2016/2017

2017/2018

DM270

SPS/01 (POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY)

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

WORLD POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

PERCORSO COMUNE

2°

1st semester (02/10/2017 - 16/12/2017)

6

40 lesson hours

English

ORAL TEST

CEVA EMANUELA MARIA (titolare) - 6 ECTS

Students who are unfamiliar with contemporary debates in political philosophy should read in preparation for the course Will Kymlicka, Contemporary Political Philosophy. An Introduction, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2nd Edition, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 (the book is available on restricted loan (consultazione) from the departmental library).

More specific preparatory reading concerning normative approaches to dealing with conflicts can include some or all of the following: Adams, Robert M. ‘Conflict.’ Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society Supplementary Volume 83, 1(2009): 115–32; Ceva, Emanuela, Interactive Justice, New York: Routledge, Chapters 1 and 2; Gutmann, Amy, and Dennis Thompson. ‘Moral Conflict and Political Consensus.’ Ethics 101, 1(1990): 64–88; Luban, David. ‘Bargaining and Compromise: Recent Work on Negotiation and Informal Justice.’ Philosophy & Public Affairs 14, 4 (1985): 397–416; Rehg, William. ‘Intractable Conflicts and Moral Objectivity: A Dialogical, Problem-Based Approach.’ Inquiry 42, 2 (1999): 229–57.

The course has a twofold objective. First, it aims to familiarize the students with the normative approach to the ethics of conflict resolution. Second, the course aims to enhance the students’ capacities for critical thinking, analysis, and discussion through the application of the theoretical framework developed during the first part of the course to some specific issues. The first objective will be pursued through taught classes. The second objective will be pursued through seminars that revolve around either a reading or a case study introduced by the teacher and followed by a general discussion.

By the end of the course, the students will have developed the following skills:
- knowledge of the main concepts and theories in the contemporary ethical debate in the above-mentioned areas;
- understanding of the philosophical issues that may emerge in the domain of conflict resolution;
- enhanced capacity to make conceptually clear and philosophically informed assessments of the ethical issues that may emerge facing international conflicts;
- improved ability to engage in debates with efficacy and argumentative rigour.

This course investigates issues of justice that emerge out of international conflict scenarios. By reference to such prominent examples of conflict as that between Israelis and Palestinians as well as to such divided communities as that of Cyprus, we shall analyze and discuss the right ways, in a moral sense, to address the different demands of justice that emerge in these circumstances.
The course aims to introduce students to the normative approach to the ethics of conflict resolution. We shall distinguish the dimensions of justice (as differentiated from those of legitimacy) implied in conflict scenarios, with special reference to the distinction between the commitment to realizing justice in the outcomes or in the procedures of international cooperation. Subsequently, we shall focus on the forms of injustice that may affect the qualities of international relations when cooperative dynamics are disrupted by conflicts. In particular, we will discuss different theories and practices of conflict resolution, conflict containment, and conflict management in view of their capacity of realizing different demands of justice and peace. The last part of the course will tackle ethical issues concerning post-conflict transitions.

Relevant questions include:
- Are the demands of global justice distinguishable from those of international legitimacy?
- Are procedures of international cooperation valuable in themselves or just as instruments to bring about certain desirable outcomes?
- What demands of justice arise out of conflict scenarios in the international arena? And should we prioritize seeking justice or peace in such scenarios?
- What is a just transition from antagonism to cooperation in the dynamics of a conflict?
- What are the moral limits to the acceptability of compromises to tame international conflicts?


PROGRAMME

LECTURE 1, (03/10/17): Introduction to the course

LECTURE 2, (04/10/17): What the normative approach to the ethics of conflict resolution is

LECTURE 3, (10/10/17): Justice of the outcomes of international cooperation
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapter III.

LECTURE 4, (11/10/17): Justice of the process of international cooperation
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapter III.

LECTURE 5, (17/10/17): The interactive dimension of justice
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapter I.

LECTURE 6, (18/10/17): Interactive justice and international conflicts

LECTURE 7, (24/10/17): The normative approach to conflict containment
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapters II (pp. 44-7) and VI (pp. 164-6).

SEMINAR 1, (25/10/17): Conflict containment in theory
Reading
D. Luban, ‘Bargaining and Compromise: Recent Work on Negotiation and Informal Justice’, Philosophy & Public Affairs 14, 4 (1985), pp. 397–416.

SEMINAR 2, (31/10/17): Conflict containment in practice: De-escalation and stalemates
Case study
C. Adamides, ‘Comfortable Conflict and (Il)liberal Peace in Cyprus’, Hybrid Forms of Peace: From Everyday Agency to Post-Liberalism. Eds. O. Richmond & A. Mitchell, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 242-259.
General references
M. Maiese, ‘Limiting Escalation / De-escalation’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. G. Burgess & H. Burgess, University of Colorado, Boulder: Conflict Information Consortium. Posted: January 2004 .
W. Zartman, ‘Ripeness’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. G. Burgess & H. Burgess, University of Colorado, Boulder: Conflict Information Consortium. Posted: August 2003
.

LECTURE 8, (07/11/17): The normative approach to conflict resolution
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapters II (pp. 38-44) and VI (pp. 166-8).

SEMINAR 3, (08/11/17): Conflict resolution in theory
Reading
G. Burgess & H. Burgess (eds), Beyond Intractability, University of Colorado, Boulder: Conflict Information Consortium:
M. Fitzduff, ‘Meta- Conflict Resolution’, .
B. Spangler, ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)’, .
K. Cloke, ‘The Culture of Mediation: Settlement vs. Resolution’, .

