P
OLITICAL
P
HILOSOPHY
A
CADEMIC
YEAR
2014/ 2015
Sebastiano Maffettone & Valentina
Gentile
Readings
• Books
Will Kymlicka, Contemporary Political Philosophy.
An Introduction, Oxford University Press,
London and New York, 2002 (2nd edition).
Sebastiano Maffettone, Rawls. An Introduction,
Polity Press, London, 2011
• Additional readings:
WHAT IS POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY?
1. What is Political Philosophy?
Norberto Bobbio provides four different meanings of political
philosophy
1. A description, a theory best republic, i.e. the description of an ideal
model of a State based on some ultimate ethical postulates.
2. The search for the ultimate foundation of political obligation. It is an
answer to the question: Who shall I obey, and why? Two important
concept lie in the background here: legitimation and justification.
3. Determines the general concept of "politics" as an autonomous
activity, distinct from morality and law. Machiavelli is the first
author to define the idea of politics as an autonomous sphere of
human activity provided of its own rules.
4. A critical discourse, concerning the assumptions, and the claims of
objectivity of political science.
2. PP as a description of the best
Republic
David Miller:
“We can define political philosophy as an
investigation into the nature, causes, and
effects of good and bad government”.
(Political Philosophy. A Very Short Introduction,
Oxford...)
Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Allegory of the Good Government, Siena
Allegory of the
Good
Government
Good and bad government s are presented by
Lorenzetti in terms of the character of the ruler
Effects of Good
Government
Allegory of Evil
Government
Effects of Evil
Goverment
2.1 Why do we need political
philosophy?
Three ideas about good and bad government (Miller):
• Good and bad government profoundly affect the quality of
human lives. I really makes a difference to our lives whether
we are governed well or badly;
• the form our government takes is not predetermined: we
have a choice to make.
• We can know what distinguishes good government from
bad: we can trace the effects of different forms of
2.2 On the idea of Government:
Yet, what is a Government? Is it a particular
government, the group of people in authority in
any society at a particular moment?
From the point of view of political philosophy, a
Government is something different. It is the set
of political institutions through which authority is
exercised, the “body of rules, practices and
institutions under whose guidance we live
together in societies” (Miller).
3. PP as a normative inquiry
“The map of contemporary political philosophy is inhabited by several different families of theories. However, despite their differences, political philosophers seem all to “grapple with some common problems, and must do so in light of the same realities of modern life, with its characteristic needs, aspirations, and complexities. Theorists disagree about how to interpret these problems and realities, but we miss the point and purpose of these different theories if we do not keep sight of the common issues they are dealing with. And once we see these common objectives, we can also start to form judgements about whether we are making
3.1 the contemporary debate
Deep shift from traditional understanding of political philosophy: 1. Classic view:
femminism?
communitarism?
Is there a fundamental disagreement between liberty and equality? 2. Contemporary view:
Plurality of values:
• Equality (socialism)
• Liberty (Nozick)
• Contractual Agreement (Rawls)
• Common good (communitarianism)
• Androgyny (femminismo)
• Rights (Dworkin)
Political Philosophy PPI 2014/2015 15
Left =equality Right = liberty
Idea of Justice
