POL 337 The Politics of Power

Despite one's particular ideological orientation--that is, regardless of whether one is conservative or liberal in his/her political views--we live and express a fundamentally "modern" conception of what it means to be a human being, and we accept a "modern" understanding of the origins and ends of politics. But, what does it mean to possess a modern conception of human agency and power? And, what are the psychological and political implications of our commitment to "real power"? This intensive course will examine the emergence of the early modern conception of power that originates in Europe and which lays the foundation for the economic and political condition (and crisis) we now live in. One very interesting component of the Machiavellian and Hobbessean conception of power is the tendency of these conceptions of human agency and power to transform human beings, in the most extreme cases, into low level socio-paths. Is this concept relevant in our times? Are there destructive psychological implications of the modern conception of power?