What do you think?
Rate this book
Ideas in Politics
24 lectures (30 minutes/lecture)
Part Lectures 1 - 12
Part Lectures 13 - 24
The aim of his course is not to take sides on any public issue, but rather to explain what is at stake, and to improve your own grasp of why those on all sides of many widely discussed public questions—be they liberals, socialists or libertarians, radical feminists or religious conservatives—think as they do.
Dr. Shearmur’s work is thus not persuasion, but clarification. And he accomplishes it through an analysis that is more profound, cogent, philosophically informed, and comprehensive than anything you’re ever likely to glean from ordinary news coverage or day-to-day political commentary.
Questions to Consider
Dr. Shearmur begins with questions that you have probably asked at one time or another, questions such
What is meant by ideology? Is it something I have, or only something that those who disagree with me happen to harbor?
Is political debate a series of disputes over how best to realize ideals that we all hold in common, or are those who support differing programs and policies truly striving for quite different and distinct ideals?
Is politics really driven purely by subrational motives such as material interests, or can ideas make a difference?
And if ideas do matter, what precisely are the schools of thought that inform our political discourse today? Where do they come from? How have they changed over time? And how do they interact with one another to form our public sphere?
Dr. Shearmur shows that most of our current public controversies—from tax and welfare policy to issues touching on feminism, free speech, or the public status of homosexuality— can be understood as arguments within a larger liberal tradition.
As he sees it, four related but seriously differing schools of thought contend over questions such as "What motivates us?" "What is true human flourishing?" and "What should our ideals be, and what kinds of institutions and programs best realize them?"
How Ideas Affect Issues
Dr. Shearmur invites you to consider how ideas flowing from principles held by these schools of thought apply to real issues such as taxes, welfare, the environment, feminism, free speech, Americans’ declining civic and political participation, and more.
As regards participation, a striking discussion has been opened up by the Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam. In an essay and later a book titled Bowling Alone, he has argued that Americans are increasingly less likely to belong to voluntary groups and associations of all kinds and that this will have serious consequences for everything from personal health to our whole political system.
Putnam’s evidence, his proposed solutions, what they say about where we are now and where we are going, and the responses of his critics from across the spectrum—all will come in for your consideration.
Socialism, Ecology, and Feminisms
Both Marxian and non-Marxian socialists offer moral critiques of the existing social order. Some of the latter, along with certain liberal theorists, have recently argued that welfare liberalism and socialism share much ground, that the former even perhaps points to the latter. What is the basis of such arguments, and what do critics of various stripes make of it all?
Should ecological concerns prompt us to embrace extensive regulation or the international redistribution of resources? Are there market-based solutions to environmental problems? And what of "deep ecology," the view that ecological systems should be considered valuable in themselves, and should impose moral constraints upon human action?
Three lectures on feminism begin by exploring the work of John Stuart Mill on the social situation of women in the mid-19th-century, and his ideas for improving it. The American feminist Betty Friedan critically appraised those improvements from the standpoint of the early 1960s, thereby launching the feminist movement as we know it today.
Is feminism essentially an offshoot of liberalism, exposed to the same questions? What of variants such as the socialist and "radical" feminisms of the 1970s or the "difference feminism" that flows from the work of psychologist Carol Gilligan, and which has influenced the outcome of actual court cases?
Finally, we look at responses of liberal feminists to criticisms of liberalism by other feminists, and at conservative responses to feminism. From feminism, we turn to other political ideas that bring issues of identity into the heart of politics.
Who Belongs? Nationalism and Multiculturalism
The next phase of your reflection focuses on nationalism and multiculturalism as they affect politics both globally and locally. Again, you’ll get to the root of current controversies by looking at how the politics of identity developed, and at the arguments that go on between supporters and critics.
This, in turn, leads us to issues relating to homosexuality, not least because...
Part Lectures 1 - 12
Part Lectures 13 - 24
The aim of his course is not to take sides on any public issue, but rather to explain what is at stake, and to improve your own grasp of why those on all sides of many widely discussed public questions—be they liberals, socialists or libertarians, radical feminists or religious conservatives—think as they do.
Dr. Shearmur’s work is thus not persuasion, but clarification. And he accomplishes it through an analysis that is more profound, cogent, philosophically informed, and comprehensive than anything you’re ever likely to glean from ordinary news coverage or day-to-day political commentary.
Questions to Consider
Dr. Shearmur begins with questions that you have probably asked at one time or another, questions such
What is meant by ideology? Is it something I have, or only something that those who disagree with me happen to harbor?
Is political debate a series of disputes over how best to realize ideals that we all hold in common, or are those who support differing programs and policies truly striving for quite different and distinct ideals?
Is politics really driven purely by subrational motives such as material interests, or can ideas make a difference?
And if ideas do matter, what precisely are the schools of thought that inform our political discourse today? Where do they come from? How have they changed over time? And how do they interact with one another to form our public sphere?
Dr. Shearmur shows that most of our current public controversies—from tax and welfare policy to issues touching on feminism, free speech, or the public status of homosexuality— can be understood as arguments within a larger liberal tradition.
As he sees it, four related but seriously differing schools of thought contend over questions such as "What motivates us?" "What is true human flourishing?" and "What should our ideals be, and what kinds of institutions and programs best realize them?"
