https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/W_MA_PLCT1. You can read classic philosophical treatises, from beginning to end. 2. You can answer questions about (parts of) philosophical texts. 3. You understand, and are able to explain, the differences between classic philosophical treatises. 4. You can use a philosophical theory to criticise another philosophical theory. 5. You are able to apply a philosophical theory.Students read two or three classic texts in European legal philosophy. These texts introduce and develop key notions of modern European legal philosophy: natural law, the social contract, the rule of law, republicanism, the separation of powers and the concept of the general will.Every course week students read the assigned chapter(s) and hand in, a day before each class, brief Introductions (750-1000 words) in which questions about the text (in light of learning objectives 1-5) are answered. Students receive written feedback on their introductions. In class the assigned chapters and written introductions are discussed.With an open-book exam (100%) is assessed to what extent students masterthe learning objectives (1-5) distinguished above.To be decided.This course is specifically designed for students of the masterspecialisation Philosophy of Law and Governance.