University of Pittsburgh, Summer 2000

Philosophy 1390: Philosophy of Law

C.L. 226—Tuesdays, 6 p.m. to 8:55 p.m.

Ben Eggleston—egglestn@pitt.edu

Paper assignment no. 2

Write a paper on the following topic:

First, consider the two arguments about justice that Socrates delivers on behalf of the laws in the Crito. Do they imply that civil disobedience of the kind that King seeks to justify in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is unjust, or are there features of King’s case that would make his civil disobedience not unjust, according to Socrates’s arguments? Second, do you believe that King’s civil disobedience was just? Be sure to give reasons for your opinion.

Your paper will be due at the beginning of class on June 20, and will be graded according to the following requirements:

requirements:	points possible:	points earned:
1. Your paper accurately summarizes the two arguments about justice that Socrates delivers on behalf of the laws in the Crito:	15
2. Your paper assesses the bearing of these two arguments on King’s civil disobedience:	30
3. Your paper clearly expresses an opinion as to whether King’s civil disobedience was just:	10
4. Your paper offers reasons in support of this opinion:	30
5. Your paper is well organized and clearly written, with good spelling and good grammar:	10
6. Your paper is 4–5 typed, double-spaced pages in length; this sheet is stapled to the front of your paper; and your name is on this sheet, below:	5
· lateness penalty, if applicable: (3 points off per business day late)
total points for this paper:	100

Your name: _________________________________