Prerequisites: None

Exam Type: No Exam

To its defenders, liberalism establishes the only workable way to govern a diverse society: pluralism and tolerance in the private sphere, political equality and the rule of law in the public sphere, and the free market as the primary mediator of material needs and wants. But, critics contend, liberalism too often fails to defend its premises, and it lacks an internal theory of its limits. Indeed, many of the most pressing debates in modern America seem to turn precisely on those questions that liberalism treats as pre-political: When is difference so offensive as to be intolerable, and when is it constitutive of a protected identity? Who determines the preconditions for equal participation in a polity, and who can overrule them? Which deprivations are too unjust to accept, and which are simply just deserts? In this reading group, we will try to better understand these questions by looking to classic and contemporary Supreme Court opinions that grapple with them, as well as secondary sources that contextualize and deepen the debates. Participants will be expected to complete all the assigned readings, submit a very short question before each session, and actively participate in group discussion. With luck, we’ll find much to disagree about and much to learn together.

Note: This reading group will meet for six consecutive weeks on the following dates: TBD.