Study Guide for the 3rd Exam
Fall, 2007
 

 

The exam will consist of a number of short essay questions. The exam will be cumulative so you should review the material on the first two study guides.  For each of the philosophical theories and for each or the social science theories and applications that we have covered, you should be able to give an account of the basic claims and the arguments that support these claims.  You should be able to apply the theories to a concrete situation.  You should also know some major criticisms that can be offered of  all the theorists that we have studied.  In terms of philosophy, we may give you quotations from the philosophers that we have studied and ask you to identify the philosopher and to explain that quotation.

What follows is a list of major ideas and themes from the last few weeks.  These should help with your review.

 

1.      Pacifism – arguments for and against

 

2.      Philosophical framework of The Vulnerable Planet

 

3.      Implications of all the philosophical theories that we have studied for environmental questions

 

4.      Definitions of negative rights, positive rights, collective rights, and distributive justice.

 

5.      Libertarian conservative theory of Robert Nozick

a.       Negative rights with an emphasis on property rights

b.      No taxation to support social welfare or positive rights

c.       Minimal government restricted to police and military functions

d.      A distribution is just if everyone is historically entitled to the portion he or she has and there has been no violation of negative rights

e.       No evaluation of the justice of the end-state

f.        Relationship to classical liberalism and neoliberalism

 

6.      Contemporary liberal theory of John Rawls

a.       Kantian liberalism

b.      Methodology - social contract chosen by a rational person behind a veil of ignorance

c.       Two principles of justice are the liberty principle and the fairness principle

d.      Inequalities in distribution are just as long as it works out to the advantage of all and everyone has an equal opportunity to compete

e.       In order to fulfill the fairness principle, positive rights are funded through taxation.

f.        Relationship to classical liberalism and to Keynsian economics

 

7.      Economic democracy or democratic socialism advocated by David Schweickart

a.       Basic arguments against capitalism – including a specific understanding of what democracy requires

b.      Three parts of economic democracy – workers’ control, democratic control of investment,  the market

c.       Moral basis for social welfare and government regulation

d.      New model of a transition

e.       International implications – environment, trade, etc.

f.        Relationship to Marxism

 

8.  Environment and Environmentalism from The Vulnerable Planet and The Globalization Reader

a. Describe what John Bellamy Foster means when he says the crisis of the earth is a crisis of society

b. What is the PAT formula – provide an example of how it would be employed

c. What is sustainable development? How, in Foster’s view, is capitalism incompatible with sustainable development?

d. Contrast the views of Thomas Malthus and Karl Marx regarding population growth.

e. How did imperialism alter the environmental landscape – provide two examples.

f. What is/was the “Green Revolution” and how has it impacted the environment?

g. What impact does environmental degradation have on human societies?

h. What methods has Green Peace been able to change the “ideational context” regarding the environment?

 

9.  Economic Theory from The Field Guide and The Shock Doctrine

a. Know how the “father,” Adam Smith, of  Laissez-Faire/Classical Liberal Economic Theory argued for the benefits of this economic system.

b. Describe Keynesian economic theory, when it was dominant,  and how it impacted the world

c. Who Milton Friedman and what  is neoliberalism/Washington Consensus?  Who are the “Chicago Boys?”

d. What three goals do neoliberals wish to achieve through their economic agenda (privatization, deregulation, and dismantling of welfare state/taxes)

e. What are the IMF, World Bank, GATT, WTO?

f. What is “Structural adjustment” and what is its impact on 3rd world nations?

g. What is Naomi Klein’s thesis regarding Political Democracy and implementation of neoliberal economic policies? Describe two circumstances.

h. What is economic “Shock Therapy” and what has been the outcome for societies where it has been implemented? Use at least two specific examples.

i. In what region of the world was the Shock Doctrine most widely applied? Why there?

 

10.  Movements and Alternative Approaches from The Field Guide and The Globalization Reader

a. What does the term “Think Global, Act Local” mean? How does it play out in real world activities?

b. Describe two responses to neoliberal globalization that have developed over the past two decades.

c. What is the World Social Forum?

 

Combined Essay Questions:

 

You should be able to match the philosophical positions on Distributive Justice (Rawls, Nozick, Marxism) with the historical development of capitalism and economic theory (Smith, Keynes, Friedman) – you need to explain how capitalism developed over the 19th and 20th centuries and what factors led to the changing nature of capitalism

 

 

Take any major philosopher we have studies and use their methodology to critique/analyze and discuss wars, economic and political developments that Klein describes in the Shock Doctrine. Are these developments “just” from the standpoint of the position you choose to adopt?

 

In terms of additional geographical material, review all the countries for the first two exams.  Also be sure that you can identify the following: Chile, Poland, Russia, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, China, South Africa, Argentina, Venezuela, Brazil and Bolivia.

.