Use the Tab and Up, Down arrow keys to select menu items.
The study of politics focuses not only on how the political world operates, but also the normative question of how it ought to operate. Is redistribution of wealth justified? Do people have a right to what they earn in the market? Is equality of opportunity possible? Is it desirable? This course examines theories of distributive justice and their implications for economics and markets. Topics covered include: Utilitarianism; Rawls’s theory of justice; Dworkin’s equality of resources; Libertarianism; Universal basic income; Market socialism; Citizenship; and culture and politics.
Academic aims: To foster a detailed critical understanding of a range of arguments in contemporary political philosophy, and the ability to criticise, evaluate, explain (verbally and in writing), and apply these arguments.
Learning objectives: By the end of the module, students should be able to comprehend and critically analyse complex arguments from contemporary political philosophy, to provide a critical account of them, and to construct and defend their own sustained arguments about major political values.Learning methods: This course uses a flipped methodology, with an emphasis on learning through interpersonal communication. Students will work individually and within groups to create an understanding of the class readings; presenting their interpretations and ideas to each other, before presenting them to the class. Participation in this work is compulsory. Seminars are an extremely important part of the module, and their value depends on students’ active participation in the discussion. This may involve group work and oral or written presentations to the rest of the class. Discussions in, and preparations for, seminars are essential for the understanding of the material in the lectures.
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:
Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award
Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.
Globally aware
Students will comprehend the influence of global conditions on their discipline and will be competent in engaging with global and multi-cultural contexts.
Any 30 points at 200 level from PHIL or POLS, orany 60 points at 200 level from the Schedule V of the BA, orLAWS, GEOG, orthe Schedule V of the BCom.
PHIL317, POLS351
PHIL317
Lindsey Te Ata o Tu MacDonald
2021 Assessment:• Test 1 - last week of term 3 - 20%• Essay (2,500 words) - proposal - 5%, final due end of exam week - 35%• Test 2 - last week of term 4 - 20%• Weekly reflections - 10%• Participation - 10%
Zwolinski, Matt; Arguing about political philosophy ; 2nd edition;
Also recommended:• Political Theory: Methods and Approaches, edited by David Leopold, and Marc Stears, Oxford University Press USA, 2008. (ebook in library) • Will Kymlicka; Contemporary Political Philosophy; 2nd; Oxford University Press, 2002. • Gaus, Gerald F; Kukathas, Chandran. Handbook of Political Theory. London: SAGE Publications, 2004. (ebook in library) • Colin Farrelly, Contemporary Political Theory: A Reader, SAGE Publications, 2003. (see sage for ebook). • Dryzek, John, Bonnie Honig, and Anne Phillips, eds. 2006. The Oxford Handbook of Political Theory. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.• Goodin, Robert E., and Phillip Pettit, eds. 2006. Contemporary Political Philosophy: An Anthology. Malden, MA: Blackwell. • Wolff, Jonathan. 2006. An Introduction to Political Philosophy. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Library portalLearn Assignment Sheet Cover Academic Integrity Guidance for Staff and Students PDF document Referencing for Political Science Using EndNote for referencing Writing guides for Political Science
Domestic fee $1,570.00
International fee $7,000.00
* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.
For further information see Language, Social and Political Sciences .