Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POL2059: Political Thought of Modernity

This module descriptor refers to the 2017/8 academic year.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Themes and authors covered may vary slightly from year to year. Some of the authors and themes covered may comprise:
Rousseau’s critique of civilisation, the origins of inequality and its consequence; The Social Contract and the General Will.

Burke on rationalism and custom, radical and conservative Freedom, and Burkes response to the French Revolution and his critics.

Paine and Natural Rights theory.

Wollstonecraft and the beginning of feminism thought; the socialization of men and women.

Kants ideas of the Enlightenment, of Public right, of Perpetual peace and cosmopolitan duties.

Hegels Philosophy of Rights account of abstract right, civil society, the state, international order and world history.

From Hegel to Marx: the critique of religion and the materialisation of alienation.

Marxs theory of history, structure and change; his critique of capitalism.

Mills Utilitarianism, his essay On Liberty, and The Subjection of Women.

Nietzsche on the death of God and the illusion of morality, on Overman and its implications for politics.

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
27.5	122.5

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and teaching activity	163.5	11 x 1.5 hour lectures
Scheduled Learning and teaching activity	10	10 x 1 hour tutorials
Scheduled Learning and teaching activity	1	Review Session
Guided Independent Learning	122.5	Independent study

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).