POEC 301(F) Economic Liberalism and Its Critics (Same as Economics 299 and Political Science 333)
Economic liberalism holds that, if left alone by government, people will make mutually beneficial transactions with one another, leaving society better off. Its critics point to what they believe this position ignores or what it wrongly assumes, and hence, how it would make bad policy. This course explores the relationship between politics and economics by surveying influential works of political economy. Its first part examines major thinkers in relation to the historical development of capitalism in Western Europe and the United States: the classical liberalism of Adam Smith, Karl Marx's revolutionary socialism, and the reformist ideas of John Stuart Mill, R. H. Tawney, and John Maynard Keynes. The second part considers more recent writings that revise and critique liberalism from a variety of perspectives. The historical focus of the course permits you to appreciate the ongoing dialogue between classical and contemporary views of political economy, while classroom discussion involves frequent reference to current public policy issues.
Format: discussion/lecture. Requirements: eight 2-page papers and a final exam.
Prerequisites: one course in Economics and either Political Science 201 or 203 or AP credit in American Politics (or permission of instructor). Enrollment limit: 35 (expected: 32). Preference given to Political Economy majors and sophomores intending a Political Economy major.
Required in the Political Economy major but open to non-majors.
Hour: MAHON and LY