units

ATS2640

Faculty of Arts

18 September 2017 30 April 2024
Monash University

Undergraduate - Unit

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2015 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 1, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

LevelUndergraduate
FacultyFaculty of Arts
Organisational UnitPhilosophy
OfferedCaulfield First semester 2015 (Day)
Clayton First semester 2015 (Day)
Clayton Second semester 2015 (Day)
Coordinator(s)Dr Paul Daniels (Semester 1); Dr Rob Sparrow (Semester 2)

Synopsis

When, if ever, is warfare justified? What about humanitarian intervention? What about violent revolution and terrorism? Why should civilians be protected in conflict? This unit will introduce students to theoretical approaches to the ethics of conflict that will allow them to answer these difficult questions. It will also serve to introduce students to basic ideas in moral and political philosophy. No background in philosophy is required: merely an interest in rational argument applied to global conflict.

Outcomes

Students successfully completing this unit will:

  1. have a high level of understanding of the central ideas of just war theory
  2. appreciate a wide variety of criticisms of just war theory
  3. understand the connections between human rights and war
  4. have developed the ability to apply theories of justice in conflict to actual cas es from recent history
  5. be able to develop and critically assess arguments about the justification of violence in the pursuit of political ends
  6. have improved their ability to effectively communicate about complex issues in international affairs
  7. have developed their ability to conduct independent research on topics of international justice.

Assessment

Within semester assessment: 100%

Workload requirements

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

See also Unit timetable information

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Paul Daniels (Semester 1); Dr Rob Sparrow (Semester 2)

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Holocaust and genocide studies
Human rights
International relations
International relations - Specialisation
International studies
International studies - Specialisation
Philosophy

Prerequisites

Twelve credit points of first-year Arts units.

Prohibitions

ATS3640, AZA2640, AZA3640