Category III
Political Science Courses for Undergraduate Programme of study
with Political Science as one of the Core Disciplines
(B.A. Programmes with Political Science as non-Major or Minor discipline)
DISCIPLINE SPECIFIC CORE COURSE (DSC-7): Themes in Western Political Philosophy
CREDIT DISTRIBUTION, ELIGIBILITY AND PRE-REQUISITES OF THE
COURSE
Course Credits Credit distribution of the Eligibility Pre-
title & course criteria requisite of
Code Lecture Tutorial Practical/ the course
Practice (if any)
Themes in 4 3 1 - NA NA
Western
Political
Philosophy
MDSC-7
Learning Objectives
The objective of the course is to familiarise the students with the main ideas and themes of Western
Philosophy in Modern times. Traversing through various schools of thought like romantics, liberals
and radicals, that emerged with the period of enlightenment and onset of modernity in Europe, the
course brings into light the important contribution to the developments of the ideas in them. The
course not only develops a conceptual understanding but familiarize students with some of the
important discourses and philosophies that laid the foundation of the modern western political
thought and philosophy. It enhances the understanding of the past and the present challenges and
the contribution of these ideas in the modern world.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course students would be able to:
• Understand the idea of modernity and establish a connection between societal
changes and desired political prescriptions.
• Understand the tools of political argument.
• Identify various shades of political discourses and evaluate them.
• Understand the strengths and weaknesses of various regimes and philosophical
approaches in order to gain a critical perspective on our own.
• To connect up broad philosophical theories and examine their implications for larger
questions surrounding our collective existence.
SYLLABUS OF MDSC-7
UNIT – I (8 Hours)
Modernity and its discourses
Kant as an Enlightenment thinker; Faith on Reason; Autonomy; Ethics and
Politics.
UNIT – II (14 Hours)
Romantics
a. Jean Jacques Rousseau
47
Critique of Modern civilization; Origins of inequality; State of Nature and the
Contract; General Will; Democracy and self-government;
b. Mary Wollstonecraft
Women and paternalism; Sentiment and Reason; legal rights and
representation
UNIT – III (9 Hours)
Liberal
John Stuart Mill
Liberal Utilitarianism; Liberty, suffrage and defence of democracy; subjection
of women
UNIT – IV (14 Hours)
Radicals
a. Hegel
Ethical life: family, civil society and state
b. Karl Marx
Historical materialism; concept of value
Essential/recommended readings
1. Modernity and its discourses
Kant. (1784) ‘What is Enlightenment?’ available at http://theliterarylink.com/kant.html,
Accessed: 19.04.2013
S. Hall (1992) ‘Introduction’, in Formations of Modernity UK: Polity Press pages 1-16 B. Nelson
(2008) Western Political Thought. New York: Pearson Longman, pp. 221-255.
Rawls, J. Lectures on the History of Political Philosophy, Lectures on Rousseau, Harvard
University Press, London pp: 191-229.
2. Romantics
M. Keens-Soper (2003) ‘Jean Jacques Rousseau: The Social Contract’, in M. Forsyth and M.
Keens-Soper (eds) A Guide to the Political Classics: Plato to Rousseau. New York: Oxford
University Press, pp. 171-202.
C. Jones (2002) ‘Mary Wollstonecraft’s Vindications and their Political Tradition’ in C. Johnson
(ed.) The Cambridge Companion to Mary Wollstonecraft, Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, pp. 42-58.
3. Liberal
Mill, J.S. ‘On Liberty’ and other writings, Chapter 1, 3, 4.
Mill, J.S. Utilitarianism (Indiamapolis: Hickett Publishing,2001), Chapter1,2, and 4
Rawls, J. Lectures on the History of Political Philosophy, Lectures on Mill, Harvard University
Press, London Pp251-314
Acton, H.B (1972), John Stuart Mill: Utilitarianism, Liberty and Representative Government,
David Campbell Publishers Ltd.
H. Magid (1987) ‘John Stuart Mill’, in L. Strauss and J. Cropsey (eds), History of Political
Philosophy, 2nd edition. Chicago: Chicago University Press, pp. 784-801.
