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Classical Political Thought

Module description

In this first installment of Exeter’s History of Political Thought modules, you will study some of the formative political writings of the Western tradition that have come down to us from the pens of the Ancient Greeks and Romans. You will become acquainted with a world very different from our own, yet one that is the source of many of the concepts, values, institutions, and much of the language, of modern Western politics. ‘Democracy’, ‘tyranny’, ‘justice’, ‘citizen’, ‘republic’, and ‘politics’ itself are all words that have Greek or Latin origins, and refer to ideas crucial to the political thought of the Classical period.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The aims of this module are:

• Historical – to introduce you to various important Classical political thinkers, their context, ideas, and relationships;
• Philosophical – to critically explore the structure and coherence of the ideas studied and to enable you to reflect on their value for thinking about politics in our own time;
• Methodological – to help you develop skills in the close-reading and interpretation of textual evidence, skills which have application in many areas of life, academic and otherwise.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate understanding of some of the central political theories of the Greco-Roman Classical world;
• 2. Demonstrate close engagement with primary textual evidence from the Classical political thinkers discussed;
• 3. Explain the significance of the relevant historical contexts for the interpretation and evaluation of these political theories;

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Demonstrate understanding of some major political-philosophical ideas of the Western tradition and awareness of their historical development;
• 5. Demonstrate skills in the interpretation of textual evidence and critical evaluation of political theories;

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. Demonstrate skills in the explanation and critical evaluation of abstract ideas and arguments;
• 7. Demonstrate methodological skills in the interpretation of textual evidence.

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover the following topics:

•  The political thought and historical context of Ancient Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle;
•  The political thought and historical context of philosophers from the periods of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire such as Cicero and St Augustine.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Plato, The Republic
• Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics; The Politics
• Cicero, On the Commonwealth; On the Laws; On Duties
• Augustine, The City of God

Key words search

History, Political Thought