This class content was interesting but much more philosophical than I anticipated. I was originally very excited about this class but I was picturing a more historical approach and not straight up philosophy and papers evaluating different philosophical arguments. I would not recommend this class because the content and professor were boring, however it could be more interesting for someone who is very interested in philosophy. I also would not recommend TA Jing. He had rigid rules for participation that were more extreme than any other discussion I’ve been in, and was often rude to participating students in class. You were required to participate at least once every section but it wasn’t guaranteed that raising your hand and saying something would count because it had to be an original analysis and not just any participation.

Your grade in this class depends on your TA since they're the ones who grade your papers, and you get all your participation points from their discussions (which are mandatory). Professor Pagden is nice and he explains his slides well. There are two assignments - a midterm and a final essay, and their formats are pretty much the same. There is no textbook and the reading materials are given as PDFs.

There are two take home exams (4-5 pages), very manageable. Depending on ur TA, honestly from what I have heard both TA's are reasonable people. I can say so for Ellis, N. such an outstanding TA, she really cares to inform every student about how to do well in the exams. She thoroughly goes over each topic taught in class as well. Now, at times you need to participant in discussion (like 3 times) . Every lecture is recorded, so technical you do not need to attend class in person ( so not graded ). Exams questions are simple and defiantly doable. Reading is a lot, but straight to the point (follow the titles ( ex: Just or unjust war principles) broken up on each article, easier to develop an idea when typing an essay). Take time to type out an essay and you'll get an A. Also this my first year at UCLA as a transfer student, just wanted to mention that to give confront to my transfers. Overall loved the course content and if you are thinking of pursuing law school its a must to take this course. Very possible to get an A! lol, GPA friendly :)