Devin Stauffer

GOV 351D (CTI 321)

The Theoretical Foundations of Modern Politics

Devin Stauffer

Course Description

This course examines the philosophic origins of modern politics and culture by looking at the works of several authors whose writings played decisive roles in the rise and development of modernity. In our study of Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, and selected political writings of Rousseau and Nietzsche, we will consider how modern political thought broke with the past and offered a new set of political visions. We will consider the differing views of Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Nietzsche on issues such as the aims and limits of politics, the role of morality in the harsh world of political necessity, the proper place of religion and reason in political life, and the nature and basis of justice, freedom, and equality. Throughout the course, we will reflect of the impact that the revolutionary doctrines of modern political philosophy have had on the political world in which we live.

Texts

Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago)

Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett)

Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Yale)

Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses (St. Martin’s Press)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin)

Requirements and Grading

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Prerequisites

Sophomore standing

GOV 382M

Socratic Political Philosophy

Devin Stauffer

Course Description

This course will examine the foundations of classical political philosophy through an intensive study of some of Plato’s most important dialogues. We will begin by studying Plato’s Charmides, a dialogue that treats the question of Socratic education and its relationship to political ambition. After the Charmides, we will study Plato’s Hippias Major, where Socrates discusses the character of nobility with the sophist Hippias, and then the Lysis, the Platonic dialogue on the relationship between friendship, virtue, and politics. Throughout the course, we will discuss the difference between the Socratic and the sophistic approaches to the question of virtue, especially in its connection to civic life; the problem of the relationship between philosophy and politics; and the Socratic understanding of human nature. The course aims to develop the capacity of students for concentrated, in-depth study of Plato’s dialogues, which will be approached not just as important moments in the history of political thought but as expressions of a philosophic position that should be examined to see whether it still retains its power and validity.   

Texts

Plato’s Charmides. Translated by Thomas G. West and Grace Starry West (Hackett)

The Roots of Political Philosophy: Ten Forgotten Platonic Dialogues. Edited by Thomas Pangle (Cornell University Press)

Plato’s Dialogue on Friendship: An Interpretation of the Lysis, with a New Translation. David Bolotin (Cornell)

Requirements and Grading

Seminar paper: 60%

Three short papers: 20%

Participation: 20%

(Note: these percentage are approximate.)

Prerequisites

Graduate standing or permission of the professor. 

GOV 351D (CTI 321)

The Theoretical Foundations of Modern Politics

Course Description

This course examines the philosophic origins of modern politics and culture by looking at the works of several authors whose writings played decisive roles in the rise and development of modernity. In our study of Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, and selected political writings of Rousseau and Nietzsche, we will consider how modern political thought broke with the past and offered a new set of political visions. We will consider the differing views of Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Nietzsche on issues such as the aims and limits of politics, the role of morality in the harsh world of political necessity, the proper place of religion and reason in political life, and the nature and basis of justice, freedom, and equality. Throughout the course, we will reflect of the impact that the revolutionary doctrines of modern political philosophy have had on the political world in which we live.

Texts

Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago)

Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett)

Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Yale)

Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses (St. Martin’s Press)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin)

Requirements and Grading

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Prerequisites

Sophomore standing

GOV 382M

Platonic Political Philosophy

Course Description

This course will be a close study of Plato’s Laws, his longest and most political dialogue. We will focus on questions such as the proper ends of politics, the relationship between philosophy and politics, the challenge that divine law poses to philosophic rationalism, and the place of religion in the classical city. The course aims to develop the capacity of students for a concentrated, in-depth study of Plato, who will be approached not just as important figure in the history of political thought but as the proponent of a philosophic position that may still retain its power and validity.   

Texts

Plato, The Laws of Plato (Chicago)

Requirements and Grading

Seminar paper: 60%

Three short papers: 20%

Seminar participation: 20%

Prerequisites

Graduate standing or permission of the professor  

GOV 351D (CTI 321)

The Theoretical Foundations of Modern Politics

Devin Stauffer

Course Description

This course examines the philosophic origins of modern politics and culture by looking at the works of several authors whose writings played decisive roles in the rise and development of modernity. In our study of Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, and selected political writings of Rousseau and Nietzsche, we will consider how modern political thought broke with the past and offered a new set of political visions. We will consider the differing views of Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Nietzsche on issues such as the aims and limits of politics, the role of morality in the harsh world of political necessity, the proper place of religion and reason in political life, and the nature and basis of justice, freedom, and equality. Throughout the course, we will reflect of the impact that the revolutionary doctrines of modern political philosophy have had on the political world in which we live.