How Ideas Affect Issues
Dr. Shearmur invites you to consider how ideas flowing from principles held by these schools of thought apply to real issues such as taxes, welfare, the environment, feminism, free speech, Americans’ declining civic and political participation, and more.
As regards participation, a striking discussion has been opened up by the Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam. In an essay and later a book titled Bowling Alone, he has argued that Americans are increasingly less likely to belong to voluntary groups and associations of all kinds and that this will have serious consequences for everything from personal health to our whole political system.
Putnam’s evidence, his proposed solutions, what they say about where we are now and where we are going, and the responses of his critics from across the spectrum—all will come in for your consideration.
Socialism, Ecology, and Feminisms
Both Marxian and non-Marxian socialists offer moral critiques of the existing social order. Some of the latter, along with certain liberal theorists, have recently argued that welfare liberalism and socialism share much ground, that the former even perhaps points to the latter. What is the basis of such arguments, and what do critics of various stripes make of it all?
Should ecological concerns prompt us to embrace extensive regulation or the international redistribution of resources? Are there market-based solutions to environmental problems? And what of "deep ecology," the view that ecological systems should be considered valuable in themselves, and should impose moral constraints upon human action?
Three lectures on feminism begin by exploring the work of John Stuart Mill on the social situation of women in the mid-19th-century, and his ideas for improving it. The American feminist Betty Friedan critically appraised those improvements from the standpoint of the early 1960s, thereby launching the feminist movement as we know it today.
Is feminism essentially an offshoot of liberalism, exposed to the same questions? What of variants such as the socialist and "radical" feminisms of the 1970s or the "difference feminism" that flows from the work of psychologist Carol Gilligan, and which has influenced the outcome of actual court cases?
Finally, we look at responses of liberal feminists to criticisms of liberalism by other feminists, and at conservative responses to feminism. From feminism, we turn to other political ideas that bring issues of identity into the heart of politics.
Who Belongs? Nationalism and Multiculturalism
The next phase of your reflection focuses on nationalism and multiculturalism as they affect politics both globally and locally. Again, you’ll get to the root of current controversies by looking at how the politics of identity developed, and at the arguments that go on between supporters and critics.
This, in turn, leads us to issues relating to homosexuality, not least because...
61 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 2001
7 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 26, 2011
Excellent presentation skills and material content, the presenter will introduce variety of subject and will argue in super objective view. These lectures are thought provocative and enjoyable
July 1, 2022
Prof Jeremy Shearmur’s Teaching Company course “Ideas in Politics” was released in 2001. The lectures present liberal, conservative, and socialistic principles that are foundational to political ideologies about ecology, feminism, sexual orientations, and multiculturalism. These foundational principles also underpin his discussions of how the role of religion and social diversity influence secular politics. It has been 21 years since the release of these lectures and they are still thought provoking. The lectures helped me expand my prospective of liberal democracy; and helped me rethink the role of morality in conservative political value sets. The lectures also profoundly influenced my thinking about economic justice, gender-social bias, and international politics of 2022 and beyond. (P)
February 18, 2020
An excellent overview of every major idea in domestic western politics with the arguments for and against laid out in a clear and largely unbiased way.
October 27, 2015
'Ideas in Politics' is a set of twenty-four lectures (each about 30 minutes long) dedicated to political ideas that have dominated politics of United States and other 'similar' countries over last century or so. Liberalism and conservatism stand in the center of the lectures, although liberitarianism, nationalism and socialism get their due. In second part of the lectures, professor Shearmur proceeds with analysis of more recent ideas such as feminism and civil rights for different minorities as well as role of religion and toleraion in western countries.
The lectures themselves are somewhat too conversational in their structure and that lack of clear structure was a bit difficult for me to get over at the beginning. In my opinion, the concepts are often presented in somewhat oblique and open-ended manner which leaves a lot to think about for the audience. Also, the lecturer takes a lot of care to present different ideas in an objective manner, there is no stand-taking whatsoever - something that I at least appreciated a lot.
Overall, it's a very informative and thoughtful set of lectures. The issue I have with it is that its, for the lack of better word, open-ended form made me feel it didn't provide any definite conclusions. On one hand I understand perfectly well why professor Shearmur chose this path (after all, it's a presentation, not indoctrination), but nevertheless, his tangibly ambiguable approach to the topic provides in the end a somewhat anticlimactic experience.
The lectures themselves are somewhat too conversational in their structure and that lack of clear structure was a bit difficult for me to get over at the beginning. In my opinion, the concepts are often presented in somewhat oblique and open-ended manner which leaves a lot to think about for the audience. Also, the lecturer takes a lot of care to present different ideas in an objective manner, there is no stand-taking whatsoever - something that I at least appreciated a lot.
Overall, it's a very informative and thoughtful set of lectures. The issue I have with it is that its, for the lack of better word, open-ended form made me feel it didn't provide any definite conclusions. On one hand I understand perfectly well why professor Shearmur chose this path (after all, it's a presentation, not indoctrination), but nevertheless, his tangibly ambiguable approach to the topic provides in the end a somewhat anticlimactic experience.
June 24, 2014
7: A bit too basic but some parts are really interesting
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews