DMS: Teaching in Progress

Teaching in Progress

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Phil 320B Syllabus • Phil 320B Readings • Phil 320B Calendar

Course Description: Freedom is not as simple a concept as its use in modern political discourse makes it seem. There are countless philosophical distinctions that can be drawn, with no decisive reason to fall on one side or the other. The aim of this course is to gain an understanding of what freedom means, what freedom actually is, and what implications follow from that. We will discuss the changing face of freedom, the distinction between ‘freedom from’ and ‘freedom to’, internal freedom and psychological autonomy, normative freedom and moral constraints, political freedom and the social contract, individuality in a free society, social progress in a free society, economic freedom and unequal resources, and the value and measurement of freedom itself. In addition, the last segment of the course will be freely chosen by the students. Throughout the semester, you are invited to suggest readings that you feel have been overlooked in our study of freedom. I won’t censor the list of suggestions in any way. Near the end of the semester the class will vote on what they want to read, and during the last week I’ll teach whatever three articles that get the most votes.

Required Texts: The principal text of the course is Freedom: A Philosophical Anthology, edited by Carter, Kramer, and Steiner. All of the remaining readings will be made available on E-Reserve (password: gulag) or can be found online. The URL for ERes is http://eres.library.arizona.edu/ -- just type in my last name. The course webpage will link to those articles that can be found online.

Format of the Course: I expect rigorous student participation. You should think of class time as a guided reading group, not as an hour-long presentation where you just sit back and listen passively. Although I will briefly lecture at the beginning of some sessions, my version of lecturing involves students shouting out the vast majority of the answers. You should come to class having not only done the readings, but having reflected on the material. Class time is an opportunity to learn from one another by defending different interpretations of the text and by debating real life applications of the theories invoked, but this cannot be accomplished without your active involvement.

Degree of Difficulty: This is an upper-division class, so the pace of the readings will be brisk and the material will often be highly theoretical in nature. On average there will be 15 pages of reading assigned for each session. If you won’t commit yourself to doing four to five hours of reading per week, then you should think seriously about dropping. That being said, a prior familiarity with the material is NOT required in order to do well in this course – genuine effort should be sufficient.

Academic Freedom: This course is being taught without any ideological slant, and while the default assumption is that living in a free society is a good thing, most of the course will be spent canvassing the various complications endemic to so simple a view. Students have a right to disagree with me and each other without any penalty to their grade whatsoever. No belief will be considered too sacred to question openly, nor will any belief be censored from discussion. I will make every effort to ensure that this is an environment receptive to informed controversy, if in exchange students agree not to hold back for fear of being in the minority or sounding foolish. The right to disagree is not absolute however – students are expected to be civil and to avoid personal attacks, and the arguments they give should be well-reasoned. It’s not enough to merely assert your opinions loudly.

Assessment: Students get a choice in how they’ll be assessed. There are two options, outlined below. Students must inform me of their choice no later than February 8th, and the decision is final once made. If you are taking the second option, you are encouraged to skim ahead in order to find a topic that appeals to you, rather than simply writing on whatever we’ve read at the time. All written work is due – in person – at the beginning of class, unless otherwise specified.

o 25% – Midterm #1 (Feb 22). Short answer format. Several questions will appear on the exam, with students only required to answer some of them.

o 25% – Midterm #2 (Apr 04). Essay format. A list of three questions will be handed out a week before the exam, with one of them appearing on the exam itself.

o 50% – Final Exam (May 14). Essay format. A list of six questions will be handed out a week and a half before the exam, with two of them appearing on the exam itself. Students will have to answer both. The final exam is on Wednesday, May 14 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. It will be held in our usual room.

o 10% – Proposals (Mar 07). Submit two different paper ideas. Each proposal should be 200 to 300 words long, including a thesis as well as a general vision for the paper.

o 15% – Outline (Mar 31). After receiving feedback, select one of your topics. Develop that proposal into an outline. While it needn’t include every point, it should be detailed enough to inform me of the narrative of your paper as a whole, as well as the specific arguments that you’ll be attacking and the contentions that you’ll be making.

o 20% – Rough Draft (Apr 21). Taking my suggestions into account, turn your bullet points into paragraphs. The emphasis is on developing your ideas into argument form, not on convincing your audience per se. It is okay to leave a few of the easier points as mere sketches in order to focus in on the harder ones (although indicate to me in a footnote when you’re doing so). The length should be at least 2000 words.

o 30% – Final Draft (May 12). Respond to by criticisms by improving or modifying your analysis. Discuss possible objections to your views. Expand the paper to touch upon new implications or to feature additional evidence. Your arguments should be fully developed and polished. The length should be at least 4000 words. Leave a hard copy in my department box no later than 10:00 am.

