Hope and Politics
| Module title | Hope and Politics |
|---|---|
| Module code | POL3283 |
| Academic year | 2022/3 |
| Credits | 30 |
| Module staff | Professor Robert Lamb (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 | 11 |
Module description
The idea of hope has a vital, and perhaps ineliminable, place within politics. Hope provides the means through which dreams might take form as practical realities and sustains individuals and communities during their experiences of struggle and oppression. It is hard to imagine a successful political leader, party, or social movement that does not, at some point, tap into the unique power of hope. This module looks at the idea of hope, as understood and contested across different writers and traditions, examining how we might make best understand it as a political and philosophical concept.
Module aims - intentions of the module
This module will approach the relationship between hope and politics from a variety of historical and philosophical perspectives, asking students to consider a series of profoundly important questions, including: what is political hope, and what is its value?; what is the difference between hope and optimism?; is a commitment to hope compatible with any political worldview?; does it make sense to think of hope as a political virtue?; how should we understand the relationship between hope and political privilege?; and what are the normative – ethical or institutional – implications of a commitment to political hope? We will look at how hope is construed and contested across the traditions of modern political thought (liberalism, socialism, feminism, conservatism, etc) and read a variety of texts that will speak to its importance for confronting both specific and urgent civic challenges (such as climate change), as well as the general problem of establishing and maintaining political community.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate understanding of the historical and philosophical underpinnings of a prominent political phenomenon.
- 2. Display critical awareness of different conceptions of hope.
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Acquire the ability to analyze texts in moral, legal and political philosophy at an advanced level.
- 4. Acquire the ability to criticize philosophical arguments effectively and at an advanced level.
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 5. Formulate and express ideas at different levels of abstraction.
- 6. Demonstrate proficiency in written communication according to scholarly conventions.
Syllabus plan
Whilst the precise content will vary from year to year, the syllabus will cover all or some of the following topics related to the broad question of the nature of political hope:
-
Hope as mere desire: concept of hope in analytic philosophy and moral psychology.
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The value of hope for politics.
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Hope as political value/virtue.
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Richard Rorty and the idea of liberal hope.
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Hope and political privilege.
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Hope in the socialist tradition.
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Hope and feminist theory.
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Hopelessness and political despair.
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The conceptual relationship between hope, faith, and love.
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Human rights as expression of hope.
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Political critiques of hope.
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 44 | 256 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning & Teaching Activity | 44 | 22 x 2 hour seminars |
| Guided Independent Study | 94 | Preparing for seminars: Reading and research |
| Guided Independent Study | 162 | Completing assessment tasks: Reading, research and writing |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Textual Commentary | 1000 words | 1-6 | Written |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay 1 | 50 | 3,000 words | 1-6 | Written |
| Essay 2 | 50 | 3,000 words | 1-6 | Written |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay 1 | 3000 words | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Essay 2 | 3000 words | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Richard Rorty – Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity
Richard Rorty – Philosophy and Social Hope
Adrienne Martin – How We Hope: A Moral Psychology
Gabriel Marcel – Homo Viator
Ernst Bloch – The Principle of Hope
Terry Eagleton – Hope without Optimism
Antonio Gramsci – Selections from the Prison Notebooks
Jonathan Lear – Radical Hope
Alan Mittleman – Hope in a Democratic Age
Rebecca Coleman and Debra Ferreday (eds.) – Hope and Feminist Theory
Katie Stockdale – Hope and Oppression
John Rawls – Political Liberalism
| Credit value | 30 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 15 |
| Module pre-requisites | none |
| Module co-requisites | none |
| NQF level (module) | 6 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 31/01/22 |
