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Grad Seminar Outline (2023F)
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PHIL 5350A

Topics in Social or Political Philosophy

Political Authority

Fall 2023

Course Outline

I. Admin

Instructor: Gabriele Contessa

Office Hours: Wednesday, 10:35am–11:25am or by appointment

Zoom Link to Virtual Office: See Admin section in Brightspace

Zoom Link to Virtual Seminar Room: See Admin section in Brightspace

E-mail: gabriele_contessa@carleton.ca

II. Description

In this seminar, we will explore a number of questions related to political authority and related notions (such as political obligation and political legitimacy). The questions will include: ‘Do we have a duty to obey political authorities?,’ ‘If we do, where does the duty come from?,’ and ‘What, if anything, makes political authority legitimate?’

III. Prerequisites

Registration in a Philosophy Master’s Program.

IV. Readings

All of the readings for this course will be made available on Brightspace.

V. Grading

  1. Take-Home Exam (Essay) (25% of your final grade);
  2. Essay Proposal (5% of your final grade);
  3. Discussion Questions (20% of your final grade);
  4. Attendance and Participation (50% of your final grade).

All final grades are subject to the approval of the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.

VI. Course Organization and Course Policies

Overview. In a seminar, the role of the instructor is to lead and facilitate the discussion among students (instead of lecturing them). Seminars encourage students to adopt a more active approach to learning, to engage more directly with the issues discussed, and to take responsibility for their own learning. This approach is supported by empirical studies that suggest that, while lecturing might give students a false sense of understanding, actively engaged students actually learn more (see, e.g., (Deslaurier et al 2019) and (Carpenter et al 2020)). However, the success of a seminar partly depends on everyone doing their part. This includes, among other things, doing the readings, submitting thoughtful and relevant discussion questions, and making constructive contributions to the discussion in class.  

Attendance and Participation. Attendance and participation are crucial to the success of a seminar. You are strongly encouraged to contribute to the class discussion. For every session you attend, you will receive a participation grade based on the quantity and the quality of your contributions to the class discussion (see table below). If your only contribution to the class discussion is asking your discussion question and giving your tentative answer, then your participation level is considered ‘Minimal’. In order to receive a Satisfactory grade or above, you have to contribute to the class discussion more than just to ask your discussion question and give your tentative answer. While the most important way for you to contribute to the discussion is by speaking in class, contributions you make to the discussion forums on cuLearn will also count towards your participation grade.

Please note that, unless exceptional circumstances (e.g. illness) prevent you from attending, failure to attend a session will result in an ‘Absent’ for that session, which is equivalent to 0%. 

Take-Home Exam (Essay). Your Take-Home Exam will consist of an essay of up to 2,500 words (but shorter essays are welcome). The Essay should develop the ideas on your Essay Proposal in light of the feedback I have given you on the Essay Proposal (see below). While there is some latitude as to the topic of the essay, the essay must (i) engage directly with some of the ideas and the arguments we have encountered in the readings for the seminar, (ii) have a clear thesis, and (iii) have a clear argument in support of that thesis. The Essay should be submitted through Brightspace by the last day of the exam period.

Failing to submit your Final Paper will result in a 0% on that component of your final grade. Late Final Papers will receive a 5-point penalty for every day they are late.

Essay Proposal. The essay proposal presents an outline of the Essay you plan to write for your Take-Home Exam. Minimally, it should include the thesis of your Essay as well as outline your argument in support of that thesis. The word limit for the Paper Proposal is 500 words. The Essay Proposal is to be submitted through Brightspace.

Please note that Failing to submit your Paper Proposal will result in a 0% on that component of your final grade. Late Paper Proposals will receive a 5-point penalty for every day they are late.

Discussion Questions. Before each meeting, you are expected to submit one discussion question for each of the readings to be discussed that day (i.e., article or chapter). Discussion questions can be either interpretive (e.g. ‘What does the author mean in this passage?’) or evaluative (e.g. ‘Do you think that the argument that the author gives in this passage works?’). Discussion questions need to be posted on Brightspace before the start of the meeting. Regardless of whether your question is specific (i.e. a question that refers to a specific passage) or general questions (i.e. a question about the reading in general), it has to make clear and explicit reference to the relevant reading. If your question refers to a specific passage, please give a clear reference and please provide a full quotation of the passage in your post. Generic questions (i.e. questions that do not clearly and explicitly relate to the reading but only to the general topic of the reading) are not acceptable and will not receive full credit. During the meeting, students will take turns asking their discussion questions and giving tentative answers to their own questions (e.g. ‘I don’t think that the argument works because… ’). Your tentative answer to your question does not have to be submitted with your discussion questions but will count as part of your participation mark (see below for details). If, for whatever reason, you are unable to attend either of the meetings of the week, you should still submit your discussion questions if possible.

Please note that, unless exceptional circumstances (e.g., illness or family emergency) prevent you from submitting a discussion question, failing to submit a discussion questions on time will result in an ‘Incomplete’, which is equivalent to a 0%. 

If exceptional circumstances (e.g., illness or family emergency) prevent you from submitting a discussion question, please notify me by email as soon as possible.

Academic Integrity. You are responsible for ensuring that you understand the nature of academic offences (such as plagiarism and unauthorized collaboration), as defined in the Undergraduate Calendar, and to avoid both committing them and aiding or abetting academic offences perpetrated by other students. Please be aware that I am bound to report any suspected academic offence directly to the Office of the Dean.