Texts

Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago)

Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett)

Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Yale)

Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses (St. Martin’s Press)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin)

Requirements and Grading

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Prerequisites

Sophomore standing 

GOV 382M, Locke and the Foundations of Liberalism

Devin Stauffer

Course Description

This course will be a close study of the seminal works of the thinker who did more than any other to lay the theoretical foundations of modern liberalism: John Locke. We will study Locke’s Two Treatises of Government, A Letter Concerning Toleration, The Reasonableness of Christianity, and portions of An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. The aims of the course are to give students a deeper understanding of the arguments that Locke used to pull down an old order and build something new; to engage students in a discussion of the trade-offs, problems, and questions involved in Locke's multi-front struggle to revolutionize political philosophy; and to help students develop the capacity for the careful study of complex works of political philosophy. Although we will from time to time discuss the context in which Locke wrote, we will not view Locke primarily through a historical lens. Rather, we will approach Locke as a philosopher whose thought continues to have great importance in the world today, with liberalism as ascendant as ever, even as it has come under intense criticism. 

Texts

Locke, Two Treatises of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration (Yale)

Locke, Writings on Religion (Oxford)

Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (Oxford)

Requirements and Grading

Seminar paper: 60%

Three short papers: 20%

Seminar participation: 20%

Prerequisites

Graduate standing or permission of the professor  

GOV 351G; CTI 322

Unique # 33950; 38675

CRITICS OF MODERN LIBERALISM

Devin Stauffer

Spring 2017

Course Description

This course examines the writings of a wide range of thinkers who have reflected deeply on the strengths and weaknesses of the most powerful political doctrine in the world today: liberal democracy.  We will begin by studying the original case for modern liberalism as it was presented by John Locke, the great architect of the modern liberal form of government and the modern liberal way of life.  After studying Locke, we will look at the Declaration of Independence and The Federalist Papers to consider the ways in which Lockean principles informed the American Founding.  After this introduction, we will look at a set of thinkers who range from friends of liberal democracy who have worries about its dangers to hostile critics of liberal democracy who argue for its destruction.  The “friendly critics” will include authors such as Mill and Tocqueville.  The hostile critics will span the political spectrum, from Marx on the Left to Nietzsche on the Right.  These authors raise far-reaching questions about liberalism: Do the principles of freedom and equality promote an isolating individualism that dissolves communal bonds?  Is liberalism tied to an oppressive capitalist economic system?  Has the rise of liberal democracy fostered mediocrity and complacency?  Finally, we will conclude by reflecting on the health of liberal democracy today.

Prerequisite

Completion of at least thirty hours of coursework.

Texts

Locke, Two Treatises of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration (Yale)

Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, The Federalist Papers (Signet)

Mill, On Liberty (Penguin)

Tocqueville, Democracy in America (Chicago)

Marx and Engels, The Marx-Engels Reader (Norton)

Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil (Vintage)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin) 

Course Supplement (available at Jenn’s Copying, 2518 Guadalupe)

Grading

Grades will be calculated by one of these two methods:

With the optional paper                                   Without the optional paper

Paper: 25%                                                   First Exam: 30%

First exam: 20%                                            Final Exam: 45%

Final exam: 30%                                           Attendance and Participation: 15%

Attendance and Participation: 15%                  Quizzes: 10%  

Quizzes: 10%                                               

GOV 351C (and CTI 320)

The Classical Quest for Justice

Devin Stauffer

Course Description 

What is justice?  What are its demands as a virtue of individuals?  What is its status as a guiding principle of domestic politics and as a restraint in times of war?  What are the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of political orders in their quest for justice?  What is the relationship between political life and philosophic reflection?  In this course we will consider these fundamental and enduring questions of political philosophy primarily through a careful study of two of the masterpieces of classical antiquity:  Plato’s Republic and Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War.  We will preface our study of these two great texts with a look at another work, Plato’s Apology of Socrates; but our focus will be on reading and discussing the Republic and The Peloponnesian War.  These works will be approached, not just as crucial documents for our understanding of a distant age, but as works that still speak directly and profoundly to permanent questions of moral and political life.   

