Social Contracts and States of Nature

About the Event

This First Friday Lecture is supported by the Anastaplo Lecture Series Fund in memory of Basic Program Instructor George Anastaplo.

Lecture Description: 

Social contract theory, the idea that people’s relationship with their society or government is based on a contract between them, has been debated by political philosophers for centuries. Such theories often invoke an appeal to an original “state of nature,” a real or imaginary time in which people existed but society did not. This lecture will trace the development of social contract theory, beginning with the ancient Greeks and continuing to the present day. 

About the Lecturer:

David Shiner is Professor Emeritus at Shimer College (now the Shimer Great Books School at North Central College), where he taught for forty years and served several terms as Dean of the College. At Shimer, Professor Shiner taught all sixteen required courses on subjects as distinct as literature, chemistry, psychology, and politics. He has also taught at other colleges as well as at Great Discourses, an online provider of high-quality noncredit courses. He has written on the dialogues of Plato, the philosophy of the French Enlightenment, game theory, economics, and paradox. His non-academic activities include chess, acting, musical performance, and sports. He holds a PhD in Philosophy from Pacific Miramar University. He has a special interest in classics, especially classical philosophy. You can contact David at dshiner@uchicago.edu.

Who's Speaking

David Shiner

Basic Program Instructor

David Shiner is Professor Emeritus at Shimer College (now the Shimer Great Books School at North Central College), where he taught for forty years and served several terms as Dean of the College. At Shimer, Professor Shiner taught all sixteen required courses on subjects as distinct as literature, chemistry, psychology,...

David Shiner is Professor Emeritus at Shimer College (now the Shimer Great Books School at North Central College), where he taught for forty years and served several terms as Dean of the College. At Shimer, Professor Shiner taught all sixteen required courses on subjects as distinct as literature, chemistry, psychology, and politics. He has also taught at other colleges as well as at Great Discourses, an online provider of high-quality noncredit courses. He has written on the dialogues of Plato, the philosophy of the French Enlightenment, game theory, economics, and paradox. His non-academic activities include chess, acting, musical performance, and sports. He holds a PhD in Philosophy from Pacific Miramar University. He has a special interest in classics, especially classical philosophy.