Copyright. Carleton University is committed to compliance in all copyright matters. Noncompliance is a violation of the Canadian Copyright Act. In addition to any actions that might be taken by any copyright owner or its licensing agent, the University will take steps against any breach of this policy. In Canada, copyright for a work is given automatically to the creator of the work. The work does not need to be marked or declared as copyrighted in order to be copyrighted. The majority of works in Canada are copyrighted. It is important for students to understand and respect copyright. Copyright determines your usage rights for a particular work, which includes textbooks, web pages, videos and images, both electronic and hard copy. Students may not photocopy entire or major portions of books or other works, even if it is only for their personal use. Fair dealing makes some allowances for copying small portions of works. See Carleton's Fair Dealing Policy for more information. If journal articles or portions of works are available through the library, either as hard copies or electronically, students may make a single copy for their personal use. Students may not distribute copies of works that are under copyright. For more information, please see the Carleton's Fair Dealing Policy and the library's copyright website: www.library.carleton.ca/copyright.

VII. Seminar Schedule

The seminar schedule can be accessed here.

VIII. Learning Objectives

  1. Develop a comprehensive understanding of the concept of political authority and its philosophical foundations.
  2. Explore and evaluate major political theories that address the sources, justifications, and limitations of political authority.
  3. Examine the normative implications associated with political authority.
  4. Enhance research skills by critically analyzing scholarly works, primary sources, and case studies related to political authority, and effectively communicate findings through class discussions and written assignments.
  5. Foster the ability to engage in constructive debates and discussions about complex issues related to political authority, while respecting diverse viewpoints and challenging assumptions.
  6. Synthesize the knowledge gained throughout the seminar and reflect on personal perspectives on political authority, demonstrating a nuanced understanding of its multifaceted nature.

Department of Philosophy and Carleton University Policies (Fall/Winter 2023-24)

Assignments:

Please follow your professor’s instructions on how assignments will be handled electronically.  There will be NO hard copies placed in the essay box this coming year.  

Evaluation:

Standing in a course is determined by the course instructor subject to the approval of the Faculty Dean.  This means that grades submitted by the instructor may be subject to revision.  No grades are final until they have been approved by the Dean.

Deferrals for Term Work:

If students are unable to complete term work because of illness or other circumstances beyond their control, they should contact their course instructor no later than three working days of the due date.  Normally, any deferred term work will be completed by the last day of the term.  Term work cannot be deferred by the Registrar.  

Deferrals for Final Exams:

Students are expected to be available for the duration of a course including the examination period.  Occasionally, students encounter circumstances beyond their control where they may not be able to write a final examination or submit a take-home examination. Examples of this would be a serious illness or the death of a family member.  If you miss a final examination and/or fail to submit a take-home examination by the due date, you may apply for a deferral no later than three working days after the original due date (as per the University Regulations in Section 4.3 of the Undergraduate Calendar). Visit the Registrar’s Office for further information.  

Plagiarism:

It is the responsibility of each student to understand the meaning of ‘plagiarism’ as defined in the Undergraduate or Graduate Calendars, and to avoid both committing plagiarism and aiding or abetting plagiarism by other students.  (Section 10.1 of the Undergraduate Calendar Academic Regulations)

Academic Accommodation:

You may need special arrangements to meet your academic obligations during the term:

Important Dates:

Sept. 6        Classes start.

Sept. 19        Last day for registration and course changes for fall term and fall/winter (two-term) courses.

Sept. 30        Last day for entire fee adjustment when withdrawing from fall term or two-term courses. Withdrawals after this date will result in a permanent notation of WDN on the official transcript.  

Oct. 9        Statutory holiday. University closed.

Oct. 23-27        Fall Break – no classes.

Nov. 24        Last day for summative tests or examinations, or formative tests or examinations totaling more than 15% of the final grade, before the official examination period.  

Dec. 8        Last day of fall term classes. Classes follow a Monday schedule. Last day for academic withdrawal from fall term courses. Last day for handing in term work and the last day that can be specified by a course instructor as a due date for term work for a fall term course.

Dec. 10-22        Final examinations for fall term courses and mid-term examinations in two-term courses. Examinations are normally held all seven days of the week.

Dec. 22        All take-home examinations are due.

Jan. 8        Classes begin.

Jan. 19        Last day for registration and course changes in the winter term.

Jan. 31        Last day for a full fee adjustment when withdrawing from winter term courses or from the winter portion of two-term courses. Withdrawals after this date will result in a permanent notation of WDN on the official transcript.  

Feb. 19        Statutory holiday. University closed.

Feb. 19-23        Winter Break – no classes.

Mar. 15        Last day for academic withdrawal from fall/winter and winter courses.

Mar. 27        Last day for summative tests or examinations, or formative tests or examinations totaling more than 15% of the final grade, in winter term or fall/winter courses before the official examination period.  

Mar. 29        Statutory holiday.  University closed.

Apr. 10        Last day of two-term and winter term classes. Classes follow a Friday schedule. Last day for handing in term work and the last day that can be specified by a course instructor as a due date for two-term and for winter term courses.

Apr. 11-12        No classes or examinations take place.

Apr. 13-25        Final examinations for winter term and two-term courses. Examinations are normally held all seven days of the week.

Apr. 25        All take-home examinations are due.  

Addresses:

Department of Philosophy:

www.carleton.ca/philosophy

520-2110

Registrar’s Office:        

www.carleton.ca/registrar

520-3500

Academic Advising Centre:                 

www.carleton.ca/academicadvising

520-7850

Writing Services:        

http://www.carleton.ca/csas/writing-services/ 

520-3822

MacOdrum Library        

http://www.library.carleton.ca/

520-2735