The central themes of political philosophy 'justice and democracy' have traditionally been treated at the level of the nation state and, more recently, at the level of the world as a whole. The course will focus on the specific issues they raise at the level of this intermediate entity of an unprecedented nature that is now called the European Union, including the interpretation and role to be given in this context to nationalism and patriotism, competitiveness and security, freedom and solidarity.
The course aims to stimulate and feed rigorous and relevant normative thinking about the future of the European Union, its purpose, scope and institutions, by relating philosophical theories of justice and democracy to the down-to-earth challenges Europe faces in today's world.
The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.
Written essay followed by oral discussion of the essay.
The course consists of
(1) an introductory and a concluding session that will link explicitly philosophical theories and current challenges (at St Louis, for all students taking the course for credit)
(2) a sequence of four dialogues with prominent European personalities (at St Louis, open to a limited number of personally invited guests, in addition to the students registered for the course)
(3) a set of meetings that will prepare these dialogues (in Louvain-la-Neuve, only for the students in a Master 120 programme).
An extensive bibliography will be provided separately.
To get a flavour of the issues to be discussed, see John Rawls and Philippe Van Parijs, 'Three Letters on the Law of Peoples and the European Union', Revue de philosophie économique 7, 2003, pp. 7-20, downloadable from www.uclouvain.be/8609.
(1) For all
Salle des examens, Université Saint-Louis - Bruxelles, 43 Boulevard du Jardin Botanique, Brussels
Monday 6/02/17 18h-21h: Introduction
Monday 20/03/17 18h-20h : Dialogue 1
Monday 27/03/17 18h-20h : Dialogue 2
Monday 24/04/17 18h-20h : Dialogue 3
Monday 8/05/17 18h-20h : Dialogue 4
Monday 15/05/17 18h-21h: Conclusion
(2) For Master 120 students only
Salle Vives, Chaire Hoover, Dupriez D305, Place Montesquieu, 3, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve
In February and March according to a timetable to be determined at the introductory session (6/02/17).
