Justice
GOVT 395
Fall 2015
| Section:
01
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| Certificates: International Relations |
One of the central questions facing any society is how the benefits and burdens of social life ought to be distributed among its members. Some have argued that the appropriate grounds of distribution are desert: people should have (net) benefits proportional to their desert or merit (which obviously must be defined); others hold that utility or aggregate well-being is the relevant principle: holdings should be distributed in such a way as to make everyone (or the average person) as well off as possible. Yet others propose equality or need. In this seminar we will examine contemporary theories of justice beginning with the work of John Rawls, who revolutionized the discussion of justice by focusing on the basic institutional structure of the society rather than principles applying directly to individuals. We will then consider a range of issues that Rawls' institutional focus may not be able to accommodate, such as race, gender, environmental concerns, and disabilities. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS GOVT |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (GOVT)(GOVT-Theory) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: 75% - 89% |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Texts have not been chosen yet, but the following titles indicate the kind of reading we'll be doing:
John Rawls, JUSTICE AS FAIRNESS
Amartya Sen, THE IDEA OF JUSTICE
Ronald Dworkin, JUSTICE FOR HEDGEHOGS
Ken Binmore, NATURAL JUSTICE
Martha Nussbaum, FRONTIERS OF JUSTICE
Christopher LeBron, THE COLOR OF OUR SHAME
Nancy Fraser, JUSTICE INTERRUPTUS
Philippe van Parijs, REAL FREEDOM FOR ALL
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Examinations and Assignments:
Several short papers and/or posts
Term paper |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Students should have taken at least one course in political theory or political philosophy, such as Govt 159. |
| Instructor(s): Moon,J. Donald Times: .M..... 01:10PM-04:00PM; Location: ALLB004; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 14 | | SR major: 4 | JR major: 4 | | |
| Seats Available: 9 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 3 | JR non-major: 3 | SO: 0 | FR: X |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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