Political Science 380: African American Political Thought

In this course we will explore African American Political Thought. This is not a “survey” course. Instead, we will read a “selection” of African American thinkers from the era of American slavery to the era of #BlackLivesMatter.

Political Science 312: Rebels, Thugs, & Skeptics: 20th Century Political Theory

In this course, we will explore 20th century Western political theory through an examination of the works of several prominent thinkers. Our focus will be on the concept of power. How do human beings exercise power over one another?

Political Science 220: Great Political Thinkers

We will explore several ultimate questions in politics through an examination of the works of Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, Marx, and hooks. Most fundamentally, we will be concerned with the two questions that I consider to be at the core of political philosophy.

Political Science 380: Topics in Political Theory: Douglass & Baldwin

In this course, we will engage in sustained reflection on the ideas of Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) and James Baldwin (1924-1987). Douglass was born into slavery in 1818. Soon after he escaped in 1838, he emerged as one of the country’s leading abolitionist writers and orators. For the next six decades, Douglass was one of the most prominent figures in American political and intellectual life.

Political Science 320: Law, Rights, & Justice

In this course, we will focus on several questions related to the interplay of law, politics, and morality in the United States. What is justice? How do we know what justice requires? What does it mean to have a right? How do we know we have rights? What rights do we have? When is it legitimate for some people to use the law to force others to behave in certain ways? How do we know such exercises of legal authority are justified?

Political Science 313: What is Freedom?

Freedom is perhaps the most sought-after goal of revolutionaries and one of the ideas most ardently defended by political theorists. Across the philosophical and political spectrums, there seems to be agreement: freedom is a good thing that, if absent, ought to be pursued and, if present, ought to be defended. But what is freedom? Why do human beings want to be free?