K0SP 2015 - Methology and Epistemology for Political Theorists

THE AIM of this course is to inspire you, as well as to develop your critical capacities as political thinkers and writers. By carefully analyzing the work of a diverse set of brilliant and influential philosophers, you will get the chance to examine different ways of doing political theory, different solutions to problems of knowledge and method, and different ways of creating and presenting complex arguments. This will enable you to become more self-conscious about the ways you think and write, as well as more aware of the subtleties of style, voice and methodology in normative political thought.

I am in the process of rethinking the reading list, so have not yet decided what I will keep from the last time I taught it in Autumn 2023. I love most of the things we read then (and in previous years) but there are new discussions in philosophical methodology that it might be nice to explore. On the other hand, it would be sad to lose the sections on philosophical approaches to race and gender, as I realise students don’t often get a chance to discuss such issues. So I need to think and talk to some previous and current students to see what they would most like.

There will be no readings for the first week of the course. Instead we will discuss the aims of the course, the readings that you will be doing, and the way to approach them.

None. Open to students from other Schools at Sciences Po as well as other Specialities.

Participative Seminar – you have to take part in class and read the texts before hand.

2 essays over the course of the term.

Normally at least two articles a week or the equivalent. Some of these are really quite difficult, but students seem to have survived and to have enjoyed the class thus far – so hopefully you will as well.