Extra Credit: Write an essay analyzing a movie where a major theme is freedom. First, distill the conception of freedom at work in the film, comparing its real implications with those assumed by the filmmakers. Second, apply some of the theories and distinctions learned during the course in order to discuss whether the depiction of freedom in the film is philosophically sound. Depending on quality, this can add a maximum of 5% to your semester grade. Turn it in no later than April 30.

Grading: Although the university does not use pluses and minuses when reporting final grades, I include them on individual exams and writing assignments. If you have a reason to suspect that I have erred in my grading of an exam or an assignment, put your objection into writing within one week. Explain where you think the mistake was made and provide evidence that it really was a mistake. I’ll reconsider your grade, and while I’ll never lower it, there’s no guarantee that I’ll raise it.

Attendance: Attendance is not mandatory. However, it is remarkably easy to fall behind in this course, and graded performance is likely to decline the more often one misses. Note that anything said during class is fair game for an exam. Also, unless you have a good excuse for your absence, I will not see it as my job to summarize a missed lecture or discussion for you during my office hours.

Schedule Conflicts: If you know in advance that you won’t be able to take an exam or turn in work on the day specified by the syllabus, due to some documented scheduling conflict, you must see me no later than one week prior to the exam date or deadline in order to reschedule. There is a chance I will ask you to take the exam or turn in the work before the date given on the syllabus, not after.

Missed Exams: Only under extraordinary circumstances (i.e. severe medical emergencies) will you be allowed to make up an exam if you are a no-show. If a make-up exam is granted, it must be taken within a week of the original exam date. Otherwise you will receive a zero on that exam.

Late Work: The same policy about extraordinary circumstances applies here. For each calendar day late, 10% of the total possible points will be subtracted from your score. For example, work normally worth 85% will be given a 75% after one day, a 65% after two days, and so forth. It is wise to turn in work even after that particular grade has fallen into the failing range, as it is better for your final grade to receive, say, 30% of the total possible points on something than it is to receive none.

Academic Integrity: As a student at the University of Arizona, you are required to know and abide by all of the university policies concerning academic integrity and academic honesty. Familiarizing yourself with these policies is your responsibility. Any act of plagiarism (including improper paraphrasing) and/or any act of cheating will result not only in you failing this class, but also in a recommendation of suspension. If you are in any way uncertain about what constitutes plagiarism or cheating, you are encouraged to see me in advance for clarification rather than pleading ignorance after the fact. In addition, all students are required to read and abide by the UA Policy on Threatening Behavior by Students, and all documents referenced therein..

Accommodations: Students with physical, psychological, or learning disabilities who anticipate needing accommodations in this course are encouraged to register with the S.A.L.T. Center or the Disability Resource Center. Students with special needs are reminded that they must submit appropriate documentation as soon as possible if they are requesting special accommodations.

Miscellaneous: All holidays or special events observed by organized religions will be honored for those students who show affiliation with that particular religion. Absences pre-approved by the UA Dean of Students (or Dean’s designee) will also be honored. If an exam date or due date coincides with a holiday or other approved absence, see: ‘Schedule Conflicts’ above for more information.

Shameless Caveat: This syllabus is subject to change, as is the reading schedule below.

Fri, Jan 18: Benjamin Constant (1819), “The Liberty of the Ancients Compared with That of the Moderns.” FPA: 15 - 20.

Wed, Jan 23: Fareed Zakaria (2003), “The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad.” ERes: Ch. 1.

Mon, Jan 28: [1] Isaiah Berlin (1969), “Two Concepts of Liberty.” FPA: 96 – 103, 403 - 406. [2] Isaiah Berlin (1969), "Four Essays on Liberty." FPA: 131 - 132.

Wed, Jan 30: Gerald MacCallum Jr. (1967), "Negative and Positive Freedom." FPA: 70 - 78.

Fri, Feb 01: [1] J. P. Day (1970), "On Liberty and the Real Will." FPA: 59 - 69. [2] Richard Arneson (1985), "Freedom and Desire." FPA: 138 - 147.

Mon, Feb 04: [1] Charles Taylor (1979), "What's Wrong with Negative Liberty." FPA: 153 – 162. [2] Christopher Megone (1987), "One Concept of Liberty." FPA: 163 - 165.

Wed, Feb 06: Richard Flathman (1987), "The Philosophy and Politics of Freedom." FPA: 166 - 175.

Fri, Feb 08: [1] Stanley Benn (1988), "A Theory of Freedom." FPA: 326 - 332. [2] Gerald Dworkin (1988), "The Theory and Practice of Autonomy." FPA: 333 - 337.

