American Political Thought

Final Exam Grades

clmaloyed — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:47:29 +0000

I will have everyone’s final exams graded and all grades finalized by Wednesday morning (12/16). I will be in the my office (Allen 2065) on Wednesday morning from 9-10:30 if you would like to drop by and get your exam. I will also be in the main office of the political science department (near the computer labs) from 11-1 on Wednesday as well, if you would like to pick up your exam then.

Hope you all have a great break!

Registering for Spring classes

clmaloyed — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:05:08 +0000

If you have enjoyed this class, and are generally interested in political theory, let me recommend a few classes that are being offered this spring. I have also attached copies of availalbe syllabi for these classes. If you have any questions about these classes, don’t hesitate to contact me.

POLS 455 – History of Liberalism, 18th-21st century - Dan Betti

POLS 349 – Early Political Thought - Mary Elizabeth Sullivan

POLS 350 – Modern Political Thought - Ted Brown

Final Exam Details

clmaloyed — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:52:49 +0000

You can find details on the final exam here.

MLK/Malcolm X Make-up Quiz

clmaloyed — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:08:16 +0000

If you missed class on Monday, turn in one page, double-spaced on Monday, 11/30 over the following question:

“MLK and Malcolm X aim their speeches at two different audiences, white moderates and the black community respectively. How does this affect the type of arguments they make and the rhetoric they use.”

Class Friday, 11/20

clmaloyed — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:23:55 +0000

Just a reminder, we will not have class on Friday, 11/20. I will be at the Northeast Political Science Conference. See everyone on Monday.

Last two weeks of class

clmaloyed — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:56:19 +0000

As strange as it may seem, we only have two weeks of class left. To make sure that we have the opportunity to cover all of the most interesting material (all of it is interesting, but some of it is more relevant to the themes of this class than others) I am going to modify slightly the readings for the last two weeks. Good news, you will actually have less reading to do. Bad news, abandon all hope ye who choose to come to class without having done the reading.

Here is the updated list:

Monday, 11/23 - King (From the Dolbeare book and speech on blog)
Wednesday, 11/25 – Malcolm X (or Monday night, 11/23, depending on which session you choose to attend) Speech on blog
Monday, 11/30 – Reagan (From the Dolbeare book)
Wednesday 12/2 – Obama’s Inaguration Speech (Link to speech here)
- Last official discussion class of the semester – we will work to tie together all the loose ends. If you have opinions on what you would like to discuss the last day of class, let me know. Feedback is welcome. I will also offer closing thoughts on the class in general.
Friday 12/4 – Life-changing class presentations on issues of contemporary democratic theory. Prepare for an academic throw-down in which we debate the future course of American democracy.
Monday 12/7 - Exam review.

Progressivism Make-up Quiz

clmaloyed — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:09:25 +0000

If you missed the quiz on Progressivism on Monday, 11/16, you can make-up the quiz by writing one page, double-spaced over the following question. Turn it in on Monday, 11/23.

In her essay on “Anarchism: What it Really Stands for,” Emma Goldman suggests that her philosophy of anarchism is in line with Thoreau’s ideas. She even refers to Thoreau as “the greatest American Anarchist.” Is she correct? How, if at all, does Goldman’s philosophy of anarhcy differ from Thoreau’s ideas on government and civil disobedience?

Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Readings

clmaloyed — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:06:49 +0000

Here are the links to the readings for Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. readings. Note, these are both word files.

Martin Luther King, Jr. – “I Have a Dream“

Malcolm X – “The Ballot or the Bullet“

Class next week, 11/23 and 11/25

clmaloyed — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:51:47 +0000

For next week, on Monday we we will cover MLK , both the ‘I have a dream speech’ and the ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail.’ And, fair warning, there will be a quiz on Monday morning.

We will also have class on Wednesday, and will cover Malcolm X. If you cannot or do not want to attend class on Wednesday, we will also have a gathering on Monday night at Ozona at 8pm where we will discuss the Malcolm X readings as well. As always, there is no attendance requirement, so don’t panic if you cannot make either the Monday night meeting or the Wednesday morning class. However, even if you choose not to attend either meeting, you are still responsible for having done those readings.

Class, Wednesday November 25th

clmaloyed — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:23:12 +0000

So, in order to more formally assess whether or not I will be lecturing to an empty room on Wednesday, November 25th (ie, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving), I am conducting a survey on how many people are planning on attending class and your thoughts on rescheduling class. Note – we are not canceling class – only discussing whether or not to reschedule it in some form or fashion.

After I’ve gotten some feedback, I’ll let you know in class this Wednesday what we will be doing.

Take the survey here:

See you in class this Wednesday for presentations.