Prerequisite

Completion of at least thirty semester hours of coursework.

Texts 

Plato and Aristophanes, Four Texts on Socrates, trans. by T. West and G. West (Cornell) 

Plato, The Republic of Plato, trans. by Allan Bloom (Basic Books)

Thucydides, The Landmark Thucydides, ed. By Robert Strassler (The Free Press) 

Requirements and Grading 

Paper: 20%  

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25% 

Attendance: 10% 

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Devin Stauffer

GOV 382M (Fall 2007)

Unique#: 40270

Thucydides’ Political Realism

Course Description

This course will examine the character of classical political realism through an intensive study of Thucydides.  We will focus on the central themes of Thucydides’ work: the relationship between justice and necessity, the origins of imperialism, the strengths and weaknesses of democracy and oligarchy in their classical forms, and the problems posed for political leadership by the intensity of human passions, especially under the stress of war.  Although he wrote in a political context very different from our own, Thucydides will be approached as a political realist from whom we can still draw valuable lessons about the enduring nature of political life.  

Some reading knowledge of Greek is recommended but not required.

Prerequisite

Graduate standing or permission of the professor.

Texts

Robert B. Strassler, ed., The Landmark Thucydides (Simon & Schuster)

(Optional) Henry Stuart Jones, ed., Thucydidis Historiae, volumes 1 and 2 (Oxford University Press)

(Optional) Clifford Orwin, The Humanity of Thucydides (Princeton University Press)

Requirements and Grading

Seminar Paper (12 – 15 pages): 60%

Three short papers: 30%

Class Participation: 10%

 GOV 351C (and CTI 320)

The Classical Quest for Justice

Devin Stauffer

Course Description 

What is justice?  What are its demands as a virtue of individuals?  What is its status as a guiding principle of domestic politics and as a restraint in times of war?  What are the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of political orders in their quest for justice?  What is the relationship between political life and philosophic reflection?  In this course we will consider these fundamental and enduring questions of political philosophy primarily through a careful study of two of the masterpieces of classical antiquity:  Plato’s Republic and Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War.  We will preface our study of these two great texts with a look at another work, Plato’s Apology of Socrates; but our focus will be on reading and discussing the Republic and The Peloponnesian War.  These works will be approached, not just as crucial documents for our understanding of a distant age, but as works that still speak directly and profoundly to permanent questions of moral and political life.   

Prerequisite

Completion of at least thirty semester hours of coursework.

Texts 

Plato and Aristophanes, Four Texts on Socrates, trans. by T. West and G. West (Cornell) 

Plato, The Republic of Plato, trans. by Allan Bloom (Basic Books)

Thucydides, The Landmark Thucydides, ed. By Robert Strassler (The Free Press) 

Requirements and Grading 

Paper: 20%  

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25% 

Attendance: 10% 

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Course Description

382M: Platonic Political Philosophy

Devin Stauffer

Course Description

This course will examine the foundations of classical political philosophy through an intensive study of some of Plato’s most important dialogues.  We will begin by examining the conflict between ancient sophistry and Socratic political philosophy by studying Plato’s Protagoras.  After the Protagoras, we will read Plato’s Charmides, focusing on the question of Socratic education and its relationship to political ambition.  Finally, if time permits, we will read Plato’s Hippias Major, where Socrates discusses the character of nobility with the sophist Hippias.  Throughout the course, we will discuss the difference between the Socratic and the sophistic approaches to the question of virtue; the problem of the relationship between philosophy and politics; and the Socratic understanding of human nature.  This course aims to develop the capacity of students for concentrated, in-depth study of Plato’s dialogues, which will be approached not just as important moments in the history of political thought but as expressions of a philosophic position that should be examined to see whether it still retains its power and validity.   

Prerequisite  

Graduate student standing or permission of the professor.

