Syllabus_PHILOSOPHY OF HUMAN RIGHTS (PHIL 241) Fall 2021 _Eleni Panagiotarakou (6)

PHILOSOPHY OF HUMAN RIGHTS Concordia University Department of Philosophy PHIL 241/2/A Day(s): Friday 11:45-14:30 Delivery mode: Remote (asynchronous lectures) Eleni Panagiotarakou, PhD eleni.panagiotarakou@concordia.ca Open Office Hours: Friday 8:00-10:00 am https://concordia-ca.zoom.us/j/85373328080?pwd=bEhRRFFiT0xlanJUMWVxekZVejdMUT09 Meeting ID: 853 7332 8080 - Passcode: 250984 ( Note: The 1 st part of the office hours is reserved for questions relating to textual analysis, while the 2 nd part is reserved for questions relating to assignments and miscellaneous items) Term: [2021/09/07 - 2021/12/06] Teaching Assistants Fahimeh Nazarian : fahimeh.nazarian@concordia.ca & Jason Stocker: jason.stocker@concordia.ca Librarian: Rachel Harris rachel.harris@concordia.ca https://www.concordia.ca/library/guides/political-science.html Official Course Description "This course investigates basic philosophical questions regarding human rights, such as their status between morality and law, their scope and the problem of relativism, the concept of human dignity, their relation to democracy, whether national or cosmopolitan, and the debate over the justifiability and feasibility of socio-economic rights as human rights." 1 Specific Course Description & Objectives 1 http://www.concordia.ca/academics/undergraduate/calendar/current/sec31/31-220.html Page 1 of 21

Are human rights universal or relative? Does relativism preclude the possibility of cross-cultural universals? What role did the tradition of natural law and natural rights play in the development of modern human rights? Are human rights to be thought of as moral or political rights? Are human rights the reproduction of a narrow liberal ontology? What does the word 'dignity' signify in the language of human rights? Have human rights been reduced to biopolitical humanitarianism? Has the historical development of the human rights corpus been exclusionary of non-Western conceptions of rights? The primary objective of this course is to explore these questions and any other ones that arise in connection with human rights in a detailed and systematic manner. Assignments 1 st Multiple-Choice, Online Quiz (10%) Purpose : demonstrate understanding of the main points in the readings. The quiz will consist of 10 multiple-choice questions. You will have 60 seconds per question (30 seconds per question plus a bonus of 50% extra time). Two attempts will be allowed, and I will consider only your highest mark. Due: Week 3 – See Moodle for exact day and guidelines 1 st Critical Essay (40%) Word count: 1,500 Purpose: Demonstrate understanding of the subject matter. Think critically about a theory or argument and put ideas into a logical order. Due: Week 6 - See Moodle for exact day and guidelines 2 nd Multiple-Choice, Online Quiz (10%) Purpose : demonstrate understanding of the main points in the readings. The quiz will consist of 10 multiple-choice questions. You will have 60 seconds per question (30 seconds per question plus a bonus of 50% extra time). Two attempts will be allowed, and I will consider only your highest mark. Due: Week 13- See Moodle for exact day and guidelines 2 nd Critical Essay (40%) Word count: 1,500 Purpose: Demonstrate understanding of the subject matter. Think critically about a theory or argument and put ideas into a logical order. Due: Week 12 - See Moodle for exact day and guidelines Required Readings See "Weekly Schedule" below for the readings. Readings will be made available to you at Concordia's online Course Reserves at no extra financial cost. Page 2 of 21

Weekly Schedule | Texts | Topics Week 1/ Introduction  Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.).   Human rights . Britannica Academic. Week 2/ Normative Overview of Human Rights  Anthony J. Langlois. "Normative and Theoretical Foundations of Human Rights" in Human Rights: Politics and Practice (ed) Michael Goodhart. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016. Chapter 1. Week 3/ Evolution of Human Rights  Ishay, Micheline R. The History of Human Rights: From Ancient Times to the Globalization Era. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008. (pp. 15-61) Monday, Sept. 20 th - Deadline for withdrawal with tuition refund ( DNE ) Week 4/ Human Rights & Civilization  Woodruff, Paul. On Justice, Power and Human Nature . Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. 1993 (Chapter 3) Week 5/ Human Rights & Natural Law: Case Study: Antigone  Karen Taliaferro "Antigone: The Tragedy of Human and Divine Law" Cambridge University Press (Chapter 2, pp. 32-60) Week 6/ Human Rights, Dignity, Euthanasia  Szawarski Piort. "Classic cases revisited – Tony Nicklinson and the question of dignity."   Journal of the Intensive Care Society . 2020;21(2):174-178. doi: 10.1177/1751143719853746 Week 7/Human Rights & Care Ethics  Held, Virginia. "Care and Human Rights", in Rowan Cruft, Matthew Liao & Massimo Renzo (eds.), Philosophical Foundations of Human Rights , Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. Chapter 35. Week 8 / Human Rights & Care Ethics  Mendus, Susan. "Care and Human Rights: A Reply to Virginia Held", in Rowan Cruft, Matthew Liao & Massimo Renzo (eds.), Philosophical Foundations of Human Rights , Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. Chapter 36. Week 9/ Human Rights (Care Ethics vs Theory of Obligation)  Panagiotarakou, Eleni. 2016.  " Who Loves Mosquitoes? Care Ethics, Theory of Obligation, and Endangered Species " ,  Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics  29 (6): 1057-1070.  https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10806-016-9648-1   Week 10/Women's Rights/Disability Rights/Refugee Rights  Ackerly, Brooke A. "Feminist and Activist Approaches to Human Rights," in Human Rights: Politics and Practice (ed) Michael Goodhart. Oxford University Press, 2016. Chapter 2. Week 11/Human Rights, the Anthropocene, and Wild Animal Rights  Panagiotarakou, Eleni. 2021. "Who Loves Rats? Managed Relocations of Endangered Species." In Climate Crisis & Creation Care: Eco-Economic Sustainability, Ecological Page 3 of 21

