In no more than 1250 and no fewer than 750 words, answer exactly one of the following four questions:
- Does Rousseau think democracy is the best form of government? Support your interpretation by reference to the text. (On inspection, it may seem that Rousseau says conflicting things about whether democracy is the best form of government. Your job is to see if you can make sense of his position on this question, and to communicate and defend your interpretation to the reader. If you can describe possible problems for your own solution and respond to them, that will strengthen your paper. This last remark holds for any philosophy paper.)
- Does Rousseau think the judgment of the majority and the common good are always the same? (On inspection, it may seem that Rousseau says conflicting things about whether the judgment of the majority and the common good are always the same. Your job is to see if you can make sense of his position on this question, and to communicate and defend your interpretation to the reader. If you can describe possible problems for your own solution and respond to them, that will strengthen your paper. This last remark holds for any philosophy paper.)
- Could there be a society that was well governed by Locke’s criteria but was not well governed by Rousseau’s criteria? Explain and defend your answer, giving evidence to support any interpretive claims you make.
- Does Hobbes think of the state of nature as a Prisoner’s Dilemma? Does he think of it as an Assurance Game? Does the Fool think of the state of nature as a Prisoner’s Dilemma? Does the Fool think of it as an Assurance Game? Give evidence to support your interpretation.
Instructions: When you refer to passages from the readings, give page numbers so the reader can find the passage you are talking about. When you refer to passages from Plato’s or Aristotle works, you may use either the standard pagination you find out to the side, e.g. 32c, 345c-346d, 1147e, 1101a-d or the page numbers in Steven M. Cahn, Political Philosophy: The Essential Texts. If you take words or ideas from other sources you must cite them properly. (If you do not know how to cite sources, contact the Academic Skills Centre, Library, 3rd
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Floor, 905-828-3858.) There is no need to acknowledge Prof. Clark as a source, but you should avoid word for word quotations of class material. You are welcome to write in the first person.
The quality of your work will depend on whether you can communicate to the reader both what you think and why you think it. Be careful to answer the question, the whole question, and nothing but the question. Do not assume that the reader already understands what you are trying to say.
About Quotations: In general, you want to be sparing with quotations. The reason is that the reader needs to know what you think the quote means and why you think it is important. So you can’t just insert quoted material. You also need to say in your own words what you think the quote means and why you’ve used it. Sometimes you are better off expressing the idea in your own words and giving a citation so the reader can find the passage you are talking about.
About additional sources: There is no need to find sources other than texts assigned on the syllabus. If you do, however, I strongly recommend that you limit yourself to material available through the University of Toronto Libraries. The Internet is awash in sloppy thinking and misinformation. Needless to say, you must cite any sources from which you take words or ideas.
Submission: Submit your paper electronically via UtorSubmit. Please note that your work will be read and marked by the TA in whose tutorials you are enrolled, Taylor Barinka or Griffin Klemick.
About Plagiarism: Plagiarism is representing someone else’s words or ideas as your own. With the exception of lecture material, all sources, including Internet sources, must be acknowledged. All plagiarism cases will be referred to the Dean.
No Late Work: Remember that this course has a no-late-work designation. To receive credit for a paper submitted after the deadline you must file a successful petition with the Philosophy Department. (See the Special Consideration Form on the course site.) Filing a petition is not a guarantee of success. Please have a look at the form in advance so you know your options.
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