Grading policy

Seminar Paper: 60%

Three papers of roughly three pages: 20%

Class participation: 20%

Texts

Plato’s “Protagoras” and “Meno.” Translated by Robert Bartlett(Cornell University Press)

Plato’s Charmides. Translated by Thomas G. West and Grace Starry West (Hackett)

The Roots of Political Philosophy: Ten Forgotten Platonic Dialogues. Edited by Thomas Pangle(Cornell University Press) 

Spring 2015

Devin Stauffer

GOV 351G (cross-listed as CTI 322)

Critics of Modern Liberalism

Prerequisites

Sophomore standing

Course Description

This course examines the writings of a wide range of thinkers who have reflected deeply on the strengths and weaknesses of the most powerful political doctrine in the world today: liberal democracy.  We will begin by studying the original case for modern liberalism as it was presented by John Locke, the great architect of the modern liberal form of government and the modern liberal way of life.  After studying Locke, we will look at the Declaration of Independence and The Federalist Papers to consider the ways in which Lockean principles informed the American Founding.  After this introduction, we will look at a set of thinkers who range from friendly critics of liberal democracy who have concerns about its dangers to hostile critics of liberal democracy who argue for its destruction.  The “friendly critics” will include authors such as Mill and Tocqueville.  The “hostile critics” will span the political spectrum, from Marx on the Left to Nietzsche on the Right.  These authors raise far-reaching questions about liberalism: Do the principles of freedom and equality promote an isolating individualism that dissolves communal bonds?  Is liberalism tied to an oppressive capitalist economic system?  Has the rise of liberal democracy fostered mediocrity and complacency?  Finally, we will conclude by considering several different views of the theoretical and practical health of liberal democracy today.

Texts

Locke, Two Treatises of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration (Yale)

Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, The Federalist Papers (Signet)

Mill, On Liberty (Penguin)

Tocqueville, Democracy in America (Chicago)

Marx and Engels, The Marx-Engels Reader (Norton)

Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil (Vintage)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin) 

Course Supplement (available at Speedway Copying in the Dobie Mall)

Requirements and Grading

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note: These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Course Description

This course examines the philosophic origins of modern politics and culture by looking at the works of several authors whose writings played decisive roles in the rise and development of modernity.  In our study of Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, and selected political writings of Rousseau and Nietzsche, we will consider how modern political thought broke with the past and offered a new set of political visions.  We will consider the differing views of Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Nietzsche on issues such as the aims and limits of politics, the role of morality in the harsh world of political necessity, the proper place of religion and reason in political life, and the nature and basis of justice, freedom, and equality.  Throughout the course, we will reflect of the impact that the revolutionary doctrines of modern political philosophy have had on the political world in which we live.

Texts

Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago)

Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett)

Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Yale)

Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses (St. Martin’s Press)

Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin)

Requirements and Grading

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Prerequisites

Sophomore standing

Flags:

Ethics and Leadership

Global Cultures

Course Description

This course will examine the foundations of modern political philosophy through an intensive study of Thomas Hobbes.  In particular, we will focus on Hobbes’s break with the classical tradition and his reformulation of the task and character of political philosophy, a reformulation that played a crucial role in the early modern transformation of the notion of “natural right.”  Although we will spend a great deal of time on Hobbes’s most famous work, Leviathan, we will compare Leviathan with Hobbes’s earlier expressions of his political philosophy in De Cive and Elements of Law.  These three works offer overlapping but importantly different formulations of the arguments at the center of Hobbes’s thought.  Throughout the course, we will consider why Hobbes thought it was necessary to put political philosophy on a radically new footing; why he tried to adapt methods discovered in the natural sciences and mathematics to the study of politics; and why he thought it was necessary to establish a new moral doctrine rooted in the right of individuals to seek their self-preservation.  Although this course focuses on Hobbes’s thought, it is not meant to be only a study in the history of ideas.  Hobbes’s work played an important role in preparing the way for the rise of modern liberalism, a doctrine whose current political dominance is not matched by confidence among theorists in its theoretical soundness.  One of the aims of this course is to help students think seriously about the health of liberalism today by reexamining its origins in the foundational works of early modern political philosophy.     

Texts

Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan

Thomas Hobbes, On the Citizen

Thomas Hobbes, Human Nature and De Copore Politico

Grading Policy

Short essays: approx. 20%

Class participation: approx. 20%

Seminar Paper: approx. 60%

Prerequisites

Graduate student standing or permission of the professor.