SEMINAR 4, (14/11/17): Conflict resolution in practice: The role of mediation
Case study
United Nations Department of Political Affairs and United Nations Environment Programme, ‘India and Pakistan: The Indus Waters Treaty’, in Natural Resources and Conflict, UN DPA and UNEP, 2015, pp. 73-75, available at
http://peacemaker.un.org/sites/peacemaker.un.org/files/NRCMediation_UNDPAUNEP2015_0.pdf
General reference:
C. Honeyman, N. Yawanarajah, ‘Mediation’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. G. Burgess & H. Burgess, University of Colorado, Boulder: Conflict Information Consortium. Posted: September 2003 .

LECTURE 9, (15/11/17): The normative approach to conflict management
Reference
E. Ceva, Interactive Justice, London: Routledge, 2016, chapters II (pp. 47-55), IV, VI (pp. 143-62).

SEMINAR 5, (21/11/17): Conflict management in theory
Reading
H.H. Saunders, ‘Sustained Dialogue in Managing Intractable Conflict’, Negotiation Journal 19, 1 (2003): 85-95.

SEMINAR 6, (22/11/17): Conflict management in practice: The transformation of conflict dynamics
Case study
The Israeli Palestinian Project: http://www.israelpalestineproject.org/about
General reference
J.P. Lederach, ‘Conflict Transformation’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. G. Burgess & H. Burgess, University of Colorado, Boulder: Conflict Information Consortium. Posted: October 2003 .

SEMINAR 7, (28/11/17): Composite strategies for dealing with conflicts
Work group on
United Nations, UN Mediation Guidance, http://peacemaker.un.org/mediationapp#MediationOverview

LECTURE 10, (29/11/17): Different demands of justice in post-conflict scenarios
Reference
C. Murphy, The Conceptual Foundations of Transitional Justice, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017, chapter 2.

SEMINAR 8, (05/12/17): Transitional justice
Reading
C. Murphy, The Conceptual Foundations of Transitional Justice, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017, chapter 3.

SEMINAR 9, (06/12/17): Conflicts and emotions
Reading
M. Mihai, ‘Transitional Justice and the Quest for Democracy: A Contribution to a Political Theory of Democratic Transformations’, Ratio Juris 23, 2 (2010): 183–204.

SEMINAR 10, (12/12/17): The role of deliberation in post-conflict transitions
Reading
S. Amighetti & A. Nuti, ‘Achieving Historical Justice Through Democratic Deliberation’, Journal of Political Philosophy 23, 4 (2015): 385-405.

The course includes a mixture of lectures, seminars, and case-based discussions. In particular, we shall discuss the questions above with the help of a selection of readings and case studies apt to illustrate the different demands of justice in conflict scenarios at the global level. Students are encouraged to adopt an active and critical approach to these readings and to the case studies.

(a) Ceva, E., Interactive Justice, New York: Routledge, 2016.

(b) Adamides, Costantinos, ‘Comfortable Conflict and (Il)liberal Peace in Cyprus’, Hybrid Forms of Peace: From Everyday Agency to Post-Liberalism, eds. Richmond O. and Mitchell A. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 242-259
(c) Amighetti, Sara, Nuti, Alasia ‘Achieving Historical Justice Through Democratic Deliberation’, Journal of Political Philosophy 23, 4 (2015): 385-405.
(d) Cloke, K., ‘The Culture of Mediation: Settlement vs. Resolution’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: December 2005 .
(e) Fitzduff, M., ‘Meta- Conflict Resolution’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: September 2004 http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/meta-conflict-resolution
(f) Luban, D., ‘Bargaining and Compromise: Recent Work on Negotiation and Informal Justice’, Philosophy & Public Affairs 14, 4 (1985): 397–416.
(g) Mihai, Mihaela, ‘Transitional Justice and the Quest for Democracy: A Contribution to a Political Theory of Democratic Transformations’, Ratio Juris 23, 2 (2010): 183–204.
(h) Murphy, Colleen, The Conceptual Foundations of Transitional Justice, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017, chapters 2 and 3.
(i) Spangler, B. ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)’, Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: June 2003 .
(j) Saunders, Harold H., ‘Sustained Dialogue in Managing Intractable Conflict’, Negotiation Journal 19, 1 (2003): 85-95

Assessment will be based on participation and an assessed essay. The final mark will be calculated as follows: Participation, 25%; Assessed Essay, 75%.

Participation
The mark for participation will be based on the quality of students’ contributions to the seminar discussions. Students are required to do the assigned readings and examine the materials for the case studies and prepare at least one question/critical remark for the general discussion in class.

Students are expected to attend all classes and participate actively in the seminar discussions. Attending a lesser number of classes without reasonable excuse will lead to a lower mark for participation. Students who have missed more than 4 classes (non frequentanti) are required to contact the lecturer to discuss a supplementary programme in order to have access to the final exam.

Assessed essay
Students are required to write an essay on an issue addressed during the course under the supervision of the lecturer. Essays should not be longer than 4,000 words. A list of possible topics will be distributed during the course; however, students are strongly encouraged to propose original topics themselves. All essay topics will have to be approved by the lecturer.
Essays will be subject to the usual rules on plagiarism, and will be scanned using the relevant software. Essays will be assessed in terms of their clarity, structure, and argumentative rigor, in terms of their sensitivity to the relevant ethical and philosophical issues, and, ultimately, in terms of the efficacy with which they answer the question posed in the essay title.
Essays must be handed in, both by email (to emanuela.ceva@unipv.it) and in hard copy (using the pigeon hole near the departmental information office), at least one week prior to the “appello” to which students wish to register. Essays either exceeding the word limit or handed in after the deadline will not be accepted.

Those students who fail the exam will be required to write a new essay on a different topic