The Common Good: Past, Present, and Future

Catalog description

While many endorse the ideal of serving the “common good,” far fewer agree on what the pursuit of that ideal involves. This has been the case for millennia, as various philosophical, ethical, and religious traditions have named the common good and similar concepts as objectives to guide human behavior. This course examines interpretations of this ideal and its implications, asking what the common good has been, is now, and might yet be. Exploring histories, cultures, and economic systems within and beyond the United States, in contemporary and ancient contexts, students will consider how conflicting visions of the common good have animated debates around such diverse social phenomena as political systems, labor unions, religious communities, tax and welfare policies, and rules for Facebook groups and other virtual communities. Probing these debates, students will refine their understandings of their own common goods.