Law, philosophy, history of the social sciences and powerLaajuus (5 cr)

Objective

After the course the student
- understands the basic ideas of modern philosophy of science,
- understands the continuum of historical (social) philosophical conceptions of science,
- understands and is able to apply the theories of Searle and Lacan in particular analytically in the consideration of social issues,
- is familiar with the interlocutors of the recent (social) philosophical debate on science and their basic ideas,
- understands the connection between law, philosophy of law and the methodology of legal research witin the modern social philosophical and scientific debate.

Content

The course covers the history and philosophy of the humanities and social sciences from the birth of modern science (15th century). The aim is to ultimately understand the development of modern law as part of social structure and thinking, and to mirror the methodology used in the application and research of law against the views presented in other sciences and philosophies of science.
The course first deals with the birth of modern science and the different views presented on it through the ideas of René Descartes, David Hume, Immanuel Kant and Georg H.F. Hegel (skeptical, analytical, epistemological and ontological approach). It then examines the evolution of scientific thought in the 19th and 20th centuries by analyzing the perceptions of writers of the time (Weber, Durkheim, Popper, Wittgenstein, positivism, etc.). After this, the development of the philosophy of science and the conception of science in the second half of the 20th century is considered, e.g. with the help of John Searle (social ontology) and Jacques Lacan (social discussions/discourses). Lectures cover e.g. thoughts of Foucault, Deleuze, Zizek on the state of society and science. A fairly complete and illustrative analysis of Searle's and Lacan's theories is presented. The analysis ultimately presents a comparison of these (psychoanalytic and more traditional linguistic-philosophical) approaches.
Scientific and social philosophical ideas are addressed in the course largely through everyday examples related to the current political, legal, and social debate.

Further information

Tutor
Markku Kiikeri

Execution methods

Working methods:
1. Pre-reading (delivered in Moodle 2 weeks before)
2. Lectures and exercises (20 h)
3. Written exam (Moodle)
4. Case analysis (3-4 pages)

Material: all pretask, lecture and exam is delivered in Moodle

During the lectures original texts of the writers are used and shown when analyzing different topics.