Classics of Social and Political Thought-1

IDST 218: Foundations of Social TheoryGeorgetown University

Professor R. Boyd

Office Hours: ICC 674, Mondays 3-5 PM and by appointment.

rb352@georgetown.eduRequired Texts: are available for purchase at the University Bookstore.Aristotle, Politics

Thomas Hobbes, LeviathanAdam Smith, Wealth of NationsKarl Marx, Marx-Engels ReaderEmile Durkheim, Division of Labor in Society

Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its DiscontentsMichel Foucault, History of Sexuality, Volume 1

*Additional short readings to be distributed by email as pdfs.

Goals:

This seminar serves as the gateway course for the Program in Social and Political Thought. Its central purpose is to trace the origins and development of the modern social sciences, particularly the evolution of the disciplines of political science, economics, psychology, and sociology. We will begin by considering the writings of Aristotle, arguably the founder of the social scientific enterprise. We will then consider how the subsequent traditional of modern social theory both draws uponas well as deviates fromAristotles foundational understanding of the nature of human beings and their relationship to the political community. Although the course is organized roughly in chronological terms, we will also be concerned with certain core themes that run throughout the tradition of social theory: namely, the tension between individualism and community; between a fixed core of human nature and the historicity of manners and morals; the limits of the modern scientific attempt to model and predict human conduct; the tension between the rational, irrational, and sub-rational in understanding human behavior; the naturalness of political life and the political community and its relationship to the social, familial, or religious spheres; the distinctiveness of modern capitalist society, both its possibilities and pathologies; the economic, moral, and sociological effects of the division of labor; and the locus of power in modern social relations.Class Schedule:

The Foundations of the Scientific Study of SocietyWeek 1 (Sept 1 and 8?): Aristotle, Politics, Books 1 and 3 (http://www.constitution.org/ari/polit_00.htm).Week 2 (Sept 13 and 15): Francis Bacon, Novum Organum, selectionsWeek 3 (Sept 20 and 22): Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, selectionsWeek 4 (Sept 27 and 29): Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, selectionsThe Problem of Modern Society?Week 5 (Oct 4 and 6): Karl Marx, On the Jewish Question, Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts, German IdeologyWeek 6 (Oct 11 and 13); Karl Marx, Capital, selectionsWeek 7 (Oct 18 and 20): Emile Durkheim, Division of Labor in SocietyWeek 8 (Oct 25 and 27): Emile Durkheim, Division of Labor in Society; Maurice Halbwachs, On the Social Framework of MemoryWeek 9 (Nov 1 and 3): Georg Simmel, Conflict, The Stranger, Group Expansion and the Development of Individuality, and Metropolis and Mental Life Week 10 (Nov 8 and 10): Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of CapitalismRationality, Objectivity, and Social Inquiry

Week 11 (Nov 15 and 17): Max Weber, Science as a Vocation, The Meaning of Ethical Neutrality,Week 12 (Nov 22 and 24): Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its DiscontentsWeek 13 (Nov 29 and Dec 1): Michel Foucault, History of SexualityWeek 14 (Dec 6 and Dec 8): Clifford Geertz, Thick Description,; Michael Oakeshott, Rationalism in Politics and Rational Conduct; Frank H. Knight, Ethics and the Economic Interpretation and the Limitations of the Scientific Method in EconomicsCourse Requirements

1. 2 short analytical papers (4-5 pages each) from a list of assigned topics50%.

2. Final paper (ca. 15 pages) addressing the writings of at least two thinkers, topic to be worked out in consultation with me (1-page topic/ proposal due 12/1) 50%.3. There is no formal grade for attendance and class participation, but both are expected of all students, particularly in a course such as this one. As a further incentive, students who have distinguished themselves by regular and thoughtful participation in class discussions can expect to receive the higher grade in the many cases when they find themselves on the border between two letter grades (e.g. a full A rather than an A-, or an A- rather than a B+).