Universitat Internacional de Catalunya

Human Thought 2

Human Thought 2
3
7809
1
Second semester
OB
Economic Framework
The individual, Business and Society
Main language of instruction: Spanish

Other languages of instruction: English

If the student is enrolled for the English track then classes for that subject will be taught in the same language.

Teaching staff


Dr. PASCUAL BUENO, Ernesto Manuel - empascual@uic.es

Please make an appointment by e-mail.

English programme: Dr. Remei Agulles ragulles@uic.es

Spanish programme: Dr. Ernesto M. Pascual  empascual@uic.es

Introduction

In the event that the health authorities announce a new period of confinement due to the evolution of the health crisis caused by COVID-19, the teaching staff will promptly communicate how this may effect the teaching methodologies and activities as well as the assessment.


Based on the assumption that students have already acquired basic knowledge about social  thought, we will deal now with some of its most universal expressions: liberalism, conservadurism, progressivism, socialism, anarchism and communism. This course is intended to take a further step towards covering some of the contributions to the main contemporary theoretical debates in the field of political theory and philosophy.

 

Pre-course requirements

There are no formal prerequisites for taking this course. However, it is assumed that the student has the necessary skills to tackle texts of certain conceptual complexity, work on them appropriately, present them in public and discuss their content critically.

Students should also have the habit of reading general information newspapers, both Spanish and foreign.

 

Objectives

Given the scope of the material, we have opted to make an incursion into the work and thought of some of the leading authors in the main streams of contemporary political theory.
This course will therefore focus on:

1. Introducing the main streams, debates and arguments of contemporary regulatory policy theory from a contextualist perspective, that is, guided by the fundamental problems of today’s democracies.

2. Complementing the empirical perspective of human thought using a normative and pluralist approach to values, arguments and assumptions on the basis of which research questions and designs are proposed, whether they implement or evaluate public policies or institutions.

3. Developing a critical perspective towards the analysis of concepts, terms and underlying assumptions of the institutional arrangements and public policies in contemporary democracies.

4. Reviewing arguments, ideas and political concepts and enriching vocabulary to improve the capacity for personal reflection, argumentation, oral presentation and written expression.

5. Relating contemporary theoretical-political debates to the other intellectual and political dimensions of contemporary cultural life: cinema, painting, music, literature.

Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme

  • 11 - To be familiar with the main concepts and theories related to humanity and society.
  • 12 - To be familiar with the main concepts and theories of economic and business philosophy.
  • 33 - To be able to search for, interpret and convey information.
  • 50 - To acquire the ability to relate concepts, analyse and synthesise.
  • 52 - To develop interpersonal skills and the ability to work as part of a team.
  • 53 - To acquire the skills necessary to learn autonomously.
  • 54 - To be able to express one’s ideas and formulate arguments in a logical and coherent way, both verbally and in writing.
  • 56 - To be able to create arguments which are conducive to critical and self-critical thinking.
  • 57 - To acquire skills which favour reading comprehension.
  • 60 - To acquire knowledge that promotes respect for other cultures and habits.
  • 61 - To develop skills for adapting to new situations.
  • 62 - To acquire mechanisms that facilitate the adoption of ethical commitments.
  • 64 - To be able to plan and organise one's work.
  • 65 - To acquire the ability to put knowledge into practice.
  • 68 - To develop mechanisms that encourage sensitivity towards social welfare issues.

Learning outcomes of the subject

Analyse and critically assess the emergence of liberalism.
Analyse and critically evaluate the emergence of interwar fascism and the reconstruction of liberal-democratic thinking after World War II.
Analyse and critically evaluate alternatives to liberalism.
Debate from different theoretical perspectives.
Debate the rebirth of republicanism.
Debate the communitarianism-libertarianism conflict.
Describe the emergence of the State in a modern sense and set out the theoretical contributions of Machiavelli, Bodino and Hobbes.
Describe and comment validly on the new approaches of democratic-liberal thought, as individualistic foundation or the neutrality of institutional designs.
Evaluate the contribution of movements such as feminism, environmentalism and various identity movements.
Explain the redefinition of the concept of citizenship in the context of globalisation.
Describe the impact of the emergence of Christianity on political thought.

 

Syllabus

1. Classical liberalism

2. Conservative liberalism

3. Progressive liberalism

4. Socialism

5. Anarchism

6. Communism

7. Fascism

Teaching and learning activities

Online



Theoretical explanations will alternate with practical activities.

Evaluation systems and criteria

Online



This course is assessed as follows:

Participation: 10%

Practical exercises: 20%

Argumentative Essay: 20%

Final Exam: 50%

There are some special considerations for the conditions of the evaluation system:

In order to pass the course students must pass the final exam with at least 5/10.

Attendance is mandatory.

All submissions must be made through the Virtual Campus in the specific space provided for this purpose. Any submission after the deadline or submitted by other means will be considered not to have been submitted.

