PHIL3231: Social Philosophy

• PHIL2201 Feminist Philosophy

• None

• None

• To critically examine philosophical issues involved in theories of society and the relationships between individuals and institutions in the social world. We shall engage with philosophical ideas as they arise out of both philosophical and interdisciplinary work to examine the relevance of these ideas to our day-to-day lives. We will thereby explore the connections between the claims made in research and philosophical work and contemporary social issues as well as examining the challenges associated with the theorizing project itself such as the problem of speaking for others.

• The specific topics may vary from year to year, but the types of topics covered could include issues related to housing justice/homelessness, immigration, incarceration, poverty, discrimination, Indigeneity, health inequalities, racism, criminal justice, social media, extremism and radicalisation, gender, disability, queer theory, class, labor and the workplace, pessimisms, vulnerability and resilience, family abolition, sex work, posthumanism & structural inequality.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• By the end of the module, students will be able to demonstrate both knowledge and critical understanding of:
• the keys ideas of social philosophers and relevant thinkers from related discipline;
• the philosophical implications of issues arising in contemporary society;
• the philosophical implications of examining the role of institutions in the social world;
• some ways that philosophical methods may be brought to bear on the development and evaluation of social practices and policies.

Subject-specific Skills:

• grasp, analyse, evaluate and deploy subject-specific concepts and arguments;
• locate, understand, assess and utilise pertinent philosophical sources (and, where appropriate, sources from other relevant disciplines, e.g. the social sciences, law, or psychology);
• utilise specialist vocabulary and concepts;
• understand some of the relations between social philosophy and the research conducted in related disciplines.

Key Skills:

• express themselves clearly and succinctly in writing;
• comprehend complex ideas, propositions and theories;
• engage in reasoned argument both in writing, peer to peer discussion, and presentations;
• seek out and identify appropriate sources of evidence and information;
• tackle problems in a clear-sighted and logical fashion.

• Seminars deliver basic module-specific information, provide a framework for further study, and provide opportunities for students to test their own understanding of the material studied, and defend and debate different opinions.
• Guided reading provides a structure within which students exercise and extend their abilities to make use of available learning resources.
• Structured teaching within seminars will introduce students to the module content and provide a framework for further study. The seminars will give students an opportunity to (a) demonstrate and test their understanding of the module content, (b) defend and debate relevant philosophical positions and approaches, (c) propose alternative positions and approaches, (d) reflect on the relations between social philosophy and the research conducted in disciplines such as geography, political science, sociology, law, psychology (e) consider how philosophical methods may be brought to bear upon practical challenges and institutional change.
• Guided reading will provide a structure within which students exercise and extend their abilities to make use of available learning resources.
• The set exercises will give students the opportunity to develop critical reasoning, communicative, collaborative, and imaginative skills. This multi-faceted skill set is essential for understanding and addressing the range of issues and challenges presented in module content. Such skills are also vital for engagement with these issues beyond the classroom, including as a member of democratic citizenry, as a community member, and in the workplace. The set exercises could include such forms as peer review of research proposal, an annotated bibliography, a research project outline, "ethics bowl" debate, scenario/role play opportunities, personal writing exercises, a policy memo, philosophical engagement with current events through public discussion and deliberation, and/or engagement with communities beyond the classroom.
• The research project will enable students to (a) identify appropriate research sources in the literature of social philosophy and related fields, (b) in dialogue with those sources, deepen their understanding of a key issue in social philosophy and (c) work out what should be done in response to that issue. It will also test the extent to which (a), (b) and (c) have been achieved.
• The presentation will help students to (a) enhance their understanding of the modules content through the collaborative work of leading a discussion (b) present complex issues in a clear, concise and engaging manner, (c) engage in giving and receiving feedback on research development. The presentation will test the extent to which (a), (b) and (c) have been achieved. (Students who are unable to contribute orally to the presentation will be given an opportunity to contribute in other ways by, for instance, producing accompanying visual aids such as Powerpoint slides and submitting recorded work, etc. Students who are prevented by circumstances beyond their control from attending class on the day of their presentation will be assessed by other means by, for example, their submitting an individual Powerpoint presentation or an individual report or recording.)

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