paper will be due close to the end of term. The final version will be due about two weeks later. UWM Policies and Procedures In this course, we will abide by the UWM policies and procedures as described in the following document. http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/SecU/SyllabusLinks.pdf Students with disabilities Students with disabilities should notify the instructor immediately so that we can make 3 appropriate accommodations. We will follow university procedures as described in the following document. http://www4.uwm.edu/sac/SACltr.pdf Religious observances Students who plan to observe religious holidays should notify the instructor immediately so that we can make appropriate accommodations. We will follow university procedures as described in the following document. http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S1.5.htm Students called to active military duty Students who are called to active military duty should notify the instructor immediately so that we can make appropriate accommodations. We will follow university procedures as described in the following document. Students: http://www4.uwm.edu/current_students/military_call_up.cfm 4 .
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