Integrity and Justice . (ed) Christina Nellist. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ( Forthcoming. Article will be placed on Course Reserve upon publication ) Week 12 / Human Rights & The Environment  John Barry and Kerri Woods. "The Environment" in Human Rights: Politics and Practice (ed) Michael Goodhart. Oxford University Press, 2016 pp. 405-420 Week 13/ Human Rights & Its Critics  David Chandler " The Critique of Human Rights" (Chapter 7) in Goodhart, Michael. Human Rights: Politics and Practice . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016. Nota Bene: Students who wish to delve deeper into the literature are encouraged to consult Appendix A. UNDERGRADUATE GRADING SYSTEM Numerical Equivalents A- 80-84% 3.7 GP A 85-89% 4.0 GP A+ 90-100% 4.3 GP B- 70-72% 2.7 GP B 73-76% 3.0 GP B+ 77-79% 3.3 GP C- 60-62% 1.7 GP C 63-66% 2.0 GP C+ 67-69% 2.3 GP D- 50-52% 0.7 GP D 53-56% 1.0 GP D+ 57-59% 1.3 GP A Note on Letter Grades 2  "An 'A' paper meets all expectations and requirements but exceeds them in significant ways . For instance, a paper of this quality may do one or more of the following: be exceptionally well-composed, well-argued, and rigorous; demonstrate exceptional rigour or an exceptional understanding of the wider questions and scholarly significance of the issues discussed; show sharp philosophical insight and ability, or independent thinking; promise to contribute a substantial insight or result to existing scholarship. Generally, a paper will not receive an "A" if it contains mistakes/flaws/errors in writing.  A "B" paper is very good . It fully meets all the expectations and requirements regarding deadlines, length, content, presentation, documenting references, argumentation, and so forth. 2 P er verbatim and with thanks to Dr. Davis Morris. Page 4 of 21

It shows that the student has developed a very good understanding of the assigned readings, the lectures, and the specific task of the assignment.  A "C" paper is satisfactory . It generally meets the assignment's expectations and demonstrates adequate knowledge of the course material but falls short in crucial respects. For example, the author does not demonstrate a very good understanding of the material ; key concepts or aspects are not mentioned; an argument lacks coherence or logical structure; the paper just gathers points without showing their relation or putting them together in a cohesive form, or developing lines of argument, reasoning, or exposition; the work is not well written and/or displays too many grammar and spelling errors, and so on.  A "D" paper is marginal . It does not meet the general expectations and requirements of the assignment. While it endeavours to meet the specific criteria, it shows flaws and gaps in knowledge of the course material that prevent it from being coherent or from considering relevant sources, ideas, and arguments.  An "F" paper is poor/failing . Work that receives an "F" makes no serious attempt to meet the formal and substantial requirements or was not handed in at all. The flaws and gaps in understanding are so grave that the reader cannot detect a concerted effort to appropriate and use the course material." Statement on Sexual Violence Concordia's Policy Regarding Sexual Violence defines sexual violence as "any violence, physical or psychological, carried out through sexual means or by targeting sexuality. This includes but is not limited to sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, indecent exposure, voyeurism, degrading sexual imagery, distribution of sexual images or video of a community member without their consent, and cyber-harassment or cyberstalking of a sexual nature or related to a person's sexual orientation, gender identity and/or presentation." The Policy further defines sexual assault and harassment.  The Philosophy Department condemns sexual violence. The Department encourages all students to report sexual violence to the Department Chair, the Dean, or the Office of Rights and Responsibilities.  Concordia's Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC) is an important resource on campus for students needing support, accompaniment, resources, or information about sexual violence. SARC may convene a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) to support a survivor/victim reporting sexual violence. See the Policy for further details.  Other resources include the Centre for Gender Advocacy and the CSU Advocacy Centre .  The Philosophy Department welcomes Concordia's Consensual Romantic Or Sexual Relationships Guidelines , which "strongly discourage[] all instructors from commencing or continuing any consensual romantic or sexual relationship with a student." Territorial Acknowledgment "I would like to acknowledge that Concordia University is located on unceded Indigenous lands. The Kanien'kehá:ka Nation is recognized as the custodians of the lands and waters on which we gather today. Tiohtiá:ke/Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today, it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. I respect the Page 5 of 21