Distributive Justice in Contemporary Political Philsophy

Academic year 2011-12

Date last modified

23-4-2012 1:29

Period

Period 1

Startdate:

05-Sep-11

Enddate:

28-Oct-11

Code

HUM3045

ECTS credits

5.0

Organisational unit

University College Maastricht

Coordinator

T.J. Dekker

Description

In the wake of the publication of John Rawls’s monumental A Theory of Justice, there has been an explosion of political philosophy in the field of distributive justice, one that continues to this day. This course will examine the work of some of today’s most prominent political philosophers working in the field of justice. In doing so we will study several topics that are related to some of the issues discussed in COR1004 (Political Philosophy). As such the course is designed to be a sequel to that course, and familiarity with the concepts and authors discussed in that course is presumed. Having said that, this course is distinctive in several respects. First of all the course will strictly focus on debates within academia, rather than hot political debates within the wider community. Secondly, the course will exclusively use original primary texts, i.e. original scientific articles and book chapters. Thirdly, the course will be particularly concerned with the construction and evaluation of the minutia of argument. We will be looking at the strengths and weakness of the arguments presented for certain ethical claims and positions. The level and difficulty of the material and problems will also be of a higher level than the introductory course.

Goals

• To examine some recent developments in political philosophy, focusing on current scholarly disputes in the field of distributive justice. • To engage with the work of today’s leading political philosophers and critically evaluate their arguments.

Instruction language

Prerequisites

COR1004 Political Philosophy.

Recommended literature

Teaching methods

PBL
PRESENTATION(S)
LECTURE(S)
ASSIGNMENT(S)
PAPER(S)

Assessment methods

FINAL PAPER
ATTENDANCE
PARTICIPATION
WRITTEN EXAM
ORAL EXAM
TAKE HOME EXAM

Key words