Module POC2120 for 2023/4
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POC2120: Power and Democracy
This module descriptor refers to the 2023/4 academic year.
Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.
Module Aims
This module aims to encourage you to reflect on contemporary debates about democratic politics in light of two broad traditions of political thought: liberal and radical democracy. On the one hand, liberal democrats tend to view democracy simply as decision-making procedure: they want to limit democratic politics to appropriate political arenas and to direct it through appropriate channels. On the other hand, radical democrats tend to view democracy as a way of life: they want to expand democratic politics throughout social life and enhance the meaningfulness of participation available to citizens. You will reflect on how these traditions of democratic thought inform and influence how we think about a range of contested practices of political life today, such as: Should citizens should have to pass a competence test in order to vote? Are populists the ‘true’ democrats? Can the use of coercive tactics by political demonstrators be democratic? When might unelected and self-appointed representatives be more representative than elected politicians?
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
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Module-Specific Skills | 1. distinguish between liberal and radical theories of democracy; 2. evaluate political phenomena in terms of normative criteria of democratic theory. |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. assess the insightfulness of different interpretations of political texts and phenomena; 4. assimilate and analyse a range of sources in contemporary political theory. |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. refine normative and conceptual arguments; 6. reflect on your own social position and political agency. |