WINTER 2025 THEME:
REPUBLICANISM
Republicanism Winter 2025 Syllabus.pdf
Republicanism is one of the most important traditions of Western political thought. This graduate seminar introduces students to some of its essential authors: Aristotle, Polybius, Machiavelli, Milton, Harrington, Montesquieu, Adams, Jefferson, and Douglass. We will also read some of the most important contemporary scholars of republicanism, including Quentin Skinner, Eric Nelson, and Melvin Rogers. Themes include freedom, virtue, and citizenship; balanced constitutions; historical cycles of order and corruption; the economy of social regard; and the relationship between metropole and empire.
Evaluation will be based on class participation, a 5-7 page midterm essay, and a 12-to-15-page research paper. Students will do research presentations in Week 10. Research papers are due at the end of finals.