# Introduction to Political Thought

Thomas Hobbes. Leviathan. London: Andrew Crooke, 1651. Holmes Collection. (Image courtesy of the U.S. Library of Congress.)

### Instructor(s)

Prof. Sarah Song

### MIT Course Number

17.03

### As Taught In

Spring 2004

### Level

Undergraduate

###

Some Description
Instructor(s) | Prof.
As Taught In | Spring 2002
Course Number | 2.24
Level | Undergraduate/Graduate
Features | Lecture Notes, Student Work

## Course Description

## Course Features

- Selected lecture notes

## Course Description

This course examines major texts in the history of political thought and the questions they raise about the design of the political and social order. It considers the ways in which thinkers have responded to the particular political problems of their day, and the ways in which they contribute to a broader conversation about human goods and needs, justice, democracy, and the proper relationship of the individual to the state. One aim will be to understand the strengths and weaknesses of various regimes and philosophical approaches in order to gain a critical perspective on our own. Thinkers include Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Marx, and Tocqueville.

## Related Content

## Course Collections

See related courses in the following collections:

### Find Courses by Topic

- History > Intellectual History
- Philosophy > Political Philosophy
- Political Science
- Sociology > Social Justice

Sarah Song. 17.03 Introduction to Political Thought. Spring 2004. Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare, https://ocw.mit.edu. License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA.

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