Showing papers in "Philosophical Books in 1986"

Liberty and Equality

Abstract: This course introduces the basic structures, processes, and conflicts of the American system of government. First, we will talk about the big ideas and issues for which consensus and disagreement exist in the current U.S. political landscape. After we have set the stage, we will turn to the founding of the nation to better understand our governmental institutions, identity as a nation, and some of the country’s most core and long-lasting conflicts. We will explore the key federal institutions that constrain and shape political processes. Following this section, the course shifts its focus from elites and institutions to citizens and the ways in which mass preferences are transmitted to government actors to produce actual policy. We will examine the development of rules that protect individual citizens from the government (civil liberties) and from the majority (civil rights). What opinions, characteristics, and behaviors of citizens are relevant to politics? We will grapple with the questions of whether or not fair and full democratic representation of citizens exists and if it is even possible? Finally, the last section examines interest groups and the policy outputs of the American political process. Ultimately the goal of this course is to give you the basic tools needed so you will be better able to analyze, interpret, and potentially shape political events and governmental processes.