"An Enemy of the People": the individual and the common good (19BBA00852)

General information

Type:	OP	Curs:	1	Period:	S semester
ECTS Credits:	2 ECTS

Teaching Staff:

Group	Teacher	Department	Language
	Daniel Arenas Vives	Ciencias Sociales	ENG

No prerequirements

In this course, we will read and discuss a very well-known theater play from Henrik Ibsen, one of the most performed playwrights in moder theater. His plays provide vivid representations of the tensions and paradoxes of modern social life, especially between the family, society and business dimensions, presenting complex moral issues in realistic situations. "The Enemy of the People?, in particular, leads readers to reflect on issues such as whistleblowing, the nature of democracy, the role of the media, the possibility to free oneself from society, and the common good.

During the course, students will be asked to perform Ibsen's play (in different teams) and to reflect on some the issues raised by the play. The philosophy behind the course is that literature, and theater in particular, can be more helpful than theories or even empirical data to illuminate complex aspects of social life, providing different perspectives in a deeper and more stimulating way.

Take the first steps for performing a theater play (in this case "An Enemy of the People")
As we prepare the play, we also devote tiime to:
Understand different views about human nature (individualism, egocentrism, self-interest, altruism, reciprocity, intrinsic goodness)
Undestand different views about the relationship between the individual and society
Analyze the possible tensions between democracy and truth
Discuss concepts such as whistleblowing, profssional responsibility and environmental reponsibility versus economic responsibility

1. Presentation Why do we play this piece? Who was ibsen? Distribution of activities Preparation for Act I

2. Act 1 Performance of Act 1 Presentations by students on: -Norway at the time of Ibsen -The concept of whistleblowing

3. Act 2 Performance of Act 2 Presentations by students of: -Deontological Ethics -Consequentialist Ethics

4. Act 3 Performance of Act 3 Presentations by students of: -The individual and society according to Hobbes -The individual and society according to Rousseau

5. Act 4 Performance of Act 4 Presentations by students of: -Virtue Ethics (and the notion of chararcter) -Tocqueville's idea of the tyranny of the majority

6. Act 5 Performance of Act 5 Presentations by students of: -R. Dahl: "On Democracy", pp. 69-80 Final Quiz

In this course, we combine:
-the rehearsal to perform a theater play
-discussion of fhe themes of the play
-additional readings on political philosophy

Ibsen, An Enemy of the People
Machiavelli, The Prince
Hobbes, Leviathan
Rosseau, State of War
J.S. Mill, On Liberty
(the readings will be available in the Moodle of the course)

Group	Teacher	Department
	Daniel Arenas Vives	Ciencias Sociales