Justice Matters brings together philosophy and history to critically engage a variety of ideals, values, and ideological justifications that have and continue to shape Western and American politics and society.
Deep-Dive FIG: Please note this FIG contains an intermediate course at the 300-level. This course has been vetted by First Year Programs to ensure first-term students can achieve success. The instructor will be available to assist students along the way.
Students explore the intersection of topics by taking the following course package:
PHIL 199 FYE Seminar - FIG Seminar, 1-credit
PHIL 307 Social and Political Philosophy - CoreEd or major satisfying course, 4-credits
This course explores the philosophical questions that are most central to our lives as residents and citizens of political states, subjected to political authority and power. What is sovereignty and where does it come from? How is political power organized and what role does it play in the life of an individual? Do political institutions proceed directly from human nature, or is human nature shaped by the political? We will explore such ideas as freedom, justice, natural law, natural rights, and the social contract.
PS 106 Power, Politics and Inequality - CoreEd or major satisfying course, 4-credits
Examines power and politics through the lens of inequality, focusing on the constant struggle between the haves and the have-nots. Primary purpose is to challenge students to re-explore the nation’s most salient political struggles through the lens of inequality and discrimination, rather than focusing on the values of democracy and majority rule—students will examine how our nation’s history is energized by the constant battle to resolve conflicts that pit majority wants against minority demands. To that end students will be required to adopt a range of perspectives and explore historical events through the lens of race, gender, sexuality, income and age.
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