Overview
Environmental issues in the history of political thought from the classical period to the present day; people’s engagement with nature and with each other examined from multiple theoretical perspectives.
How can human beings order their relations to each other and to the natural world under conditions of scarcity and conflict? What cultural, social, institutional, and theoretical resources might human beings use to arrange these relationships in ways that promote human and non-human flourishing? What collective and individual responses can we make to problems like climate change, species extinction, water and other resource shortages, animal welfare, habitat loss for human and non-human beings, inequality, and generally insufficient flourishing?
These issues are not new, only especially acute today. Writers from ancient Greece to the present day have thought about these questions, and we will think them through in the company of a broad range of perspectives. Taking this paper will:
- Acquaint you with some of the core texts in the history of political thought and environmental political thought
- Help you identify ways in which they apply to our world
- Develop your original political thinking about human relationships in nature
You will be able to demonstrate understanding of these texts the ability to think critically - including applying key political concepts to the world as we encounter it.
About this paper
| Paper title | Nature, Conflict, and the State |
|---|---|
| Subject | Politics |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 2 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees ( NZD ) | $1,103.10 |
| International Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website. |
- Prerequisite
- 18 200-level POLS points
- Schedule C
- Arts and Music
- Eligibility
Interdisciplinary participation in this paper is encouraged. If you are interested in this paper but do not meet the prerequisite requirement, please get in touch with the lecturer to discuss your options.
- Contact
- More information link
- Teaching staff
- Paper Structure
Each week we focus on a different theme reading both a classic from the history of environmental political thought and contemporary environmental political theory. Themes include individualism, collective action, animal rights, democracy, anarchism, and deliberation, inter alia.
- Teaching Arrangements
Instruction consists of one two-hour lecture per week and one hour of small-group discussion per week. Students read to prepare for discussion section and reflect on their reading by writing weekly diary entries. The weekly diary entries form the basis for discussion in weekly discussion section. Twice a semester students produce longer reflective diary entries and lead group discussion in pairs or groups of three.
- Textbooks
Readings will be made available through Blackboard.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
Interdisciplinary Perspective, Scholarship, Communication, Critical Thinking, Ethics, Environmental Literacy
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes.- Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete the paper will:
- Understand significant literature in the history of environmental political thought
- Be able to interpret complex arguments in political theory
- Have an ability to make and defend arguments in political theory effectively in writing and orally
- Appreciate the collaborative aspect of scholarly work as part of a community of learning
- Assessment details
The assessment is 50% internal and 50% final exam.