POLn4107 Global Justice: Contemporary Debates

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2021
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Taught online.
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Pavel Dufek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Pavel Dufek, Ph.D.
Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Lucie Pospíšilová
Supplier department: Division of Politology – Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Wed 16:00–17:40 U41
Prerequisites (in Czech)
! POL559 Global Justice && ! NOW ( POL559 Global Justice )
Schopnost číst texty v anglickém jazyce (tzn. pasivní znalost), ochota aktivně participovat v diskusích. Tento předmět bude sestávat z krátkých přednášek, po kterých následuje seminární diskuse k tématu vycházející z krátkých písemných příprav. Předpokládá se, že studenti/tky budou mít prostudovanou povinnou literaturu a budou se zapojovat do seminárních diskusí.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 1/25, only registered: 0/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course deals with contemporary debates in Anglo-American political philosophy on the issue of global/cosmopolitan justice and the related institutional measures. We will cover both the general assumptions and motivations of global justice theorising and the particular strategies of argumentation, as linked to core concepts delineating the field (fairness, justice, sovereingty, legitimacy, obligation etc.). Also, positions critical of the cosmopolitan current - statism, nationalism, internationalism, realism and the like - will be given their due. Questions regarding immigration or just war/humanitarian intervention will tne link the philosophical debates to real-world policy issues.
Learning outcomes
Based on the knowledge acquired in the course, participants will be able to analyze both the general assumptions and motivations of cosmopolitan thinking about justice and the specific arguments and key concepts that have gained prominence in these discussions. Upon completing the course, students will be able to confront the cosmopolitan position(s) with more critical and/or restrained perspectives and also apply them to practical-political repercussions as regards, for example, immigration or humanitarian intervention.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction: Couse Mission and Organization. What Is the Point of Global Justice Theorising?
  • 2. Basic Conceptual and Methodological Distinctions
  • 3. Why Global Justice?
  • 4. The Law of Peoples (Rawls)
  • 5. Critiques and Defences of the Law of Peoples
  • 6. Circumstances of Justice: Is There a Global Basic Structure?
  • 7. Reading Week
  • 8. Global Poverty, Global (In)equality and Distributive Justice
  • 9. Moral and Political Cosmopolitanism: Global Justice Without a World State?
  • 10. Moral Equality, World Community and Boundaries of Obligation
  • 11. Global Justice and Global Democracy
  • 12. (Im)migration in Global Justice
  • 13. Just War and Humanitarian Intervention
Literature
  • Beardsworth, Richard (2011). Cosmopolitanism and International Relations Theory. Cambridge: Polity Press
  • Martin, Rex a David Reidy, eds. (2006). Rawls's Law of Peoples: A Realistic Utopia? Oxford, Blackwell Publishing
  • Moellendorf, Darrell (2002). Cosmopolitan Justice. Boulder, Westview Press
  • MILLER, David. Strangers in our midst : the political philosophy of immigration. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2016. 218 stran. ISBN 9780674088900. info
  • Cosmopolitanism versus non-cosmopolitanism : critiques, defenses, reconceptualizations. Edited by Gillian Brock. 1st ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013. vi, 331. ISBN 9780199678426. info
  • CARENS, Joseph H. The ethics of immigration. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. xvii, 364. ISBN 9780199933839. info
  • Global democracy : normative and empirical perspectives. Edited by Daniele Archibugi - Mathias Koenig-Archibugi - Raffaele Marchetti. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012. xiv, 296. ISBN 9780521174985. info
  • RISSE, Mathias. On global justice. Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2012. xii, 465. ISBN 9780691142692. info
  • VALENTINI, Laura. Justice in a globalized world : a normative framework. 1st ed. Oxford: Oxford university press, 2011. viii, 229. ISBN 9780199593859. info
  • DUFEK, Pavel. Úrovně spravedlnosti: Liberalismus, kosmopolitismus a lidská práva (Levels of Justice: Liberalism, Cosmopolitanism and Human Rights). Brno: Mezinárodní politologický ústav MU, 2010. 300 pp. ISBN 978-80-210-5317-5. info
  • Sociální kritika v éře globalizace : odstraňování sociálně-ekonomických nerovností a konfliktů. Edited by Marek Hrubec, Translated by Martin Brabec. Vyd. 1. Praha: Filosofia, 2008. 479 s. ISBN 9788070072868. info
  • POGGE, Thomas Winfried Menko. World poverty and human rights : cosmopolitan responsibilities and reforms. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2008. viii, 352. ISBN 9780745641447. info
  • MILLER, David. National responsibility and global justice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. vi, 298. ISBN 9780199235056. info
  • CANEY, Simon. Justice beyond borders : a global political theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. 319 s. ISBN 0199297967. info
  • SCHEFFLER, Samuel. Boundaries and allegiances : problems of justice and responsibility in liberal thought. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. 221 p. ISBN 019924149X. info
  • RAWLS, John. The law of peoples with "The idea of public reason revisited". Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2001. viii, 199. ISBN 0674005422. info
Teaching methods
The course consists of shorter lectures and in-class seminars; these two parts of each class are not strictly separated. Students' position papers based on asigned readings are discussed in the seminars.
Assessment methods
Course evaluation has four parts:
(1) Position papers. Students are expected to submit at least three shorter essays or position papers, dealing with a topic (or topics) discussed in the assigned readings. These papers should then serve as a basis for in-class discussions. Each position paper will receive 0-5 points, based on its quality
(2) Presentation. During the term, each student (or a group of students) will have an opportunity to outline the content of both the compulsory and recommended readings publicly for the rest of the class. Students will receive 0-15 points for their presentation, based on its quality and information value.
(3) In-class activity (up to 1,5 points each time).
(4) Final essay (10+ standard pages), on a topic corresponding with the course contents (0-15 points).

The overall assesment (A through F) will be determined by the total point score from these three activities

Grade scheme: 60–55b A; 54–50b B; 49–45b C; 44–40b D; 39–36b E; 35b and less F
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
For additional information please see the course syllabus, which will be available in the Study Materials section within the Information System
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2020.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2021/POLn4107