Finally, if any type of plagiarism is detected (repetition of projects from other years, websites, books, etc.), during any of the planned activities, the whole module will be failed, and must be repeated in its entirety.

 

Bibliography and resources

See also "Teaching and Learning Materials" below and the Moodle.

Other works:

Manuals:

ARON, R, Las etapas del pensamiento sociológico; Tecnos, 2013. Main Currents in Sociological Thought, Volume 1 and volume 2. Routledge: Abingdon, UK, 2019.

SABINE, G, Historia de la teoría política, FCE, 2000. A History of Political Theory. (4th ed.) Oxford and IBH PUblishing: New Delhi, 2018

SÁNCHEZ AGESTA, Principios de teoría política, Editora Nacional, 1990.

SARTORI, G, Elementos de teoría política, Alianza, 2005.

TOUCHARD. J, Historia de las ideas políticas, Tecnos, 2006.

 

Obras especializadas:

ARENDT, H, ¿Qué es la política?; Paidós, 1997. 

ARENDT, H, Los orígenes del totalitarismo; Alianza, 2006. The origins of totalitarianism. Schocken Books: New York, NY, 2004

ARENDT, H, La promesa de la política; Planeta, 2015. The Promise of Politics. Knopf Doubleday: New York, NY, 2009

ARENDT, H, Verdad y mentira en la política; Página Indómita, 2017. "Truth and politics" in Medina and Wood (eds.) Truth: Engagements Across Philosophical Traditions. John Wiley and Sons: Hoboken, NJ, 2005. "Lying in Politics: Reflections on the Pentagon Papers" in Crises of the Republic. Mariner Books: Boston, MA, 1972.

ARON, R, Ensayo sobre las libertades; Alianza, 2007.

AZURMENDI, M, Todos somos nosotros; Taurus, 2003.

BERLIN, I, Dos conceptos de libertad y otros escritos; Alianza bolsillo, 2001. Liberty. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UK, 2002. 

BERLIN, I, Sobre la libertad; Alianza ensayo, 2004. Liberty. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UK, 2002.

BERLIN, I, La traición de la libertad; FCE, 2004. Freedom and its Betrayal. Princeton University Press: Princeton, NJ, 2014.

BOAZ, D, Liberalismo, una aproximación; Gota a gota, 2007. Libertarianism: A Primer. The Free Press: New York, NY, 1997

CASSIRER, E, El mito del estado; FCE, 2013. The Myth of the State. Yale University Press: New Haven, CT, 2009.

FOUCAULT, M; DELEUZE, G. Un diálogo sobre el poder; Alianza, 2011. "Intellectuals and Power" in Bouchard (ed.), Language, Counter-Memory, Practice: Selected Essays and Interviews. Cornell University Press: Ithaca, NY, 1977

GRAY, J. Liberalismo; Alianza, 1986. Liberalism. University of Minnesota Press: Minneapolis, MN, 1995.

GRAY, J. Las dos caras del liberalismo. Una nueva interpretación de la tolerancia liberal; Paidós, 2001. Two Faces of Liberalism. Polity Press-Blackwell: Cambridge, UK-Oxford, UK, 2000.

HUNTINGTON, S, El choque de civilizaciones; Paidós, 2015. The Clash of Civilizations and ther Remaking of World Order. Simon & Schuster:  New York, NY, 2011.

LÓPEZ QUINTÁS, A. La tolerancia y la manipulación, Rialp, 2012.

LÖWITH, K, El hombre en el centro de la historia, Herder, 2000.

OROZCO DELCLÓS, A. La libertad en el pensamiento; Rialp, 1977.

OTERO NOVAS, J.M. Fundamentalismos enmascarados, Ariel, 2001.

RUIZ SOROA, El esencialismo democrático, Trotta, 2010.

SARTORI, G, La sociedad multiétnica, Taurus, 2001.

SARTORI, G, ¿Qué es la democracia?, Taurus, 2003.

SARTORI, G, La democracia en treinta lecciones, Taurus, 2009.

STRAUSS, L, Qué es la filosofía política, Alianza, 2014. "What Is Political Philosophy?" "Political Philosophy and History" in What Is Political Philosophy? And Other studies. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, IL, 1988

WEBER, M, El político y el ciéntifico; Alianza, 2012. The Vocation Lectures. Hackett: Indianapolis, IN, 2004

WEBER, M, Sociología del poder. Los tipos de dominación; Alianza, 2012. "Types of Rule" in Economy and Society. A New Translation. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA, 2019

WEBER, M, Conceptos sociológicos fundamentales, Alianza, 2014. "Basic Sociological Concepts" in Economy and Society. A New Translation. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA, 2019

ZIMMER R, Las obras esenciales de la filosofía, Ariel, 2012.

 

Teaching and learning material



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