POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY II

The course is consistent with the goals of the degree program because it introduces students to the fundamental problems and concepts of political philosophy, with particular focus on the main theoretical and hermeneutic traditions.

Upon completion of the course, the students will have developed the ability to: understand the meaning of the texts and topics discussed in class; recognize their implications for the contemporary scientific and civil debate; communicate in a more appropriate and informed way.

A good level of general education is required.

Course title: Political Realism, between Ancient and Modern
The course proposes the study of three classics of political realism: The History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides, The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli and Politics as a Vocation by Max Weber. Some of the main problems of Western political philosophy will be investigated in a historical-critical perspective, including the relationship between force and right, the foundation of the territorial state, the conflict between organized forces for the conquest and the preservation of power, the oligarchic and imperialistic tendencies that undermine liberal democracies. The comparison with different hermeneutical perspectives and the attention to the contemporary debate will be constant.

Textbooks:
Tucidide, La guerra del Peloponneso, a cura di F. Ferrari, BUR, Milano 1991 (I, 1-23, 139-145; II, 34-47, 59-65; V, 26, 84-116);
Niccolò Machiavelli, Il Principe, a cura di G. Inglese, Einaudi, Torino 2013;
Max Weber, La politica come professione, trad. it di F. Tuccari, in Id., Il lavoro intellettuale come professione, a cura di M. Cacciari, Mondadori, Milano 2018, pp. 49-135;
Stefano Petrucciani, Modelli di filosofia politica, Einaudi, Torino 2003.

In addition for non-attending students:
Pier Paolo Portinaro, Il realismo politico, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1999.

For any further information on the course topics, please refer to:
Luciano Canfora, Tucidide e l'Impero. La presa di Melo, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1992;
Emanuele Cutinelli-Rèndina, Raffaele Ruggiero (ed.), Machiavelli, Carocci, Roma 2018;
Francesco Tuccari, Il pensiero politico di Max Weber, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1995.

For any further information on the nature of political philosophy, please refer to:
Leo Strauss, Che cos’è la filosofia politica? (1959), (ed. by D. Cadeddu), Nuovo Melangolo, Genova 2011;
Quentin Skinner, Significato e comprensione nella storia delle idee (1969), in Id., Dell’interpretazione, il Mulino, Bologna 2001, pp. 11-57;
Alessandro Passerin d’Entrèves, La filosofia della politica, in Storia delle idee politiche, economiche e sociali, (ed. by L. Firpo), Utet, Torino 1972, vol. VI, pp. 587-608;
Norberto Bobbio, Dei possibili rapporti tra filosofia politica e scienza politica (1971), Per una mappa della filosofia politica (1990), Ragioni della filosofia politica (1990), in Id., Teoria generale della politica, (ed. by M. Bovero), Einaudi, Torino 1999, pp. 5-39;
John Rawls, Quattro ruoli della filosofia politica, in Id., Giustizia come equità. Una riformulazione (2001), Feltrinelli, Milano 2002, pp. 3-7.

The final exam will be oral and will be related to the texts and to contents the discussed throughout the course and to the topics addressed within the textbooks.

The teaching style will be traditional. Students’ participation will be encouraged.

Italian

oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development