00983 - History of Political Thought (A-L)

Learning outcomes

The aim of the course is to provide an orientation in the theoretical and practical issues debated in the history of Western political thought in modern and contemporary times. At the end of the course the student will know: the ways in which the main traditions of political thought were formed and their main conceptual and structural characteristics; he/she will possess analytical tools to understand the connections that link the elaboration of political doctrines with the historical development of social dynamics and of state and international political institutions; he/she will be able to give a historical and doctrinal interpretation of the relations between war and politics.

Course contents

The course - which includes lectures - deals with the history of political thought as a field of Western knowledge handed down through the texts of leading political thinkers. Between caesuras and continuities, each historical context offers doctrines aimed at understanding the internal life of political units and their external relations. The course will address the history of modern and contemporary political thought by analysing, on the one hand, the concept of freedom and, on the other, the concepts of peace and war. In particular, attention will be paid to i) the idea of freedom in modern and contemporary times; ii) the relations between liberalism and democracy from the post-revolutionary era to the contemporary one; iii) the theory of forms of government from classical antiquity; iv) the political concepts of peace and war by analysing the texts of the main modern and contemporary Western political thinkers.

 

Readings/Bibliography

R. Gherardi (a cura di), La politica e gli Stati, Roma, Carocci, 2022 (terza edizione);

N. Matteucci, Le forme di governo, 'Enciclopedia delle scienze sociali', Treccani;

(https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/forme-di-governo_%28Enciclopedia-delle-scienze-sociali%29/)

G. Bedeschi, Liberalismo,'Enciclopedia delle scienze sociali', Treccani;

(https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/liberalismo_%28Enciclopedia-delle-scienze-sociali%29/)

G. Sartori, Democrazia, 'Enciclopedia delle scienze sociali', Treccani;

(https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/democrazia_%28Enciclopedia-delle-scienze-sociali%29/)

A. Panebianco, Guerra, in 'Enciclopedia delle scienze sociali'

(https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/guerra_%28Enciclopedia-delle-scienze-sociali%29/#Politica)

Non-attending students should add the following text:

M. Chiaruzzi, Una trama del mondo, Le Monnier Mondadori, 2022;

List of choice texts for the final examination:

 M. Chiaruzzi, Una trama del mondo, Le Monnier Mondadori, 2022 (not for non-attending students who must already study it in addition to the previous list);

M. Chiaruzzi, Una trama del mondo, Le Monnier Mondadori, 2022 (non per gli studenti non frequentanti che lo devono già studiare in aggiunta all'elenco precedente);

N. Bobbio, Lezioni sulla guerra e la pace, Laterza, 2023;

P.P. Portinaro, Il realismo politico, Morcelliana, 2023;

D. Palano, Animale politico, Morcelliana, 2023.

 

Teaching methods

The course consists of 30 lectures and aims to introduce students to the acquisition of the basic conceptual and theoretical tools through the reading and conceptual analysis of classic texts by political authors, aimed at providing the conceptual tools and vocabulary proper to the history of modern and contemporary political thought.

 

Assessment methods

During the course there will be three written tests on the institutional program. These tests will have an evaluative character and will serve as an instrument for controlling individual learning with respect to the path taken.  The three tests on the institutional part will be divided into five open-ended questions; the time available for each verification will be 40 minutes. Participation in the tests is reserved for students who have actually attended the lessons (the teacher reserves the right to collect students' signatures to verify their participation). Students who have passed and passed the written tests (3 in total), will take a supplementary final test on a monograph chosen by the student from the list shown above. Students who have not passed a test (due to failure or absence) will have to recover it. There is also a remedial test - on one of the tests whose evaluation does not satisfy the student. The recovery tests will be taken during the official exam sessions.

To access the final exam: sufficient weighted average of the three written tests. In the case of insufficient average, attending students will again have to take a written paper on the overall program during the exam sessions. The final exam is aimed at testing also and above all the analytical, critical and overall control skills of the discipline, as well as the learning of any parts of the program not yet evaluated in the intermediate tests. The final evaluation is given by the overall evaluation achieved in the two written tests, taking into account the amount of the program verified through both. The achievement by the student of an organic vision of the topics addressed together with their critical use, the demonstration of the possession of an expressive mastery and specific language will be evaluated with a grade of excellence. Any lack of one or more of these aspects will determine a gradation in the vote, up to a negative evaluation where insufficient preparation and training gaps are found.

Teaching tools

Readings from classical texts; Power Point presentations

Office hours

See the website of Francesco Raschi