Course Description and Objectives
When is it permissible to break a law? And on what foundations (if there are any) does legitimate law-breaking rest? This course addresses these questions drawing on three political-philosophical traditions – the civil disobedience tradition, radical revolutionary politics, and anarchism – each of which offers a particular understanding of law, its foundations, and principles for when legal authority should be defied.
Over the course of the term students will develop the following intellectual skills:
- Articulate general principles of the three political-philosophical orientations of civil disobedience, revolutionary politics, and anarchism, the primary differences between these traditions, and the diversity of viewpoints within the individual traditions
- Adopt different disciplinary perspectives — including philosophical, religious, political, legal, and historical perspectives — on the three traditions under scrutiny
- Reflect on how the positions have been put into practice and to what degree movements of principled law-breaking have been successful
- Propose reasons why movements of principled law-breaking succeed or fail
- Evaluate the process of learning and teamwork through active reflection, highlighting strengths and weaknesses and proposing improvements
- Responsibly find, evaluate, use, and share information relevant to independent and/or team assignments
- Demonstrate competence in asking, appraising and critiquing scholarly questions using modes of inquiry from more than one field and applying methods of evidence-based critical analysis from these fields to draw logical and insightful conclusions
- Work productively with others on a team and make regular and valuable contributions to the team’s graded and ungraded work
Required Texts
Course Expectations and Requirements
Attendance and participation: My basic assumption is that we are mutually dedicated to the common cause of education conceived as the advancement of critical thinking. Because of this basic assumption, I assume that you will come to class prepared and ready to participate in class discussion. This means, first, that you will have completed assigned readings prior to the class meeting. (Many of the readings are difficult and I do not expect you to understand them completely; I do, however, expect you to engage the material seriously and to ask about anything you do not understand.) Second, I expect that you will be ready and willing to discuss the material, i.e., to raise questions, criticisms, thoughts, etc. Class participation is worth 25 points toward your final grade and will be determined by two factors:
- Peer/self evaluations: You will be assigned to a team with which you will complete the major assignment for the class (discussed below); the major part of your participation grade will be based on periodic assessments of team participation performed by you and your teammates.
- General class participation: The remainder of your participation grade will be assigned by me based on your general participation to class discussions.
I also assume that you will be in attendance and on time to all class sessions, barring unforeseen circumstances. Each unexcused absence will result in subtraction of 2 points from your final general participation grade.
Team research project: The primary requirement for the course is a research project that you will complete with a team. I will assign you to a team and it will be your responsibility to collectively generate a research topic, a research agenda, and a final written research paper. The team research project is composed of two components:
- Presentations: You and your team will be responsible for periodic presentations of your topic and your research.
- Research paper: A final collectively written research paper will be due at the end of the term.
Examinations: Three examinations dealing with the course matter will be given over the course of the term.
Grading
A total of 500 points is possible for the class. The point breakdown is as follows: class participation = 75 points (50 points for self/peer assessment + 25 points for general class participation); group project = 275 points (125 points for oral presentations + 150 points for final written research paper); examinations = 150 points (50 points each). The grading scale is as follows:
- 460-500: A
- 450-459: A-
- 440-449: B+
- 410-439: B
- 400-409: B-
- 390-399: C+
- 360-389: C
- 350-359: C-
- 300-349: D
- Below: 300: U
Academic Honesty
A high standard of academic honesty is expected of students in all phases of academic work and college life. Academic dishonesty in any form is a fundamental offense against the integrity of the entire academic community and is always a threat to the standards of the College and to the standing of every student. In taking tests and examinations, doing homework or laboratory work, and writing papers, students are expected to perform with honor. In written and oral work for college courses, students will be held responsible for knowing the difference between proper and improper use of source materials. The improper use of source materials is plagiarism and, along with other breaches of academic integrity, is subject to disciplinary action. . . If the instructor has a concern about a student’s academic honesty, the Associate Dean of the College must be notified (Centre College Catalogue).
The Academic Honesty policy will be strictly upheld.
January 31-February 19:
Civil Disobedience
1/31: Course introdution
2/2: The civil disobedience tradition
- READ: Henry David Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience,” Essays on Civil Disobedience, pp. 22-42
- READ: Mahatma Gandhi, “The theory and Practice of Satyagraha” and “Ahmedabad,” Essays on Civil Disobedience, pp. 92-98
2/5: The civil disobedience tradition (cont.)
- READ: Mahatma Gandhi, “Satyagraha (Noncooperation),” and “Limitations of Satyagraha,” Essays on Civil Disobedience, pp. 99-111
- READ: Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Essays on Civil Disobedience, pp. 132-148
2/7: The theory of civil disobedience
- READ: John Rawls, “The Justification of Civil Disobedience”
- READ: Cambridge Companion to Civil Disobedience, pp. 105-127
2/9: Team meetings
- READ: Pina Terricona & Joe Luca, “Successful Teamwork: A Case Study”
2/12: Problematizing the theory of civil disobedience
- READ: Cambridge Companion to Civil Disobedience, pp. 29-56
2/14: Problematizing the theory of civil disobedience (cont.)
- READ: Cambridge Companion to Civil Disobedience, pp. 56-80
2/16: Problematizing the theory of civil disobedience (cont.)
- READ: Cambridge Companion to Civil Disobedience, pp. 203-230
2/19: First exam
February 21-March 15:
Revolutionary Politics
2/21: Team meetings
2/23: The functions of social systems
- READ: Revolutionary Change, pp. 1-60
2/26: Disfunction in social systems
- READ: Revolutionary Change, pp. 61-90
2/28: Revolutions
- READ: Revolutionary Change, pp. 91-151
3/1: Theories of revolution
- READ: Revolutionary Change, pp. 169-196
- READ: The Declaration of Independence
3/4: Team meetings
3/6: Revolutionary practice
- READ: V.I. Lenin, The State and Revolution, chapts. I-III
3/8: Revolutionary practice (cont.)
- READ: V.I. Lenin, The State and Revolution, chapts. IV-VI
3/11: Team meetings
3/13: Team presentations
3/15: Second Exam
3/16-24: Spring Break
March 25-April 8:
Anarchy
3/25: Anarchist theory
- READ: Daniel Guérin, Anarchism: From Theory to Practice, pp. 4-23
3/27: Anarchist theory (cont.)
- READ: Daniel Guérin, Anarchism: From Theory to Practice, pp. 24-41
3/29: Team meetings
4/1: Anarchist writings
- READ: Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakinun, God and the State
4/3: Anarchist writings (cont.)
- READ: Emma Goldman, Anarchism and Other Essays, chapts 1, 3, & 5
4/5: Anarchist writings (cont.)
- READ: Walter Benjamin, “Critique of Violence”