This course is a survey of central issues in contemporary normative (i.e., ethical or evaluative) political theory. Both abstract topics and applied questions are considered. The former include: the legitimacy of state authority and corresponding obligation to obey the law, liberal-egalitarianism, libertarianism, and philosophical socialism. In addressing these topics, we consider the views of leading twentieth-century scholars, including John Rawls, Robert Nozick, and G.A. Cohen. The applied topics include free speech, minority cultural rights, gender equality, immigration restrictions, and global distributive justice. Students are shown how to connect everyday political conversation with some of the leading ideas in political theory and, ideally, to tune their ear to conceptual incoherence and logical inconsistency in the former.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- demonstrate an ability to understand, and critically assess, arguments made in normative political theory;
- demonstrate an ability to coherently formulate a normative thesis, and to defend it through argument;
- demonstrate an ability to anticipate, formulate, and effectively respond to counterarguments; and
- demonstrate an ability to gather and critically organize a variety of scholarly sources in a way that engages relevant literature.
Indicative Assessment
- Essay, 2500-2700 words (45) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Exam, 2 hours (45) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Tutorial work (10) [LO 1,2]
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Workload
130 hours of total student learning time made up from:
a) 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks: 24 hours of lectures, and 12 hours of tutorials; and,
b) 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
Inherent Requirements
Not applicable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Readings will be provided.Assumed Knowledge
It is recommended that students first take POLS2119 Ideas in Politics.
Majors
Minors
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $3660 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $5160 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8823 | 22 Jul 2019 | 29 Jul 2019 | 31 Aug 2019 | 25 Oct 2019 | In Person | View |