Moral Foundations of Politics

What is the right time for governments to be given our loyalty and what should we do if they are not? The course examines all the answers to the question that has been offered in modern West. The course begins with an overview of three major political theories from the Enlightenment: Utilitarianism and Marxism. We start each case with an overview of the classic formulations and place them within historical context. Then we move on to current debates that relate to politics.

The next step is to examine the denial of Enlightenment politics, both in classical and modern forms. This last section of the course focuses on the nature and justifications of democratic politics and how they relate to Enlightenment or Anti-Enlightenment thinking.

The practical consequences of the competing arguments is also covered. We discuss concrete issues such as economic inequality, affirmative actions and health care distribution, state power limits in regulation of speech, religion and global environmental degradation.