P. Kelly (2003) ‘J.S. Mill on Liberty’, in D. Boucher, and P. Kelly (eds.) Political Thinkers: From
Socrates to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 324-359.
4. Radicals 48
Hegel’s Philosophy of Right,
https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/works/pr/philosophy-of-right.pdf
J. Cropsey (1987) ‘Karl Marx’, in L. Strauss and J. Cropsey (eds) History of Political
Philosophy, 2ndEdition. Chicago: Chicago University Press, pp. 802-828.
L. Wilde (2003) ‘Early Marx’, in D. Boucher and P. Kelly, P. (eds) Political Thinkers: From
Socrates to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 404-435.
Additional Resources:
A. Bloom (1987) ‘Jean-Jacques Rousseau’, in Strauss, L. and Cropsey, J. (eds.) History of
Political Philosophy, 2nd edition. Chicago: Chicago University Press, pp. 559-580.
A. Skoble and T. Machan (2007) Political Philosophy: Essential Selections, New Delhi:
Pearson Education, pp. 328-354.
B. Ollman (1991) Marxism: An Uncommon Introduction, New Delhi: Sterling Publishers.
G. Blakely and V. Bryson (2005) Marx and Other Four Letter Words, London: Pluto
A. Skoble, and T. Machan (2007) Political Philosophy: Essential Selections, New Delhi:
Pearson Education, pp. 286-327.
Hannah Arendt (1958), The Origins of Totalitarianism, New York: The World Publishing
Company.
Readings in Hindi
सी. एल. वेपर (1954), राज दशर् न का �ा�यन, इलाहबाद: िकताब महल.
जे . पी. सूद (1969), पा�ा� राजनीितक िचंतन , जय प्रकाश नाथ और कंपनी
Note: Examination scheme and mode shall be as prescribed by the
Examination Branch, University of Delhi, from time to time.
49
Discipline Specific Elective (DSE) Courses for Sem – VII
[Category II and III – Multidisciplinary]
DISCIPLINE SPECIFIC ELECTIVE COURSE – 5: Contemporary Debates in Indian Politics
CREDIT DISTRIBUTION, ELIGIBILITY AND PRE-REQUISITES OF THE
COURSE
Course title & Credits Credit distribution of the Eligibility Pre-
Code course criteria requisite
Lecture Tutorial Practical/ of the
Practice course
(if any)
Contemporary 4 3 1 - NA NA
Debates in
Indian Politics
MDSE-5
Learning Objectives
The course is designed with the aim to provide an introduction to contemporary debates around
critical issues in Indian Politics. Having acquired an understanding of the political processes and
political institutions in India, this course encourages students to make sense of contemporary
Indian politics. The themes chosen represent the changing landscape of Indian politics prompting
the question whether the study of politics in contemporary India is in need of new concepts and
analytical tools. The course will enable students to think through the concerns of older paradigms
to address the questions presented by new forms of politics. How, for example, does a citizen
reconcile to be biometrically mapped premised upon a guarantee of social benefits or how does
one view the media as a pillar of democracy in the age of disinformation, social media violence and
weak regulatory mechanisms. What does citizenship mean in the context of documentary regimes
and enumeration practices, what do urban spaces and new forms of informal economy mean for
the labouring poor, and how does the market rearticulate the relationship between land,
displacement, and dispossession.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the course, the students will demonstrate:
• An understanding of contemporary debates around key themes in Indian Politics
• An understanding of the changes being witnessed such as in relation to the rules
governing citizenship, new forms of informal labour, etc.
• Knowledge of established constitutional rights such as free speech, free press and
the challenges in their realisation in practice
SYLLABUS OF MDSE-5
UNIT – I State and citizens (15 hours)
c. Citizenship and National Register of Citizenship (NRC)
d. Welfare and Unique Identification Scheme (UID)
UNIT – II Land and Market (15 Hours)
c. Land – market relations
d. Labour and urban space
UNIT – III Media and democracy (15 50
Hours)