Course Description

What is justice?  What are its demands as a virtue of individuals?  What is its status as a guiding principle of domestic politics and as a restraint or standard in times of war?  What are the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of political orders in their quest for justice or in their pursuit of alternative ends?  What is the relationship between politics and philosophy?  In this course we will consider these fundamental and enduring questions of political philosophy primarily through a careful study of two of the masterpieces of classical antiquity:  Plato’s Republic and Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War.  Although we will supplement our study of these two great texts with a look at other works, such as Plato’s Apology of Socrates, our focus will be on reading and discussing the Republic and The Peloponnesian War.  These works will be approached, not just as crucial documents for our understanding of a distant age, but as works that still speak directly and profoundly to permanent questions of moral and political life.  

Grading Policy

Paper: 20%

First exam: 25%

Second exam: 25%

Attendance: 10%

Participation: 10%

Quizzes: 10%

(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Texts

Plato and Aristophanes, Four Texts on Socrates, trans. by T. West and G. West (Cornell)

Plato, The Republic of Plato, trans. by Allan Bloom (Basic Books)

Thucydides, The Landmark Thucydides, ed. By Robert Strassler (The Free Press) 

Course Description This course examines the philosophic origins of modern politics and culture by looking at the works of several authors whose writings played decisive roles in the rise and development of modernity.  In our study of Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, and selected political writings of Rousseau and Nietzsche, we will consider how modern political thought broke with the past and offered a new set of political visions.  We will consider the differing views of Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Nietzsche on issues such as the aims and limits of politics, the role of morality in the harsh world of political necessity, the proper place of religion and reason in political life, and the nature and basis of justice, freedom, and equality.  Throughout the course, we will reflect on the impact that the revolutionary doctrines of modern political philosophy have had on the political world in which we live.Texts Machiavelli, The Prince (University of Chicago)Hobbes, Leviathan (Hackett)Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Yale)Rousseau, The First and Second Discourses (St. Martin’s Press)Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Penguin) Requirements and Grading Paper: 20%First exam: 25%Second exam: 25% Attendance: 10% Participation: 10%Quizzes: 10%(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

Course Description still being drafted.

Course Description What is justice?  What are its demands as a virtue of individuals?  What is its status as a guiding principle of domestic politics and as a restraint or standard in times of war?  What are the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of political orders in their quest for justice or in their pursuit of alternative ends?  What is the relationship between politics and philosophy?  In this course we will consider these fundamental and enduring questions of political philosophy primarily through a careful study of two of the masterpieces of classical antiquity:  Plato’s Republic and Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War.  Although we will supplement our study of these two great texts with a look at other works, such as Plato’s Apology of Socrates, our focus will be on reading and discussing the Republic and The Peloponnesian War.  These works will be approached, not just as crucial documents for our understanding of a distant age, but as works that still speak directly and profoundly to permanent questions of moral and political life.   

Texts

Plato and Aristophanes, Four Texts on Socrates, trans. by T. West and G. West (Cornell) Plato, The Republic of Plato, trans. by Allan Bloom (Basic Books)Thucydides, The Landmark Thucydides, ed. By Robert Strassler (The Free Press)

Requirements and Grading Paper: 20%First exam: 25%Second exam: 25% Attendance: 10% Participation: 10%Quizzes: 10%(Note:  These percentages are approximate, and the paper may be made optional.)

DESCRIPTION:

This course will examine the foundations of classical political philosophy through a study of Plato’s political psychology.  Central to Plato’s political psychology—that is, to his account of the deepest human concerns and passions—is his analysis of the nature and power of thumos and eros.  Plato’s emphasis on these forces in the human soul marks a crucial difference between his thought and that of both the preSocratic philosophers of antiquity and the early modern thinkers who shaped the outlook that still prevails in the modern West.  In this seminar, we will study Plato’s analysis of eros by examining the two dialogues he devoted to that theme, the Symposium and the Phaedrus.  If time permits, we will also study Plato’s Alcibiades.  This course aims to develop the capacity of students for concentrated, in-depth study of Plato’s dialogues, which will be approached not just as important moments in the history of political thought but as expressions of a philosophic position that should be examined to see whether it still retains its power and validity.    


GRADING POLICY

Short essays: 20%

Class participation: 20%

Seminar paper: 60%


REQUIRED TEXTS

Plato’s Symposim. Translated by Seth Benardete (University of Chicago Press).

Plato’s Phaedrus. Translated by James Nicholas (Cornell University Press).

The Roots of Political Philosophy: Ten Forgotten Socratic Dialogues. Edited by Thomas
Pangle (Cornell University Press).

Note:  A reading knowledge of classical Greek would be useful, but it is not required.

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