Woodrow Wilson Department of Politics
PLPT
802
G. Klosko
Political
Obligation
248-B Cabell; x3092
Fall
2003 gk@virginia.edu
The following books have been ordered at the University
Bookstore and are on reserve
in Clemons
Library. All articles and shorter
readings are on reserve on line on the class
toolkit page.
J.
Locke, Two Treatises of Government (Cambridge, paperback).
R.
Nozick, Anarchy, State and Utopia (Basic Books, paperback).
A.
J. Simmons, Moral Principles and Political Obligations (Princeton,
paperback).
I
have also ordered a few copies of:
J.
Rawls, A Theory of Justice (Harvard, paperback).
I. Introductory:
Political Obligation and Reflective Equilibrium
Simmons,
Moral Principles and Political Obligations, Chaps. 1‑2.
Rawls, A Theory of Justice (first ed.), pp. 19‑21,
46‑53, 578‑86; (second
ed., pp. 17-19, 40-46, 506-13).
N. Daniels, "Wide Reflective Equilibrium and Theory
Acceptance in Ethics," Journal
of Philosophy, 76 (1979).
D. Jamieson, "Method and Moral Theory," in A
Companion to Ethics, P.
Singer, ed.
L. Green, "Who Believes in Political Obligations?"
in Justifying the State,
J. Sanders and J. Narveson, eds.
II. Consent Theories of
Political Obligation
Locke,
Second Treatise on Civil Government.
Simmons,
Moral Principles and Political Obligations, Chaps. 3‑4.
H.
Pitkin, "Obligation and Consent, I" American Political Science Review,
59 (1965).
J.
Waldron, "Theoretical Foundations of Liberalism," Philosophical
Quarterly, 37 (1987).
M.
Walzer, "Political Alienation and Military Service," in Obligations
(Cambridge,
Mass., 1970).
G. Klosko "Reformist Consent and Political
Obligation," Political Studies, 39 (1991), 676‑90.
III. The "Conceptual
Argument"
H.
Pitkin, "Obligation and Consent, II" American Political Science
Review, 60 (1966).
IV. Nozick: Invisible Hand
Explanations
Nozick,
Anarchy, State, and Utopia, Chaps. 1‑7.
V.
Consequentialist
Theories
Rawls,
A Theory of Justice, Sec. 5.
Rawls,
"Two Concepts of Rules," Philosophical Review, 64 (1955).
G.
Hardin, "The Tragedy of the Commons," Science, 162 (1968).
D.
Parfit, Reasons and Persons, pp. 53‑86.
C.
McMahon, "Autonomy and Authority," Philosophy and PublicAffairs,
16 (1987),
315‑19.
G.
Klosko, "Parfit's Moral Arithmetic and the Obligation to Obey the
Law," Canadian
Journal of Philosophy, 20 (1990).
VI. The Argument from
Gratitude
Simmons,
Moral Principles and Political Obligations, Chap. 7.
A.
D. M. Walker, "Political
Obligation and the Argument from Gratitude," Philosophy
and Public Affairs, 17 (1988).
VII. The Natural Duty of
Justice
Rawls,
Theory of Justice, Secs. 1‑9, 11, 19, 24‑6, 51‑53.
Simmons,
Moral Principles and Political Obligations, Chaps. 6, 8.
T.
Senor, "What If There Are No Political Obligations?" Philosophy
and Public
Affairs, 16 (1987).
Simmons,
"The Anarchist Position: A Reply to Klosko and Senor," Philosophy
and
Public Affairs, 16 (1987).
C.
Wellman, "Toward a Liberal Theory of Political Obligation," Ethics,
111 (2001).
Klosko,
""Political Obligation and the Natural Duties of Justice," Philosophy and
Public Affairs, 23 (1994), 251-70.
VIII. The Principle of
Fairness
C.
Strang, "What If Everyone Did That?" Durham University Journal,
53 (1960).
Nozick,
Anarchy, State, and Utopia, pp. 90‑95.
Simmons,
Moral Principles and Political Obligations, Chap. 5.
Klosko,
"Presumptive Benefit, Fairness, and Political Obligation," Philosophy
and
Public Affairs, 16 (1987).
Simmons,
"The Anarchist Position: A Reply to Klosko and Senor," Philosophy
and
Public Affairs, 16 (1987).
Klosko,
"The Obligation to Contribute to Discretionary Public Goods," Political
Studies, 38
(1990).
Simmons, "Consent, Obligation, and Anarchy," from On
the Edge of Anarchy.
Klosko, "The Natural Basis of Political
Obligation," Social Philosophy and Policy,
18 (2001),
93-114.
Simmons, "Fair Play and Political Obligation: Twenty
Years Later," from Justification
and Legitimacy.
IX. "Associative
Obligations"
R.
Dworkin, Law's Empire, pp. 190-216.
M.
Gilbert, "Group Membership and Political Obligation," Monist, 76
(1993).
J.
Horton, Political Obligation, Chap. 6.
A.
J. Simmons, "Associative Political Obligations," Ethics, 106
(1996).
Requirements
Aside
from doing the reading and discussing it, there are three formal requirements.
1.
Paper of approximately 20 pages, either critical or literature evaluation.
You
are also required to make two in class presentations:
2.
Present one of the readings, and be prepared to lead discussion of it. You
should
choose
an article or single chapter (or other discrete section) of a book. The
presentation
should
be in the 20‑30 minute range. In addition to presenting the piece's main
ideas, you
should
also raise interesting points.
3.
Presentation of paper: in the twenty‑five minute range.