Mon, Feb 11: [1] Felix Oppenheim (1981), "Political Concepts." FPA: 192 - 198. [2] William Connolly (1983), "The Terms of Political Discourse." FPA: 199 - 201.

Wed, Feb 13: [1] Benn & Weinstein (1971), “Being Free to Act, and Being a Free Man.” FPA: 208 - 215. [2] Robert Nozick (1974), “Anarchy, State, and Utopia.” FPA: 202 - 204. [3] G. A. Cohen (1981), “Illusions about Private Property and Freedom.” FPA: 205 - 207.

Fri, Feb 15: [1] David Miller (1983), "Constraints on Freedom." FPA: 216 - 224. [2] Felix Oppenheim (1985), "'Constraints on Freedom' as a Descriptive Concept." FPA: 225 - 228. [3] David Miller (1985), "Reply to Oppenheim." FPA: 229 - 232.

Mon, Feb 18: [1] Kristján Kristjánsson (1996), "Social Freedom." FPA: 233 - 239. [2] Richard Flathman (1987), “The Philosophy and Politics of Freedom.” FPA: 240 - 241.

Wed, Feb 20: [1] Hillel Steiner (1994), “An Essay on Rights.” FPA: 242 - 244. [2] Matthew Kramer (2003), "The Quality of Freedom." FBA: 245 - 248.

Mon, Mar 03: John Locke (1690), "Two Treatises of Government." Available Online: Bk. II, Ch. 2 - 3, 5.

Wed, Mar 05: John Locke (1690), "Two Treatises of Government." Available Online: Bk. II, Ch. 6 - 7.

Fri, Mar 07: John Locke (1690), "Two Treatises of Government." Available Online: Bk. II, Ch. 8 - 9.

Mon, Mar 10: Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762), "The Social Contract." Available Online: Bk. I & FPA: 10 - 11.

Fri, Mar 28: John Stuart Mill (1869), "On Liberty." Available Online: Ch. 3b & 4a. .

Mon, Mar 31: John Stuart Mill (1869), "On Liberty." Available Online: Ch. 4b & 5a

Wed, Apr 02: John Stuart Mill (1869), "On Liberty." Available Online: 5b & wrap-up.

Mon, Apr 07: Karl Marx (1845), "The German Ideology." Available Online: Ch. 1: Pt. A §2-4 & Pt. B (skip §2).

Wed, Apr 09: Karl Marx (1845), "The German Ideology." Available Online: Ch. 1: Pt. C & Pt. D. Focus on the latter.

Fri, Apr 11: F. A. Hayek (1973), "Law, Legislation and Liberty: Vol I." ERes: Ch. 2.

Mon, Apr 14: F. A. Hayek (1973), "Law, Legislation and Liberty: Vol I." ERes: Ch. 3.

Wed, Apr 16: Frederic Bastiat (1850), "That Which is Seen, and That Which is Not Seen." Online: Intro, § I - VI.

Fri, Apr 18: [1] F. A. Hayek (1960), “The Constitution of Liberty.” FPA: 356 - 357. [2] Bruno Leoni (1961), “Freedom and the Law.” FPA: 358 - 361. [3] Murray Rothbard (1982), “The Ethics of Liberty.” FPA: 362 - 364.

Mon, Apr 21: [1] Philippe Van Parijs (1995), “Real Freedom for All.” FPA: 366 - 369. [2] G. A. Cohen (1995), “Self-ownership, Freedom, and Equality.” FPA: 370 - 375. [3] Amartya Sen (1992), “Inequality Reexamined.” FPA: 376 - 379.

Wed, Apr 23: [1] John Rawls (2001), “Justice as Fairness: A Restatement.” FBA: 407 - 412. [2] F. A. Hayek (1960), “The Constitution of Liberty.” FBA: 396 - 402.

Fri, Apr 25: [1] Joseph Raz (1986), “The Morality of Freedom.” FBA: 413 - 416. [2] Thomas Hurka (1987), “Why Value Autonomy?” FPA: 420 - 422. [3] Amartya Sen (1992), “Inequality Reexamined.” FPA: 417 - 419.

Mon, Apr 28: [1] Joel Feinberg (1978), “The Interest in Liberty on the Scales.” FPA: 423 - 428. [2] Ronald Dworkin (1977), "Taking Rights Seriously." FPA: 429-433. [1] Ian Carter (1999), "A Measure of Freedom." FPA: 434 - 439.

Wed, Apr 30: [1] Introduction to Part IX. FPA: 443 - 445. [2] Hillel Steiner (1983), “How Free: Computing Personal Liberty.” FPA: 446 - 453. [3] Ian Carter (1999), “A Measure of Freedom.” FPA: 454 - 462.