Module POL1019 for 2020/1
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL1019: Power and Democracy
This module descriptor refers to the 2020/1 academic year.
Module Aims
This module will introduce you to some key conceptual and normative debates in democratic theory. It aims to make you aware of the nature, limitations and possible applications of a range of different perspectives, conceptual approaches, and interpretations in democratic theory. For students interested in pursuing Politics and/or International Relations as a field of study, this is a useful introduction to core concepts in democratic theory.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
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Module-Specific Skills | 1. understand the nature of democratic politics; 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 political theory; |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. develop critical thinking skills, particularly in relation to normative and conceptual arguments; 6. reflect on your place in society and your power to shape it. |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Michael Walzer (1981) ‘Philosophy and Democracy’, Political Theory 9(3): 379-399.
Joseph Schumpeter (1943) Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. London: Allen & Unwin, ch.20-22.
Margaret Canovan (1999) ‘Trust the People! Populism and the two Faces of Democracy’, Political Studies47: 2-16.
Carol Pateman (1970) Participation and Democratic Theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ch.2.
Michael Saward (2014) ‘Shape-shifting representation’, American Political Science Review 108(4): 723-736.
Bruce Ackerman & James Fishkin (2002) ‘Deliberation Day’, The Journal of Political Philosophy10(2): 129-152.
Sheldon Wolin (1994) ‘Fugitive Democracy’, Constellations1(1): 11-25.
David Miller (1999) ‘Democracy’s Domain’, Philosophy and Public Affairs 37(3): 201-228.
Iris Marion Young (1989) ‘Polity and Group Difference: A Critique of the Ideal of Universal Citizenship’, Ethics99: 250-74.