PHIL 342 - Modern Political Thought

We will examine such thinkers as Machiavelli, Hobbes and Locke on the rise of modern democracy; the ideas surrounding the American and French Revolutions; and the challenges to liberal democracy put forward by Rousseau and Marx on such issues as: human nature, the good life, the role of government, the relation between the individual and the government, the meaning of freedom, the need for social order. We will also investigate how modern political thought differs from ancient and medieval views. Cross-listed with Political Science.

Credits: 4
Terms Offered: As Needed